Unique traditions on Thanksgiving typically mean making a special dish for the food table.
In the case of the annual Pumpkin Plod race in Highland, it includes a popular 5K Walk and 10K run taking place in the early morning hours of the day.
This group of cousins bundled up to begin the 5K Walk. Pictured, from left, are McKenna Deacy, 5, Ashlyn Deacy, 6, both of Highland; and Gavin Risch, 10, June Risch, 6, and Hannah Risch, 9, of Crown Point. (Sue Ellen Ross/Post-Tribune)
The Pumpkin Plod has become a “must-attend” for many families.
“This is our 50th year, and the participant list has grown each year since its inception,” said Laura Glowacki, Highland Parks recreation supervisor. “We have a wide age-span, so it’s an event that may have started with parents and their children and now even grandchildren.”
The race had very humble beginnings. In 1975, then-Highland High School cross country coach John Bobalik wanted his students to continue to train during the off season. Along with his assistant Leo Van Laan, the idea for a long-distance run in the early morning hours on Turkey Day was born.
Highland Parks and Recreation came on board to help coordinate.
“It was a risk (to try this race at this time),” Bobalik said during the start of this year’s event. “We only had 170 students running and only their friends and families coming to watch.”
That risk paid off — big time.
This year’s participants numbered more than 1,200.
Although the day’s thermometer hovered around 30 degrees, hundreds of onlookers were cheering along the course as the runners and walkers wound through local neighborhoods.
The early morning start time didn’t deter the Walters family of Hammond from traveling to Highland to support those running and walking.
“We have both family members and friends out here running today,” said Don Walters. “Whenever there’s something going on with their groups, we’re right behind them for support.”
Adam and Kendra Hernandez live in one of the neighborhoods that the runners pass through.
“We usually watch from our house each year,” Adam said, as he joined those in the starting line. “But today, we’re on the other end: I’m running, and my wife is doing the walk. We want to see what we can do today.”
Mason Drost, 14, of Highland, took time to warm up at Lincoln Community Center before the short trek to the starting line in downtown Highland.
Mason is on the Illiana Christian School Cross Country team this year and is the team’s top runner.
“I’m here to set my P|R (personal record),” he said, “I want to challenge myself and see what I can do.”
The half-century old Pumpkin Plod is a USATF-certified flat and fast 10K course and part of the Calumet Striders 2025 Gold Cup Elite Series.
This year’s prizes included pumpkin pies, which were awarded after the race to the top three finishers in their age division.
Sue Ellen Ross is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/22/highlands-pumpkin-plod-marks-a-half-century-of-running/
