More Rock ‘n’ Roll running than ever this year

At this rate, a Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas pub crawl probably isn’t too far off.

A year after the Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon &½ Marathon added a Zappos.com ½ of the Half race to its annual Sunday night event on the Strip, a Saturday night Rock ‘n’ Roll 5k presented by SLS Las Vegas has been added to this year’s marathon weekend, rebranded the Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Festival, scheduled from Nov. 14 to 16.

“There’s something for everyone,” Rob Oseland, president and chief operating officer of SLS Las Vegas, said Tuesday at a news conference. “It kind of expands the weekend.”

Registration for the 5k, which will benefit Opportunity Village, opens today at runrocknroll.com, and the maximum field of 5,000 runners is expected to sell out quickly.

The 3.1-mile race will start at 6 p.m. Nov. 15 at SLS, formerly the Sahara. Runners will make a right on Paradise Road and run into the Riviera driveway before turning on Convention Center Drive toward the Strip. The route will run on Las Vegas Boulevard for about a mile, then turn right on Sahara Avenue and Paradise before hitting the finish line at SLS, where Canadian duo Chromeo will perform a postrace concert.

More than 32,000 runners have registered for the Nov. 16 marathon and half-marathon, which has a combined cap of 36,000. That number includes the ½ of the Half, which has sold out with 3,000 entries.

Each of the marathon and half-marathon courses will run down both sides of the Strip, complete with a run-thru wedding chapel and hundreds of running Elvi.

“It’s a destination race, with 89 percent of runners coming from out of town,” race director Alex Bennett said. “Adding the 5k gives people an opportunity to participate in a full weekend of events. It gives that local runner the opportunity to run a race and still get the same perks they would if they’d run the half or full marathon.

“Lots of people will run both, and they’ll be running anyway (on Saturday).”

In addition to the individual race medals, a “Remix Challenge” medal will be awarded to those who complete two nights of running in Las Vegas.

A two-day Health &Fitness Expo, which is open to the public, is scheduled for Nov. 14 and 15 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

A total of 30,700 runners competed in last year’s event, which generated more than $165 million in total economic impact, welcoming 49,700 out-of-town visitors and accounting for 88,644 hotel room nights, according to a San Diego State study.

In the six-year history of the Rock ‘n’ Roll event in Las Vegas, more than $20 million has been raised for the Crohn’s &Colitis Foundation of America.

■ MEB TO SET PACE — Meb Keflezighi, the only marathoner to win the Boston Marathon (2014), New York City Marathon (2009) and an Olympic medal (silver, 2004), will run in Las Vegas as a celebrity pacer for the 1:45 half-marathon group.

“I’ll be able to go easier. It’s not going to be like my peak form,” said Keflezighi, who is training for the Nov. 2 New York City Marathon. “This will be a lot of fun with the crowd, giving high-fives or thumbs-up. They can hear about my Boston stories or New York stories. I really enjoy it.”

Keflezighi, 39, was the pace runner for the 1:30 half-marathon group in Las Vegas in 2012, when he finished at 1:29:50 and enjoyed what for him was akin to a leisurely stroll down the Strip.

“Running the Las Vegas Strip at night is pretty cool,” he said. “Most races are at 7 a.m. or 10 a.m., usually before noon. Vegas is kind of unique. I had a great time. It’s a wonderful environment.”

Keflezighi ran a personal-best 2:08:30 in April to become the first American male in 31 years to win the Boston Marathon.

“It was so emotional. The crowd was chanting, ‘U-S-A,’ and I couldn’t help but to join them, chanting ‘U-S-A’ and pumping my fist,” Keflezighi said. “It was electrifying. It was a magical moment.”

The San Diego resident is the vice president of running for Competitor Group, which owns the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon series.

“He needs to be here for the Super Bowl of all our races,” said Bennett, Competitor Group’s vice president. “This really is one of the biggest races in the world. There are 40,000 or 50,000 people going to New York, and this is right up there, especially when you think about the full weekend of events. This is more than just a race.”

■ RUNNER’S HIGH — Hip-hop icon Snoop Dogg will headline the prerace concert at 3 p.m. Nov. 16 at the Luxor Festival Grounds.

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0354. Follow him on Twitter: @tdewey33.