Holy sweet Jesus, I went to register my family for the local Turkey Trot and I kid you not it would cost me $148 for all five of us. It's a 4 mile run. This is absolutely crazy. Yeah, yeah, I could elect not to run, but its Thanksgiving and my kids want to run with their grandparents, cousins, etc. This race also allows people to run with strollers and dogs (it bills itself as a "family event").
Oh and I should mention, a very, very small percentage of the money goes to a charitable cause so save that argument. Where we live it's cheaper for a kid to get a season ski pass than to run the local Turkey Trot. Dogs run free, kids cost $25. Is this normal?