Updated 28 September 2026. Every detail below was checked against the race committee’s own materials and the official registration system on that date. The 49th Annual Manhattan Beach 10K runs Saturday, 3 October 2026.
When is the Manhattan Beach 10K?
The 49th Annual Manhattan Beach 10K is Saturday, 3 October 2026, starting at 7:30am sharp. The race is held on the first Saturday in October every year. Roughly 4,000 runners take part, and the event window runs from 7:30am to about 10:00am.
The course is 6.2 miles through downtown and residential Manhattan Beach. For the third year running it is the Road Runners Club of America California 10K State Championship.
What streets close, and when?
Road closures begin at 6:30am and reopen on a rolling basis until roughly 9:15am. Downtown streets may stay closed until 10:00am. The race finishes around 10:00am and the area is generally cleared and reopened by noon.
The closure is not a single ring around one block. The course starts inland, runs north along the greenbelt, doubles back, and finishes at the pier, so the closed area cuts across a wide section of the city from Ardmore and Valley out to the beach. If you live inside that band, plan on being unable to drive across it for most of the morning.
The race committee publishes a street-level map each year showing the course in red and the recommended exit routes in green. It is worth looking at the actual map rather than guessing, because a street two blocks from your house may be open while the one you normally use is not. The map is posted at mb10k.com.
How do you get out of Manhattan Beach during the race?
There are two recommended exit routes, and which one you use depends on whether you are north or south of Rosecrans.
South of Rosecrans: take Hermosa Avenue to 15th Street, turn right to Manhattan Avenue, left on Manhattan Beach Boulevard, then right on Hermosa Avenue.
North of Rosecrans: use Highland to Grand Avenue into El Segundo, and do it before 7:45am. After that the window narrows considerably.
If you have somewhere to be on Saturday morning, the simplest answer is to leave before 6:30am or plan around it entirely. Between 7:30 and 9:15 there is no fast way across the course.
Should you move your car the night before?
If you park on a street that sits inside the course, yes. Once barricades go up at 6:30am you will not be moving a vehicle out until that section reopens. Residents who need to be somewhere early on Saturday tend to park outside the closure band on Friday evening and walk back.
The same applies if you have a delivery, a contractor, or a service call scheduled for Saturday morning. Reschedule it. Trucks will not get through.
Where does the race start and finish?
The race uses a split start. One group begins at Ardmore Avenue and 4th Street, the other at Valley Drive and 3rd Street. Both head north and merge at 15th Street, about half a mile in.
The finish is just south of the Manhattan Beach Pier, in the lower parking lot. The awards stage is in the North Upper Pier parking lot, and the race day expo sits in the parking lots above the finish line. Runner drop-off is at 2nd Street and Valley Drive.
Can you still register for the 2026 race?
No. Both the live race and the virtual option are sold out as of 28 September 2026, and there has never been race day registration for this event. If you were planning to sign up on Saturday morning, that is not an option.
Bib pickup for registered runners is at Village Runner in Manhattan Beach on the Thursday or Friday before the race from 10:00am to 7:00pm, or on race morning between 6:30 and 7:30am at Ardmore and 2nd Street on the greenbelt.
If you missed it this year, registration for the 50th running opens through the race’s RunSignup page, and it sells out well ahead of race day.
Can you bring a dog or a stroller?
No. Dogs and strollers are not permitted on the course, which the race committee attributes to the risk they pose to other runners on a course that doubles back on itself.
Who do you call if you have a problem on race morning?
The Manhattan Beach Police Department front desk handles race day access questions and is staffed 24 hours at 310-802-5140. If you have a genuine access need on Saturday, such as a medical appointment you cannot move, call ahead rather than discovering the barricade at 7:00am.
Is it worth going down to watch?
If you are already stuck inside the closure, yes. The finish area at the pier has live music and a post-race expo, and the awards presentation happens as soon as results are in. Being unable to drive anywhere for three hours is a better morning spent on Manhattan Beach Boulevard with a coffee than in a car looking for a way across.
The race is entirely volunteer-run. Proceeds go to local fitness and recreation projects and to student athlete scholarships.
What this tells you about living here
The 10K is one of a handful of mornings each year when Manhattan Beach closes a large part of itself and the whole city walks. The Pier Lighting in November and the Hometown Fair in October do the same thing. If you are looking at homes in the Tree Section, the Hill Section or the Sand Section, this is worth knowing about in the way that street parking and school boundaries are worth knowing about. It is a few mornings of inconvenience a year in exchange for a town that still does this sort of thing.
More on what runs through the calendar here: annual events in the South Bay, and the neighborhood breakdown for the beach cities is at Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach.
Sources
Race date, start time, course, sold-out status, bib pickup and awards detail confirmed at the official RunSignup race page on 28 September 2026. Closure timing and exit routes are from the MB10K Race Committee’s published traffic and exit map. Always confirm at mb10k.com before race morning, since closure details can be adjusted late.
Have a question about this? Neil answers personally.