Expo, schedule and race morning

Packet pickup

• Friday, February 12, 2027: 9:00 AM - 5:30 PM (the race-week page states 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM; both readings appear on the race's own site)

• ONE DAY ONLY. The expo is Friday and there is no adult race-morning packet pickup for any adult distance. If you land Friday evening you have no bib.
• Bring a valid photo ID or a printed/digital copy of your confirmation email. You must also confirm the name and date of birth printed on the bib.
• Proxy pickup is allowed: bring the other runner's photo ID (photocopy or a phone photo is accepted) or their confirmation email.
• A paid bib-mailing option exists, but it is selected during registration only, not later. If you cannot make Friday, that choice had to be made at signup.
• Race-morning pickup exists ONLY for the Kids 1K, at that start line between 10:30 AM and 11:30 AM.
• The expo is at Sloan Park, which is the finish-area / shuttle-staging side of the course, not near any adult start line. Picking up your bib does not show you your start.

August 2026

The published weekend schedule

Point to point: you sleep near the FINISH (Sloan Park / Riverview area) and must be transported out to your start. Marathon and 10K runners ride buses that stage at Sloan Park itself, a few minutes from the Sheraton and Courtyard at Wrigleyville West, but the last marathon bus leaves at 5:00 AM for a 6:30 AM gun, so plan a ~3:45 AM wake-up. Half marathon runners get NO bus at all: they must drive to 3260 N 40th St or be dropped at 4201 E Oasis St by 5:15 AM, and a return shuttle brings them back to that lot from 8:00 to 11:30 AM. Gear bags close at 6:00 AM at all start lines. Dates and times are for the February 12-13, 2027 edition as published on the race's site in August 2026; a search result for the 2026 edition listed the expo as Friday, February 13, 2026 at Sloan Park, 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM.

Getting there

Two things govern race morning: the buses are mandatory and the streets are shut. The Mesa Marathon travel page requires marathon and 10K runners to ride race buses to the start from the Sloan Park corners, and the City of Mesa says race-day road closures are in effect from 4 a.m. to 2 p.m., reopening in stages as runners pass. The race's own travel page words it differently, saying closures begin at 4:00 a.m. on February 13 with all streets reopened by 1:30 p.m. (that page reads as the 2027 edition), while the City's 2026 notice puts race day on February 14 with a 2 p.m. end; treat both as live and check the year you are running. A car can still reach the Riverview hotels and lots if you approach from outside the course loop and arrive before your 4:30 a.m. or 5:15 a.m. deadline, and Mesa runs a personalized barricade help line for exactly this. Getting back to your room after finishing is the easy half: if you slept at the Sheraton or Courtyard you walk, and if you drove, your car is already at the finish.

• Race buses to the start (mandatory for marathon and 10K). Marathon buses depart the Sloan Park corner of Sheffield and Rio Salado; 10K buses from Clark and Rio Salado. Be in the parking area no later than 4:30 a.m. for the marathon, 5:15 a.m. for the 10K. Gear check trucks close at 6:00 a.m. and the race warns against putting phones, wallets or car keys in a checked bag, which matters more than usual when your car is 20 miles downhill from you.
• Road closures and reopening. City of Mesa: closures in effect 4 a.m. to 2 p.m. on race day, reopening in stages as runners pass and cleanup finishes. The race site's version: closures begin 4:00 a.m., all streets reopened by 1:30 p.m. For 2026 the City also flagged extra closures at Val Vista and McDowell roads from a water main break, so check the day-of notice rather than assuming last year's map.
• Detour map and the barricade help line. Mesa publishes an interactive route-planning map at gis.mesaaz.gov/mesamarathon. The Transportation Department will talk you through your specific address: call 480-RUN-MESA or email [email protected], staffed Monday through Thursday the week before plus race day. Use it if your hotel or Airbnb sits inside the loop.
• Valley Metro buses are detoured. The City lists routes 30, 48, 96, 104, 112, 120, 128, 136, the Fiesta Buzz and the Downtown Buzz as detoured on race day, with riders told to check the Valley Metro app or call 602-253-5500. Do not plan to reach a bus corner on a local route that morning.
• Light rail (Sycamore/Main St, Price-101 Fwy/Apache Blvd). Sycamore/Main St and Price-101 Fwy/Apache Blvd are the nearby stations, but Valley Metro's schedule pages refused to load during this research, so the first Saturday train time is unverified. General knowledge, not a fetched page: Valley Metro Rail typically starts around 5 a.m. on weekends, which would be too late for the 4:30 a.m. marathon bus deadline. Do not build your morning on light rail without confirming the first departure yourself.
• Getting back after the finish. Marathon and 10K runners finish at Riverview Park where they parked, so it is a walk to the car or to the Sheraton/Courtyard. Visit Mesa notes a free shuttle from the finish venue back to runners' cars. Half runners get dedicated shuttles back to the 40th Street parking running 8:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. along Sheffield Street.
• Dinner the night before. General knowledge, not from a fetched page: the Mesa Riverview retail center sits directly beside the finish and the two host-adjacent hotels, and its sit-down Italian option there is the easy pre-race carb dinner you can walk to and from without touching a car. Verify hours and that it is still open before you count on it.

Published entry tiers

Checked 2026-08-31; fees and tiers can change.