DOWAGIAC — Runners and walkers who competed in the 52nd annual Dowagiac All Trail Turkey Trot braved the Roadrunner rustic trails located behind Dowagiac Middle School.

The race has made its own history as Pure Michigan’s oldest Turkey Trot with the same race director, Ron Gunn. The race, sponsored as a fundraiser by the Dowagiac Union High School Athletic Department, kicked off at Dowagiac Middle School on Sunday.

The race events included a 10K and 5K walk and run. With more than 181 competitors signed up the day of, runners showed up to sweat out calories a few days before feasting.

Will Fiesbeck, 15, returned to the Dowagiac race for a second year in a row because of the fun atmosphere and to prepare for an upcoming track season.

Fiesbeck, who finished his 5K in 19:55, traveled from his home in downtown St. Joseph to Dowagiac specifically for the trail atmosphere.

“I liked this race,” Fiesbeck said. “It was a good environment and good course. It was kind of hard to see the branches under the leaves, but it wasn’t that challenging.”

Kendra Koster, 13, of Lawton, ran the fastest women’s time in the 5K after finishing in 22:07. At a previous 5K called the Hotcake Hustle, hosted in Kalamazoo, Koster met two boys who told her about the Turkey Trot. 

“5Ks are really fun,” Koster said.  “I’ve never done the Turkey Trot. I thought it would be cool. People said really good things about it.”

As a seasoned cross country and track runner, Koster has ran her fair share of trails but still found the course challenging. She tripped over a root and rolled her ankle a few times, but neither impacted her from enjoying the race. Koster competes in winter running at her school, where runners brave the snow and other conditions.

Noah Krzan, 33, of Kalamazoo, had the fastest 10K run time of 41:25.

Stephanie Burkholder, 29, of Goshen, was the first woman finisher in the 10K race with a time of 49:50.

Burkholder, who has been running competitively for more than 10 years, is used to traveling to compete in races.

“I’m used to driving two hours for races,” she said.

Burkholder, who does not compete in many trail races, found the wooded areas to be challenging, especially during the hill at the five-mile mark.

“It was tough and challenging. That’s what I liked about it the most,” Burkholder said.

As runners finished their races, Tryptophan, a wild turkey posed for photo
opportunities.

“Why not bring an actual turkey to the race,” said Whitney Podell, Tryptophan’s owner and Cassopolis resident.