For one Lemont family, the Thanksgiving holiday tradition features a big meal preceded by running a couple of miles and a lot of trash talk.
Lisa Sampalis and her sons Danny, Matthew and Jack Edison took part in the 36th Orland Park Turkey Trot on a cold Thursday morning near Village Hall in Orland Park.
This clan has made the run a Thanksgiving tradition for five years. Even though the announcer of the event, Dan McMillan, told the crowd this was more for fun than competition, two of the Edison boys were having none of that. Jack, 15, and Matt, 14, are serious about being the fastest in the family.
“It’s usually a battle between Matt and Jack,” Sampalis said. “Last year, Matt would have won and said something to Jack as he was passing him and Jack won by a few seconds.”
Matt claims that he said “C’mon, you gotta pass me,” to Jack.
“And I think he called Jack a ‘loser,’’’ Sampalis said.
“Then I just ran past him and beat him,” Jack said with a grin.
This year, the two bet $1,000 on who would win, but Sampalis said neither of them had that kind of money to bet.
Nevertheless, Jack was the king of the Edisons with a chip time of 18 minutes, 57.52 seconds over the 2.5-mile course while Matt was second in the family with a 19:49.58.
Jack, a hockey player at Brother Rice, gets another year to gloat with his win over Matt, a runner at Old Quarry Middle School.
Sampalis said it’s been a fun tradition.
“It’s a good way to kick off Thanksgiving,” she said. “I warm up the car. They eat in the car. We get here and they do a lot of smack talk. We warm up. We run. Afterward, we get ready for our Thanksgiving Day at my parents in Orland Park.”
There were 1,000 runners signed up for the race this year and 870 finished.
This year’s overall winners were a husband and wife tag team. Andrew Bowman and Sydney Devore-Bowman of Ferndale, Michigan, usually have Thanksgiving at the Orland Park home of Sydney’s parents, Lenore and Bill Devore. This year, these elite runners tried their hands — and legs — at the Turkey Trot and thrived.
Andrew finished with a 13:00.44, well ahead of Homer Glen’s Patrick Valcich, who was second with a 14:56.11. Sydney was the top female finisher with a 15:46.81.
This is the second time the pair won the same race together. The first was Oct. 20 at the Detroit Free Press Marathon, which featured 26,000 runners.
They also participated in the Olympic trials.
Despite their elite running credentials, the two still try to keep it fun.
“We’re out here for a good time, not a fast time,” Andrew, 30, said.
“It was fun,” Sydney, 33, added. “I haven’t run a cross country course since college at the University of Florida.”
They plan on making the Turkey Trot a tradition.
“I think this will be the thing to do,” Andrew said.
Watching on the sidelines was Louisville’s Christina Nejedly. She and her daughter, Drew, were cheering on her husband, Orland Park native Mike, and son Mark.
They created a sign that said, “On your mark, get set, gobble.”
Drew, 6, said she was not happy with waking up early and watching the men run in the freezing weather.
“We dressed warm,” Christina said. “It doesn’t quite get this cold in Louisville. But we did live in Lincoln Park for a while, so it’s not new.
“Still, the first bitter cold always feels crisper.”
Orland Park Director of Recreation and Parks Ray Piattoni has helped run this event for 17 years and it doesn’t surprise him so many people are willing to run before the big meal.
“Thanksgiving is the most popular running day of the year,” he said. “And it’s a great tradition we have here. People love running. It’s a really fun family event.”
Piattoni said people of all ages run.
“We have everyone from 6 to over 70 years. It’s a great way to kick off Thanksgiving and for us, it’s fun to see all of these smiling faces at the finish line.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
