Volume 13, Number 6: October 2005
The Family That Runs Together…
…has fun together, fitness together, and for the Wright family, just a whole lot of together. Felton and Bonnie Wright met in 1985 through running, as members of the Gulf Winds Track Club. They married, and son Jamie made his race debut in a stroller at the Thanksgiving Turkey Trot. At four, Jamie was running. At the 2003 Trot, he was doing it with fourteen family members.
"Both Bonnie and I have large families-five siblings each," says Felton, "and that year, a big family contingent gathered in Tallahassee for Thanksgiving. They know we race that morning, and they look to us for something fun to do-besides eat turkey. So the whole family came out."
Something for Everyone
Felton, a lifetime athlete, runs the 15K race in the Turkey Trot (9.3 miles), but both he and Bonnie are quick to point out that the event is really four races: 1-mile fun run/walk, 5K run/walk (3.1 miles), 10K (6.2 miles), and 15K. "There's an opportunity for everyone. That's the beauty," Bonnie says. "If you want to walk or hang back, it's fine. No pressure. And if you like competing, you can."
As a charter member of Gulf Winds, which created the Turkey Trot, Felton has seen many changes in the event. He notes approvingly, "It has turned into a family day, not a race for competitive runners only. The neat thing is the holiday morning. You know you're going to eat a lot. Friends and family are in town. Exercise is good. The diversity of people you see walking together is amazing." So is the age diversity.
"It has turned into a family day, not a race for competitive runners only. The neat thing is the holiday morning. You know you're going to eat a lot. Friends and family are in town. Exercise is good. The diversity of people you see walking together is amazing."
Felton Wright
Charter Member,
Gulf Winds Track Club
Kids See, Kids Run
In their 2003 mega-family run, Bonnie's nephew (son of her twin brother) ran the 5K for the first time; her niece ran the mile. While the children weren't first-time runners, Bonnie believes "The Turkey Trot, with all the family, was a positive push. Both began running at school- Leon and Raa."
Felton agrees: "When they saw so many kids, including friends, and saw it would be fun, they were motivated. In fact, the biggest new group at the Turkey Trot is younger kids." Children are involved not only with their families, but through the Kent Vann Partners in Excellence Awards. Cash awards, used to promote fitness, go to the middle and elementary schools with the most participants.
As for Jamie Wright, now twelve, his dad says, "Jamie runs the one mile or 5K for fun. He's grown up thinking it's what you do."
Why? Challenge, Creativity, Camaraderie
When asked why he himself runs, one of Felton's answers is, "I've been doing it for 35 years and don't know any better." A lifetime habit, in other words-what son Jamie is headed for, he hopes. A man who runs 50 to 60 miles per week and has "dabbled" in iron man triathlons, Felton likes challenging himself.
"For me," says Bonnie, "it's slightly different. I'm not much of a competitor. Running is a great way to be fit in a short amount of time: go out your front door, go for a run, go to your job."
That may sound utilitarian and boring, except . . . "Running frees your mind. It makes me more creative. Also, I do it to see friends! We call ourselves the Early Girlz because we start at 5:30 a.m." (Despite the name, some of the Girlz are men.) Felton too explains that "Running is as much a social activity for me as a health one."
Friendship is one pull of membership in a runners' club. "The people in Gulf Winds Track Club are really fine individuals," Bonnie says. "It's not only about being physically healthy. It's connecting with people."
That's a smart strategy for exercise in general: do it with other people. If you don't happen to have fourteen relatives to run or walk with, or a current exercise group of Girlz or Boyz, then consider starting your own group, or coming to a CHP Weight Loss Class, or turning out for the Turkey Trot. You're sure to see the Wrights-and find yourself in quite a large Thanksgiving Day 'family.' Last year, 1,532 people waddled before they gobbled.
What Is Gulf Winds Track Club?
To some, Gulf Winds Track Club is a bit of a mystery. Do you have to be a good runner to get in-someone who's won races? Is it a sort of team . . . like in high school? Or does the whole club run around a track together? No, no, and no. At www.gulfwinds.org, you'll learn that the track club "supports and promotes running and fitness for people of all ages and abilities." Not only that, it is "the largest, friendliest, most fun-loving group of fitness enthusiasts in Tallahassee." So there.
In seriousness, Gulf Winds Track Club is both a fitness and social club with many activities, from races to lectures to parties. Its dues are minimal-$20 per year or $25 for a family-and it offers a beginning running program. Joggers, runners, race walkers, and triathletes all participate. Learn more at www.gulfwinds.org.