The Bloomington community will participate in the 34th annual Turkey Trot at 8 a.m. Thanksgiving morning Thursday, Nov. 22 at Miller Park.

Bloomington Parks and Recreation athletics program manager Denise Balagna said the Turkey Trot consists of two races and a walk.

The event will begin at 9 a.m. with a half-mile run for children eight and under and 9-14-year-olds, Balagna said.

“The second race is the three-mile race and that is for all ages,” she explained. “The youngest age group is 14 and under and the oldest is 65 and over.”

The age groups for the three-mile run are: 14 and under, 15-19, 20-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-54 and 65 and over, she added.

The 3-mile run will begin around 9:20 a.m. after all of the children cross the finish line in the half-mile run and the finish line has been moved to the appropriate place for the next race, she explained.

“There is also a 1.5 mile non-competitive walk inside of Miller Park and it will start after the runners have cleared the starting line for the 3-mile race,” Balagna said.

Balagna said this event focuses on accommodating people of all ages in the community.

“We try to have the older people participate in the walk and then all ages in the run,” she added.

There will be an awards ceremony after the race and each participant receive a ribbon, Balagna said.

Each participant will also be eligible for drawings for frozen turkeys, she added.

Balagna said she has helped organize the Turkey Trot since 2001 and it has always been a great success.

“Last year we broke records with our attendance with almost 1,200 participants and 1,000 in the 3-mile race alone,” she said.

“Everyone’s excited about coming out and getting some exercise in before they go home and feast,” Balagna added.

Balagna said all registration will be done the day of the race from 8 to 9 a.m. in the Miller Park pavilion and it is free to anyone who would like to participate.