On Thanksgiving morning in 2018, a family of seven from Tulsa stood in the back parking lot of Racquet & Jog on South Broadway Avenue in fleece hats shaped like turkeys. Three of them had never run a 5K. When asked why they were running, one of them told the Tyler Morning Telegraph that it was "because it's the turkey trot, and it's what we do." That year's field also included a couple from Washington, D.C., in town visiting family, and a mother and daughter from Troup in matching "Run now, pie later" shirts.
The 24th Annual Tyler Turkey Trot is Thursday, Nov. 26, 2026. It starts and finishes at Racquet & Jog, 5403 S. Broadway Ave., which shares the 75703 ZIP code with Oak Creek. The race has grown into a big group outing for Thanksgiving week, and its rules set the schedule. There's no packet pickup on race day, so if you plan to bring houseguests to the start line, the real work happens on Tuesday and Wednesday.
A Field That Has Grown by Hundreds
For years the Turkey Trot was a well-attended neighborhood race. Lately it has filled up faster and drawn bigger crowds. Here's how the numbers have moved, as Tyler's local outlets reported them each year:
| Year | Edition | What was reported |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 16th annual | More than 2,100 signed up, the race sold out, and 1,703 people finished the 5K |
| 2023 | 21st annual | Just under 2,000 participants, according to the race organizer |
| 2024 | 22nd annual | About 2,250 sign-ups |
| 2025 | 23rd annual | A record 3,000 runners, according to race officials |
Each year counted something a little different. One year it was sign-ups, another it was participants, and in 2025 race officials counted runners. KLTV reported roughly 2,250 sign-ups in 2024 and named Michelle Peña as the race organizer. One year later, the Tyler Morning Telegraph described thousands of runners filling the streets around Racquet & Jog in a record-breaking year.
That's roughly 900 more people than the 2018 field that sold out, gathering around the same South Broadway store. More people means more cars on South Broadway early Thanksgiving morning. It also means the race's rules matter more than they used to.
The Week Runs Backward From Thursday
On the 2026 race page, the organizers say in bold that they will not have packet pickup on race day. Your bib, shirt and timing chip have to be in hand before Thanksgiving morning. Working backward from the start line, the week looks like this:
- Tuesday, Nov. 24, noon to 6 p.m. The first packet pickup window, in the Racquet & Jog parking lot.
- Wednesday, Nov. 25, noon to 7 p.m. The second and last pickup window, in the same lot. Online registration also closes Wednesday evening. There's no in-person registration at any point.
- Thursday, Nov. 26, 8:15 a.m. The Kids' Dash starts and runs until 8:45 a.m.
- Thursday, Nov. 26, 9 a.m. The 5K run/walk starts.
This matters most for households with guests coming in. If relatives drive in Wednesday night, they won't make it to the parking lot before pickup closes. The race lets you authorize someone else to pick up a packet and bib number. So whoever already lives in Tyler can register the whole group online and collect every packet on Tuesday or Wednesday afternoon. Then the guests show up Thursday morning ready to run.
The Kids' Dash is the part to sort out first. It's open to ages 11 and under, costs $20, and has a limited number of spots. If you have a house full of cousins, register them well before Thanksgiving week.
What Each Registration Gets You
The two events are packaged differently. That matters if a younger runner wants to do both.
| Kids' Dash | 5K Run/Walk | |
|---|---|---|
| Start time | 8:15 a.m. | 9 a.m. |
| Who can enter | Ages 11 and under | Open, with age groups from 9 and under through 75 and older |
| Age groups | 4 and under, 5–6, 7–8, 9–11 | 15 brackets in five-year steps |
| What's included | Kids' T-shirt and medal | Long-sleeve event T-shirt, finisher medal, chip-timed results |
Kids who run the Dash can also join the 5K at no extra cost. To get chip timing and a second finisher medal, though, they need a separate 5K registration. A competitive 10-year-old who wants an official 5K time needs both entries. A child who just wants to keep running with a parent after the Dash doesn't.
The gap between start times also shapes the morning. The Dash ends at 8:45 a.m. and the 5K starts at 9. A family with runners in both events has 15 minutes to regroup in a parking lot shared with a few thousand people.
The Streets the Race Has Used
Back in 2018, runners started in the back parking lot of Racquet & Jog and went west on Rieck Road. They looped over to Hollytree Drive, came back east on Rice Road, and finished in the same parking lot. The race page links to a course map for the 3.1-mile distance, so check it before race day for this year's exact turns.
These streets are why the race feels local. It isn't held in a park or on a closed highway. It runs through established South Tyler streets just west of South Broadway, the same blocks people drive on the way to Rice Road errands. For anyone coming from Oak Creek, the start line sits within the same 75703 ZIP code. Plan on extra traffic and give yourself time to park before the 8:15 start.
Racquet & Jog Has Been in Tyler Since 1980
The race's home base has its own South Tyler history. A 2014 Tyler Morning Telegraph profile reported that Dale Grimes started Racquet & Jog in 1980 as a small shop selling running and tennis gear in Old English Village. The store later moved to Times Square and then to its current South Broadway site.
That history explains how a running store's parking lot became the starting point for one of Tyler's largest Thanksgiving gatherings. Local coverage in 2018, 2024 and 2025 placed the Thanksgiving crowd at or around Racquet & Jog each time. Since the 2018 race was the 16th and the 2024 race was the 22nd, the event dates to about 2003, assuming no years were skipped.
Where the 2026 Entry Fees Go
This year's charity is Promise Academy in Tyler. The race page describes it as a private Christian school that offers income-based tuition to families in the North Tyler area. So a race held in South Tyler supports an organization across town. Every bib bought this month, including the ones you pick up on Tuesday afternoon for relatives still on the road, counts toward that support.
Planning the Morning Around the Meal
The 2018 field showed how the race fits into the holiday. A group of 123 people from Camp Gladiator ran it together. One runner wore a hat shaped like a slice of pumpkin pie, and another pushed a stroller decorated as a turkey. A local mother running with her three teenagers for the first time told the Tyler Morning Telegraph, "This is our first year, and it's gonna be a tradition."
A 9 a.m. start leaves the rest of the day open for the meal. Register online now. Mark Tuesday or Wednesday afternoon on the calendar for packet pickup. On Thursday, get everyone into the Racquet & Jog lot with shoes laced before 8:15.
Fall weekends like this one are part of what makes South Tyler home. If you're thinking about how your own place fits into the next chapter, the Crutcher & Hartley Team would be glad to talk it over, after the pie. Request a Free Home Valuation, and we'll put together a clear, local read on what your home is worth this season.
