3,000 people to run, walk in Boulevard Race Sunday in Spokane

The 4-mile Boulevard Race will draw about 3,000 runners and walkers Sunday morning to Spokane’s University District.

Race Director Jon Neill said about 2,300 people participated in last year’s inaugural race, which looped through downtown and Browne’s Addition and finished on Spokane Falls Boulevard in front of Riverfront Park.

Neill said downtown construction projects forced the course to shift Sunday to the University District.

The race, which starts at 10 a.m., begins by crossing the Spokane Falls Boulevard bridge, loops around Washington State University Spokane campus to Martin Luther King Jr. Way, diverts south on Erie Street, then back north on the street before racers hit the “Penske Truck Turnaround” on Trent Avenue. Racers then double back to the start.

Neill said the turnaround point will allow runners and walkers to cheer each other on as they go past one another in opposite directions.

“We landed on a good one out here at the University District,” he said of the new course.

Neill said the course will be filled with entertainment, DJs and cheer zones.

Those who haven’t registered can at boulevardrace.com. Race entry is $30 and includes the official race shirt and a $30 grocery coupon for Rosauers supermarkets. Racers can pick up their numbers from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday at the McCarthey Athletic Center.

Racers can park at the McCarthey Athletic Center parking lots Sunday morning. The University District will be closed for the race from 8 a.m. to noon Sunday.

The Boulevard Race benefits Community Cancer Fund.