Thousands Expected In Bellevue This Weekend For 5K, Half Marathon

BELLEVUE, WA — Hundreds of Bellevue neighbors will join thousands of visitors Saturday and Sunday as the St. Jude Rock 'n' Roll Washington Running Series gets underway with a full slate of activities. The popular running event features live music, a kids run, a 5K and a half-marathon.

Bellevue officials told residents to expect a "population boom," with close to 10,000 runners signed up to participate.

The 5K and "KiDS ROCK" runs are scheduled for Saturday, followed by the half marathon Sunday. Road closures will impact downtown traffic on both days, from early in the morning until just before noon.

Here are a few more things for visitors and commuters to be aware of, from the city of Bellevue:

• Downtown Park – While the park remains open over the weekend, it will serve as event headquarters, so the west parking lot will be closed starting Friday evening until Sunday afternoon and the park will be the location for the main music stage of the event, port-a-potties and event-related equipment and tents. The park’s south lot will be closed for most of the day on Sunday. Event parking is at nearby Bellevue Square.
• Staging areas – 100th Avenue Northeast between Northeast First and Northeast Fourth streets (west of Downtown Park) will close starting at 7 a.m. Saturday until event activities wrap up around 3 p.m. Sunday.
• Start and Finish areas – Streets near Downtown Park, including Bellevue Way between Northeast Fourth and Main streets, and 100th Avenue Northeast between Second and Main streets, will serve as chutes for the start and finish lines of races, and will close for the 5K between 5 a.m. and noon Saturday and 2 a.m. to approximately noon Sunday for the half marathon.
• Course routes – Streets along the running course routes will be closed from approximately 5-10 a.m. on Saturday and 2 a.m.-noon Sunday. A table listing all road closures and times for both days is available.

Learn more about Rock 'n' Roll Washington on the official event page and the city's website.