Although they might have dreamed of the details of their wedding day right down to the gown since they were young girls, women may not have dreamed fighting off other garment-hungry brides-to-be in their quests for the perfect dress.

For the 120th time since 1947, thousands of brides-to-be and their entourages will make the trek today to Filene’s Basement from near and far for the store’s biannual “Running of the Brides,” for the chance to get their hands on one of 2,500 dirt-cheap wedding gowns in the basement store. And sometimes the mad dash for the gowns can get ugly.

“We don’t try to control it, we just make sure that everyone is safe,” said Filene’s Basement spokeswoman Pat Boudrot.

The frenzy created in the quest for a gown has earned the sale notoriety as Boston’s own February Black Friday, a spinoff of the Friday after Thanksgiving, when most stores offer their best deals to attract overzealous holiday-season shoppers.

Only one in three shoppers at the sale are actual brides-to-be, Boudrot said, and those who brave the crowd must posses a certain degree of boldness.

“There are many people [who] want to be waited on,” she said. “This isn’t their cup of tea.”

Filene’s hosts the event the Friday after Valentine’s Day and during the third week of August each year. Although the sale has recently expanded to include stores in Atlanta, Chicago, New York City and Washington, D.C., the Boston location still hosts the biggest event, Boudrot said.

However, shoppers will have to trek someplace else for the next few sales because the flagship Downtown Crossing store will close for renovations, which are expected to last 15 to 18 months.

And although Filene’s doesn’t exactly turn a profit from the sale, it gives the store plenty of publicity, Boudrot said.

When wedding coordinator Tricia Shaw went to the sale, women came from as far away as Illinois, she said. However, she doesn’t refer her clients to the sale.

Shaw said brides have often nursed an image of their perfect wedding dress in their heads since they were children, but that concept may not be realistic.

“I tell [brides] to try on as many different styles and colors as they can,” she said. “The more you try on, the better you’ll look on your wedding day.”

While bridal boutique owners in the area are well-aware of the event, they said business is not negatively impacted by the sale.

Carl Rapisarda, spokesman for the boutique Precilla of Boston, said his store holds its own sales in December and June, but most people buy dresses in between those months.

“January through March is what we call ‘Bridal Christmas’ because so many people get engaged over the holidays,” he said.