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The Boys & Girls Club, ECHO of Janesville and the YMCA of Northern Rock County will all benefit from the proceeds.

“Donations would help support our academic, healthy lifestyle and other types of programming to help support our kids and their development,” said Boys & Girls Club CEO Rebecca Veium.

Online registration is open at www.festival /event-info until 8 a.m. Thanksgiving morning.

Event coordinator Julie Jorgensen said 938 participants have already registered, up from 720 last year. She said she hopes to make it to 1,000 participants this year.

Jorgensen said this the 15th year for the Turkey Trot and the sixth year for Janesville. She said last year’s event raised $3.6 million from every site and about $40,000 in Janesville. Some of the other locations are in Appleton, Coulee Region, Eau Claire, Fond du Lac, Green Bay, Home Edition Manitowoc, Marshfield and Oshkosh, New locations were added this year in Milwaukee and Stevens Point.

Veium said she is grateful to be a part of an event that supports the Boys & Girls Club.

“We want to express our gratitude for Festival Foods for sponsoring the event and everyone who is participating, we are just so grateful to everyone who is volunteering and helping us put this together,” she said.

According to Turkey Trot’s website:

The race will be divided into four waves: a 5-mile run, a 2-mile fun run, a 2-mile walk, and a 2-mile dog jog. Only the 5-mile event will be timed.

The dog jog will start at 8:15 a.m. Each participating dog must be registered, for a $5 fee. Registered dogs will receive a doggie race and a Festival Foods Turkey Trot bandanna. Dogs must be well socialized, non-aggressive and up to date on all vaccinations.

The event additionally asks dog owners to follow these guidelines:

• Keep your dog on a leash shorter than six feet. No retractable leashes; they can be hazardous in a crowd.
• Clean up after your dog—bags are available or bring your own.
• Limit one dog per person.
• Dogs must be at least six months old.
• Dogs are not allowed in facilities.
• Dogs are not allowed on the 5-mile run (service dogs are the only exception). Any trotters with a dog on the 5-mile course will have their timing chip voided and will jeopardize the future participation of all dogs.

Registration fees are $40 for adults in the 5-mile run, the 2-mile walk and dog jog; and $15 for children age 17 and under in the 5-mile run, 2-mile walk and dog jog.

The top five finishers in the 5-mile run will win a $20 Festival Foods gift card. Everyone who registers will receive a long sleeve T-shirt, a 6-inch pie, coupons, a post-race snack and a race day bib.

Shirts and bibs can be picked up inside the Boys & Girls Club gym by entering Door No. 10 on Wednesday from 2-6 p.m. and on Thanksgiving Day starting at 6:30 a.m.

On race day, organizers ask that slow movers and those pushing strollers line up at the back of their respective groups. Dogs will start after all other participants in the 2-mile dog jog.