Runners, walkers and spectators will fill the streets of San Diego, as more than 30,000 people from all 50 states and 37 countries take part in the lively, music-filled 2017 Rock ‘N' Roll Marathon this Sunday.
The race will be celebrating '20 Years Running' since the inaugural marathon in 1998.
U.S Olympian Meb Keflezighi and Harriette Thompson, the world's oldest woman to finish a marathon, will headline the weekends activities.
San Diego residents and visitors can expect road closures and delays between 5:00 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. to accompany the marathon. Police officers and event personnel will guide and control traffic. The streets will reopen on a rolling basis as soon as the last participant has passed and all course support materials have been removed.
An interactive map of the closures can be seen here. There is also a freeway and ramp closure grid, road closure grid and no park grid available on the map.
Both the marathon and the half marathon will begin on Sunday at 6:15 a.m. on Sixth Avenue and Quince Street at Balboa Park. The race will take the participants all around San Diego. To view the course map, click here.
Live, local bands will be playing along the race course. There will also be cheerleading squads, who will be participating in a Sprint on the Course competition.
The finish line is located at Ash Street, between Columbia Street and State Street. A free Finish Line Festival will be held at Waterfront Park, and will include activities and live music. The headliner Michael Franti & Spearhead will perform for participants and spectators.
Organizers encourage spectators to take the trolley, Coaster or walk, depending on their location to the finish line area downtown. They said parking may prove difficult amid all the traffic congestion. For more detailed information on parking and transportation, click here.
Rock ‘n’ Roll attendees are being encouraged by the Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) to take the Trolley to avoid traffic congestion.
MTS says there will be free parking at the Qualcomm Stadium trolley station, where there are 5,000 free parking spots. The Trolley in all directions will begin running between 4 and 5 a.m. Sunday.
MTS says that two best stations to get to the starting line are the Fifth Avenue Station and the County Center/Little Italy Station. The starting line is at 6th Avenue and Quince.
The Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon is offering pre-paid shuttle bus service from the County Center/Little Italy station to the starting line.
MTS says the best option for runners is to pre-purchase a shuttle ticket at the Rock ‘n’ Roll Expo and pre-purchase an MTS Day Pass on the Compass Cloud app and then take the Green Line to County Center/Little Italy. The Start Line Shuttle ticket is not valid on MTS services.
Early Trolley trips will be scheduled on the Green Line from Qualcomm Stadium (with stops in Mission Valley, Fashion Valley, Old Town and more) to County Center/Little Italy Station. The starting line is 1.3 miles walking distance from the station.
The Trolley departing times are as follows:
- 4:08 a.m.
- 4:16 a.m.
- 4:23 a.m.
- 4:31 a.m.
- 4:38 a.m.
- 4:46 a.m.
For those gathering at the finish line, the County Center/Little Italy Station (Green Line) is steps away from all the festivities held at Waterfront Park.
The Rock ‘n’ Roll race will cause detours for 18 MTS bus routes, says MTS. Impacted routes and stops are posted on their website.
A fun fact about the race this weekend is more than 57% of the participants are women.
For everything you need to know about the San Diego Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon, visit the event website.
