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Course Updated as Rock ‘n’ Roll Portland Half Marathon Returns

• Portland’s 13.1-mile block party to kickoff Rose Festival on May 19, 2013
• Annual race creates more than $14 million in economic impact
• Changes to improve neighborhood access, eliminate some hills

 Portland, OR – February 8, 2013 – Motivated by live music every mile, more than 10,000 runners will join Portland’s biggest moving block party as the Rock ‘n’ Roll Portland Half Marathon returns for a second year on Sunday, May 19^th. The race kicks off the annual Portland Rose Festival, which recently presented an economic impact study to the City of Portland showing the festival generates $75.5 million annually, $14 million of that as a direct result of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Portland Half Marathon.

“The Rose Festival’s goal is to make Portland one of the best places to live and visit,” says Jeff Curtis CEO Portland Rose Festival. “By partnering with the one of the worlds more popular running events, the Rock ‘n’ Roll series, we have done just that.”

The 2013 race will feature a redesigned course and will once again start on Naito Parkway, heading along the waterfront before crossing the Hawthorne Bridge into East Portland. The course will turn  north on SE 37^th Avenue this year, allowing 38^th Avenue/SE Cesar E. Chavez Blvd, a major transit corridor, to remain open during the race.  At each of the 13.1 miles, local bands will perform along with motivating cheerleaders and cheering spectators to keep runners entertained all the way to the finish line.

The race has also eliminated some of the steepest hills on the course, a change runners are sure to enjoy. Portland’s eclectic mix of neighborhoods will be on display before running alongside gorgeous Laurelhurst Park and a downhill finish heading back towards downtown on Lloyd Blvd. After the final crossing on the iconic Steel Bridge, runners finish back at scenic Waterfront Park, where a rousing celebration and post-race concert will culminate the race day experience.

“We’re proud to be a part of the Rose Festival and the local community and hope these changes create an improved experience for our runners as well as surrounding neighborhoods,” said Alex Bennett, Event Director. “Runners and their families will be visiting from all over the world, bringing with them a significant economic benefit to the area, and we’re thrilled to showcase Portland in a unique way that they will always remember.”

The Health & Fitness Expo will kickoff event weekend on Friday, May 17 at the Oregon Convention Center. The expo is free and open to the public featuring the latest health and nutrition information with a variety of products for sample and sale, as well as a series of interactive fitness clinics.

Event weekend concludes with a finish line concert at Waterfront Park. Past Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon headliners have included SEAL, Blues Traveler, Journey, B-52s, Goo Goo Dolls and Bret Michaels. The headline act for Rock ‘n’ Roll Portland will be announced at a later date.

For more information or to register for the event, please visit www.runrocknroll.competitor.com/portland.