9 Things to do in Denver and Colorado this weekend: Oct. 15-17

COLORADO, USA — Autumn is here and this weekend’s seasonal temperatures offer the perfect excuse to head outside and enjoy Colorado’s fall colors and annual events.

Savor the season this weekend at one of dozens of corn mazes and haunted houses or at an autumn festival. The Colfax Marathon is back for the first time in 29 months and the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels are in Colorado.

The Broncos, Buffaloes and Avalanche are back in action, plus Denver’s Ball Arena will host concerts by Eric Church and Marc Anthony.

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DENVER — The Colfax Marathon is running for the first time in 29 months. The Denver race, which typically happens in May, was canceled in 2020 and delayed to October this year. This is the largest running weekend in the Rockies that includes a Marathon, Half Marathon, Urban 10 Miler, Marathon Relay and 5K.

With the Broncos having a home game on Sunday, the 15th annual Colfax Marathon will have its main Race Day – Marathon, Half Marathon, Urban 10 Miler and Marathon Relay on Saturday. The 5K will take place on Sunday.

The next Colfax Marathon will return to its traditional date of Sunday May 15, 2022 for its 16th edition.

LOVELAND — The Great Colorado Air Show takes flight over the skies of northern Colorado this weekend. The show will be held Saturday and Sunday at the Northern Colorado Regional Airport (FNL) in Loveland.

The U.S. Navy Blue Angels will headline this weekend’s show for their first appearance in northern Colorado since 2002. A lineup of civilian performers and other military performers are also scheduled. Here’s what you need to know about road closures, traffic impacts and the schedule this weekend.

RELATED: What to know this weekend as the U.S. Navy Blue Angels come to Colorado

DENVER — The Denver Broncos (3-2) return to Empower Field at Mile High on Sunday to face AFC West-rival Las Vegas Raiders (3-2). The Raiders will be without Jon Gruden who resigned this week as head coach after emails he sent before being hired in 2018 contained racist, homophobic and misogynistic comments. The game kicks off at 2:25 p.m. Sunday.

As part of Sunday’s pregame festivities, Broncos legend Steve Atwater will address the crowd as his Pro Football Hall of Fame decal is unveiled next to his name in the Ring of Fame on the Level 5 façade of the stadium. Fans are encouraged to be in their seats by 2 p.m. for the event.

During a halftime ceremony, former Broncos head coach Mike Shanahan’s name will be unveiled on the Ring of Fame façade of the stadium.

RELATED: Gruden resigns as Raiders head coach after more offensive emails revealed

RELATED: Broncos Super Bowl champ among 6 voted into Colorado Sports HOF

DENVER — Dairy Block and Denver Milk Market are once again hosting their 4th annual Fall Flannel Festival on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Held in the Dairy Block Alley in LoDo, the free community event will feature live music, balloon artist, photo booth and kids’ craft stations.

The Denver Museum of Nature & Science will be activating their Curiosity Cruiser on 19th Street and providing an interactive activity in the Alley. The Denver Aquarium will also be on-site with a Creepy Crawly activation featuring live animals like geckos, iguanas and snakes. Fans of “Paw Patrol” can hang with characters Chase & Sky from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

DENVER — The Improvised Shakespeare Company is back at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts’ Garner Galleria Theatre. Each night, the company will create a fully improvised Shakespearean masterpiece right before the audience’s eyes. The evening of hilarious off-the-cuff comedy uses the language and themes of William Shakespeare, but with no planning, rehearsal or script. Will the play turn out to be a tragedy, comedy or history? Even the actors aren’t sure. Tickets for the company’s engagement, which runs through Sunday, Oct. 31, are sold at DenverCenter.org.  

DENVER — Resident Conductor Christopher Dragon and featured soloist Simone Porter will join the Colorado Symphony for this weekend’s performances of Brahms’ First Symphony. The Colorado Symphony (CSO) will perform Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Boettcher Concert Hall in Denver. For much of his life, Brahms felt the weight of Beethoven’s shadow looming over him, but he vanquished his symphonic demons with his extraordinary First Symphony.

DENVER — The Colorado Avalanche play their second game of the regular season Saturday night at Denver’s Ball Arena. The puck drops between the Avs and St. Louis Blues at 7 p.m. Tickets are sold exclusively at Ticketmaster.com.

DENVER — The University of Denver and Air Force men’s hockey teams play a pair of games this weekend. DU and AFA take to the ice Friday at 7 p.m. at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. The programs then play Saturday at 7 p.m. at Magness Arena in Denver.

BOULDER — Karl Dorrell’s Colorado Buffaloes football team hopes to turn things around this weekend in order to salvage the 2021 season. The Buffs (1-4) — who have now lost four games in a row — host the Arizona Wildcats (0-5) at 1:30 p.m. Saturday at Folsom Field. The Buffs are returning from a bye week. Reserve your tickets at CUBuffs.com.

DENVER — Eric Church’s “The Gather Again Tour” stops at Ball Arena in Denver this Friday night at 8 p.m. For the first time in his career, Church said he will adopt an in-the-round set up, with the stage at the center of each arena floor in order to accommodate as many fans as possible. Church is a seven-time ACM Award winner, four-time CMA Award winner and 10-time Grammy Award nominee. Ticketmaster.com is the place for tickets.

DENVER — Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Marc Anthony is bringing his new “Pa’lla Voy Tour” to Colorado this weekend. Anthony will perform a Denver concert at Ball Arena at 7 p.m. Sunday night.

Anthony is a six-time Grammy Award and Latin Grammy Award winner and the the top selling tropical salsa artist of all time. Tickets for the Denver show are on sale at Ticketmaster.com.

LOVELAND — Toby Keith’s “Country Comes to Town” tour will return to the Centennial State this weekend. The “Red Solo Cup” artist will be joined by Colt Ford and Wyoming native Chancey Williams at the Budweiser Events Center at The Ranch on Saturday at 7 p.m.

Originally scheduled for June 20, 2020 before being moved to Sept. 18, 2020 and later June 4, 2021, previously-purchased tickets will be honored at the October concert. Tickets are on sale at BudweiserEventsCenter.com, the OCR Box Office or 970-619-4112.

TELLURIDE — The 12th annual Telluride Horror Show is Colorado’s first and longest-running horror film festival. The 2021 festival runs Friday to Sunday with feature films, special programs, guests and events. The lineup includes a mix of horror, suspense, thriller, dark fantasy, sci-fi and dark comedy films, many being shown for the first time in the country. For a complete schedule or passes, head to TellurideHorrorShow.com.

PHOTOS: Telluride Horror Show Film Festival

DACONO — Colorado National Speedway will hold its October Coca-Cola Shootout on Saturday with a Halloween Trick-or-Treat with the drivers. All kids will be invited into the infield after qualifying to trick-or-treat with the drivers at 3:30 p.m. There will also be a costume contest with prizes for kids and adults.

Saturday’s racing event features seven divisions of non-stop racing including pure stocks, super stocks and more. Tickets are on sale now at ColoradoSpeedway.com.

COLORADO SPRINGS — One of Colorado’s most unique brew fests returns this weekend to the Norris Penrose Event Center. The annual Haunted Brew Fest features over 100 adult beverages from 50 breweries, wine distributors and distilleries. But what makes it haunted? The festival offers the biggest Halloween costume party Southern Colorado has ever seen.

There will be two Haunted Brew Fest sessions on Saturday, one from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and another from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Haunted Brew Fest tickets are likely to sell out, so get yours online soon to enjoy the special combination of Halloween costumes, beer, wine and spirits.

COLORADO SPRINGS — The largest holiday show in Colorado Springs arrives in October! The Colorado Springs Sugar Plum Food & Gift Mart features hundreds of vendors with handcrafted goods, home décor, gourmet food, art, crafts, jewelry, boutique clothing, photography, toys, Christmas decorations and more. Mr. and Mrs. Claus will also be traveling down from the North Pole for the weekend and will be hanging out at the Winter Wonderland display.

The Sugar Plum Food & Gift Mart takes place Saturday and Sunday at the Colorado Springs Event Center off Palmer Park and Academy. Admission is $8 for adults and kids under age 16 are free.

LONGMONT — Mollie McGee’s Annual Fall Market is Saturday and Sunday with handcrafted gifts, home décor, dolls, jewelry, pottery, art and more. Admission at the Boulder County Fairgrounds is $5 and children under 12 are free. This event was first published by Mile High on the Cheap. For more local deals and discounts, visit MileHighontheCheap.com.

COLORADO — There are so many great reasons to attend a 9Health Fair this weekend. You can learn more about you, take advantage of free and low-cost health screenings, talk to several medical professionals and get your flu shot. Appointments are required. Isn’t it time you make your health a priority? We hope to see you there. Find a fair near you at 9HealthFair.org.

GRAND JUNCTION — Coloradans on the Western Slope can take the first step to a world without Alzheimer’s this Saturday at the Walk to End Alzheimer’s in Grand Junction. The 2021 walk will follow a ceremony at 9:30 a.m. at Lincoln Park and Colorado Mesa University. Registration can be completed at the park beginning at 9 a.m. or Act.Alz.org.

COLORADO — Summer is great, but anyone who loves leaves, apple cider, sweaters and some good old-fashioned fun, knows that corn mazes are where it’s at. Luckily, Colorado has more than its fair share of these fall treats, which also happen to come with sweet pumpkin patches and amazing corn mazes, great local food and all sorts of activities that will make you wish this season never ends. 9NEWS has put together a handy list and map of corn mazes in Colorado.

RELATED: 21 Colorado corn mazes to explore this autumn

COLORADO — Spooky season has officially arrived in Colorado. And for those of us who enjoy the thrill of being scared, the state is home to some pretty impressive local haunts. Explore our list of haunted houses and other creepy attractions to check out this Halloween season.

RELATED: Colorado haunted houses to check out this Halloween season

MORRISON — It may be autumn but there’s still time to catch a concert at Colorado’s most iconic music venue.

Musician and music producer Lane 8 will take the Red Rocks concert stage for the first time later this weekend. The electronic music star, also known as Daniel Goldstein, will perform at Red Rocks Amphitheatre on Thursday and Friday.

Country music trio Midland will perform at Red Rocks Amphitheatre on Saturday. The “Drinkin’ Problem” band will be joined by Hailey Whitters.

Black Tiger Sex Machine, a Canadian electronic music trio known for their LED-lit tiger helmets, will headline Red Rocks on Sunday.

The movie box office is on fire with the releases of “No Time To Die,” “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” and “Venom: Let There Be Carnage.” The 25th film in the James Bond franchise debuted to a solid $55.2 million last weekend. The final 007 movie starring Daniel Craig will continue to play well this October. 

“No Time To Die” will have to fend off the debuts of Jamie Lee Curtis’ “Halloween Kills” and Matt Damon’s “The Last Duel.”

• Halloween Kills
• The Last Duel

1. No Time To Die — $55.2 million
2. Venom: Let There Be Carnage — $31.8 million
3. The Addams Family 2 — $10.1 million
4. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings — $4.3 million
5. The Many Saints of Newark — $1.4 million

RELATED: Here’s how Daniel Craig’s final James Bond film did on opening weekend

> Would you like to see your favorite Colorado festival, fair, expo, concert, drama, musical, ballet, run or event listed in 9Things? Send it to alexander.kirk@9news.com.

RELATED: Where to trick-or-treat around the Denver area

SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Colorado Guide

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