Black Mountain Turkey Trot 5k

Black Mountain Turkey Trot: A Mountain Thanksgiving Tradition

Get ready for an unforgettable Thanksgiving morning at the 2nd annual Black Mountain Turkey Trot! Imagine crisp mountain air filling your lungs as golden autumn leaves crunch beneath your feet. Transform your Thanksgiving morning with a tradition of community, health, and gratitude. This North Carolina Turkey Trot is only 20 minutes from Downtown Asheville, located in the the beautiful town of Black Mountain, North Carolina, a small, artistic town in Buncombe County known for its scenic mountain setting, creative energy, and historic downtown - also named one of "America's Prettiest Small Towns" by TripAdvisor!

Two Perfect Ways to Join Us

The Black Mountain 5K Turkey Trot - Challenge yourself on our professionally designed 5K course winding through Black Mountain's charming historic downtown and picturesque neighborhoods. Every step takes you past stunning mountain vistas and welcoming storefronts decked in holiday charm. With chip timing for accurate results, competitive runners can push for a personal best while casual participants enjoy the festive atmosphere at their own pace.

The Wishbone Fun Run - Our family-friendly 1-mile route creates the perfect opportunity for runners and walkers of all ages and abilities. Bring the grandparents, the little ones, and everyone in between! Strollers and furry friends on leashes are welcome to join the fun. Create precious holiday memories as three generations move together in celebration.

Support The Community

Your participation directly impacts our neighbors in need. A portion of all registration fees supports Bounty & Soul, a vital organization addressing food insecurity and promoting wellness throughout Black Mountain and Swannanoa. Working at the intersection of food, farms and health. Produced and owned by Kick It Event Management, a local WNC small business.

Events

• Chip Timed Turkey Trot 5k
  Price: $40
  Time: 9:00AM EST
  800 spots left. Registration Opens March 1, 2026 at 1:00am EST
• Untimed Fun Run Wishbone 1 Miler
  Price: $25
  Time: 8:30AM EST
  200 spots left. Registration Opens March 1, 2026 at 1:00am EST
• Virtual
  Virtual 5k/ No live participation
  Price: $40
  100 spots left. Registration Opens March 1, 2026 at 5:21pm EST

Early Packet Pick Up

11/25 3-6pm ~ Pisgah Brewing Company 2948 US HWY 70, Black Mountain, NC 28711

Race Day Schedule

• 11/26 7:30am ~ Race Day Packet Pick Up opens
• 8:30am ~ Wishbone 1 Miler start
• 9:00am ~ 5k start
• 10:00am ~ 5k Awards (tentative)

5K Pricing Schedule

• March 1 - July 31 ~ Early Bird Pricing $40
• Aug 1 - Oct 31 ~ Standard Pricing $45
• Nov 1 - Nov 25 ~ Last Call Pricing $50

Groups of 4 or more receive $4 off for each registration. You must register together to receive the discount.

Wishbone 1 Miler

• March 1 - Oct 31 ~ $25
• Nov 1 - Nov 25 ~ $30

Transfer/Virtual Policy

Email info@kickitevents ASAP if you wish to transfer to virtual OR to transfer your bib to another runner. Runners that give their bib to another runner without alerting the Race Director will be disqualified. Runners that wish to transfer to Virtual after 11/22 at 11:59PM must pay a flat $10 shipping fee. WEDNESDAY 11/25 AT 5:59PM is the cut off for moving to a virtual runner. There will be a $10 fee. After 11/25 at 5:59PM runners will not be able to move to a virtual runner. No transfers to virtual post race.

What's Included in the 5k

• Premium long-sleeve tech shirt to rock your winter runs (while suppies last)
• Exclusive reclaimed wooden finisher medal to show off at dinner
• Custom race bib to commemorate your achievement
• Special prizes for best turkey costumes and fastest runners
• $5 Donation to Bounty & Soul (5k race only)
• Lots of smiles

Race Parking

There are multiple parking options for runners on race morning. Old Bi Lo parking lot - 205 NC-19 Black Mountain ABC store - 207 NC-9 Pizza Hut parking lot - 250 NC-9 City lot on Sutton Ave. City lots on State St Street parking on the following streets. Black Mountain Ave Sutton Ave. Cherry St. Broadway St. All these options are less than a half mile from the race start.

Race Courses

5k Course Map* *course subect to change

The 5k race will start in the parking lot at 304 Black Mountain Ave., the offices of the Town of Black Mountain Recreations & Parks. Mile 1 is a bit of a climb through downtown. After taking a left on 9th Ave, the course plateau's and then heads down hilll as you make your way to the Lake Tomahawk loop. Runners will find a water stop in the Tomahawk Park parking lot as they enter and exit the Lake Tomahawk loop section. Mile 2 to the finish, runners will hit one more up hill as they make their way through the Laurel Cir neighborhood.

Wishbone 1 Miler Map

This 1 miler is an untimed fun run. Kids of all ages can participate in this out and back 1 mile jaunt. This race also starts and ends at the same start/finish line as the 5k race, in the parking lot of the Black Mountain Recreation & Parks offices. We ask that all persons on the course have either a 1miler of 5k race bib so that waivers have been signed.

Awards

Finisher Medals
All 5k and 1 Miler participants will receive a custom wooden finisher medal! We're so excited about our reclaimed wooden awards.

Costume Awards
Some of the funnest costumes will receive TBD

Top 5k Awards
Male, Female and Non-binary runners will receive the following gift certificates from Mountain Running Company. Good for use at any of their three locations.
1st Place $150 MRC Gift Certificate
2nd Place $100 MRC Gift Certificate
3rd Place $75 MRC Gift Certificate
1st Place Masters Male, Female & Nonbinary $50 MRC Gift Certificate
1st Place Grand Masters Male, Female & Nonbinary $50 MRC Gift Certificate

5k Age Group Awards
The top 3 male, female and non-binary runners in the following categories will receive a special Turkey votive award.
0-11, 12-14, 15-19, 20-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, 65-69, 70-74, 75-79, 80-84, 85 and up

2025 Race Day Photos

Paul King Photo Album 3 Paul King Photo Album 1 Paul King Photo Album 2 Paul King Photo Album 4 Paul King Photo Album 5 Start/ Finish Line Photos

Contact Form

If you have any questions about this race, click the button below. Questions? Name * Email * Phone Question/Message * Send Message Cancel Please wait while we submit your question/message. Your question/message has been sent to Black Mountain Turkey Trot 5k.

Sponsor The Race

Early Packet Pick Up Location

11/26 3-6PM at Pisgah Brewing Company 2948 US HWY 70, Black Mountain, NC 28711

Race Day Location

11/27 Town of Black Mountain Recreation & Parks 304 Black Mountain Ave Black Mountain, NC 28711 US View Location on Map

Connect with us on Social Media!

www.webscorer.com/kickitevents facebook.com/events/959559352988511

Thanks to our Sponsors

We are proud to be partnering with Bounty & Soul on this event. $5 from each 5k entry will be donated directly to their organization. If you'd like to donated more, feel free to add it to your registration or click the link below. Donate $0 Raised of $1,000 $0 $1,000 Donate

Refund/Postponement/Deferral/Transfers

Kick It Event Management (Kick It Events) and the Black Mountain Turkey Trot 5k and Wishbone 1 Miler have a no refund policy. Our team works year round to produce our high quality events. Even if the event is canceled we have already incurred time and expenses with planning for the event that are non-refundable. Please see the guidelines below.

Refunds
No refunds will be given if you signed up for this race by accident. Double check the city, date and time BEFORE registering. There are no refunds for injury or illness. There are no refunds for work or event conflicts. There will be NO REFUNDS if the event needs to be postponed. If the event needs to be canceled due to a global pandemic, national health emergency, state of emergency in the area or catastrophic event, there will be no refund.

Postponement
In the event of inclement weather, the event will be postponed to Nov. 29 2025, at the race directors discretion. There will be NO REFUNDS if the event needs to be postponed. Inclement weather determination is at the discretion of the race directors. We are looking for dangerous conditions for our runners and volunteers or an impassable race course. The postponement announcement will be made as early as we can. If there is surprise weather we reserve the right to postpone the race up until race morning. A Postponement announcement will be by 5am race morning. If the event needs to be canceled due to a global pandemic, national health emergency, state of emergency in the area or catastrophic event, there will be no refund. We will do our best with a virtual event or socially distanced race. Please understand that we purchase your race items months ahead of time and we will get these items to you if the event is canceled last minute. Race postponement will be emailed out to runners using the email used during registration, posted on the race website (www.blackmountainturkeytrot.com) as well as posted on our social media platforms. In the event the race is postponed and you would like your race swag mailed to you, you will be required to pay the shipping cost for your race bib and race swag. Race updates will be sent to the email address you registered with. Always make sure that your email is correct. In the event that the postponement date needs to be canceled, there will not be another postponement and there will not be any refunds.

Cancelation
In the event the race needs to be canceled there will be no refunds. The cancellation announcement will be made as early as we can. If there is surprise weather we reserve the right to cancel the race up until race morning. We will always try to postpone the race if needed but sometimes permitting, weather etc does not allow for a postponement. If the event needs to be canceled due to a global pandemic, national health emergency, state of emergency in the area or catastrophic event, there will be no refund. We will do our best with a virtual event or socially distanced race. Please understand that we purchase your race items months ahead of time and we will get these items to you if the event is canceled last minute. Race cancellation will be emailed out to runners using the email used during registration, posted on the race website (www.blackmountainturkeytrot.com) as well as posted on our social media platforms. Race updates will be sent to the email address you registered with. Always make sure that your email is correct.

Transfer/Virtual Policy

Email info@kickitevents ASAP if you wish to transfer to virtual OR to transfer your bib to another runner. Runners that give their bib to another runner without alerting the Race Director will be disqualified. Runners that wish to transfer to Virtual after 11/22 at 11:59PM must pay a flat $10 shipping fee. WEDNESDAY 11/25 AT 5:59PM is the cut off for moving to a virtual runner. There will be a $10 fee. After 11/25 at 5:59PM runners will not be able to move to a virtual runner. No transfers to virtual post race. After the cut off please reach out to [email protected] for help with transferring.