Redlands Holds Turkey Trot

Nearly 600 runners spent their Thanksgiving morning trying to catch a human turkey during the inaugural Redlands Turkey Trot 5K at Sylvan Park. The race gave participants the opportunity to burn calories while raising money for Inland Harvest, Redlands Educational Partnership Foundation and sponsor, Phoenix Hope International. Donavan Gonzalez, 9, of Redlands didn’t mind waking at dawn so he could participate in the 1K run for kids. “It felt really good,” he said. His dad, Joe Gonzalez, was happy with his son’s fourth-place finish. “When the turkey came out he forgot to pace himself and all that,” said Joe Gonzalez, laughing. “It’s an awesome event, he had fun that’s all that really matters.” Redlands residents Raelene Fulford, 39, and Lindsay Shadle, 29, went dressed as turkeys with paper mache beaks, brown skirts for feathers and bright yellow turkey feet around their running shoes. They enjoyed the opportunity to break out of their daily routines and act like big kids for a day. “We love dressing up and doing things like this,” said Fulford. Shadle was the fastest woman runner with a time of 21:32. "It feels good to win… the runners here really pushed me,” she said. Organizers hope to make the Turkey Trot an annual event that will continue to help those in need. “We want to assist the most impoverished areas of the world,” said Phoenix Hope Treasurer Matthew Sommer. Sommer is expecting to raise nearly $15,000 which will be split between the organizations. Phoenix Hope plans to use the money to help women and children who suffer from malnutrition to receive food, clean water and prenatal care. “We’re interested in helping communities around the world,” said Sommer.