David Rule
16-year-old Pinedale high school junior, David Rule, was the first to cross the finish line in a time of 19:54.
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Hundreds brave cold for 2013 Pinedale Turkey Trot
23rd annual Thanksgiving morning fun walk/run
by Craig Sheppard
December 2, 2013
Over 212 registered turkey trotters (lots of people did not register) woke up to a beautiful Pinedale morning Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 28th. There was a 19 degree temperature with no wind to aid the walkers, bikers and runners in seeing the great Wind River Mountains on their yearly 3-mile adventure over the true "over the river and through the woods" course. Just to prove how hardy these aerobic enthusiasts are, there were a lot of comments on how nice the weather was. Most places would be looking for alternate indoor venues for their Thanksgiving runs at this temperature. Just in case of some cold-blooded participants, Wyatt had two metal tubs of firewood burning for those who needed to warm-up a little before the race. Ellen Sheppard, in charge of the hospitality garage and timing, had plenty of warm coffee ready for the early birds.
As usual, there were all types of exercisers participating. We had participants from 5-week old Josiah Pearce to a 67-year young person. We had walkers, runners, run/walkers, trotters, baby strollers and bicycle riders. There were people from 9 different states, 12 towns or cities in Wyoming, and we even had Brie Scott from Germany. There were plenty of dogs around to help pull their owners through the course. If we added the canines to our list of participants, we would have been close to 300 involved. These added guests were not totally unobserved, for Ellen’s cats were on high alert inside the house.
Even though this is a fun run/walk, we would like to recognize a few individuals. 16-year-old Pinedale high school junior, David Rule, was the first to cross the finish line in a time of 19:54. David was followed by Ken Konicek in 20:16. As far as head turkey Sheppard, he did not fare so well. He is getting farther back in the pack, but is still having fun visiting with everyone before, during and after the race.
Megan Neher won the women’s division with a time of 21:38 and her faithful running companion, Saint, was the first dog to cross the finish line. The next female participant in was Turkey Trot veteran Terry Cain (25:55).
By far the biggest portion of this race is dominated by the true walkers. No official results were recorded, so they are all winners - as all of our hardy participants are.
I know there are many names not mentioned in this article, but it is fun to see so many friends, families, school alumni and visitors gathering to take in the beautiful scenery and fresh air of Pinedale. Thanks go out to the Pinedale schools for use of their tables, bull horn and cones; Pinedale Half Marathon for use of their timer; and also to the Pinedale newspapers, banks and Pinedale Online for advertising. I especially need to thank my family (Ellen and Wyatt) for putting up with my many passions, of which one is running the Turkey Trot.
This was the 23rd running of the Pinedale Turkey Trot and with all the favorable comments it seems to have developed into a great annual tradition for the Pinedale community and their Thanksgiving guests. Don’t forget it is never too late to get in shape for the 24th annual Pinedale Turkey Trot which will be held Thanksgiving morning 2014 at the Sheppard’s house at 9AM. See you then!
Photos courtesy Sheppard family
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