Under a sunny, blue sky and surrounded by cheering fans and blaring music, thousands of runners rocked, rolled and raced their way to the finish line Sunday at the 11th annual Rock ‘n’ Roll San Jose Half Marathon.

Including the 5K on Saturday, 17,000 runners from 44 states and 14 countries signed up to race.

In keeping with the rock and roll theme, organizers set up bands for musical motivation about every mile, and runners reported that some neighborhood garage bands also held impromptu jam sessions along the course.

“The turnout could not have been better — we were really pleased,” said Patrick Byerly, senior vice president of global events for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series, which puts on 30 races around the world every year. “We got a gift with the weather. You could not ask for a more beautiful day here in San Jose.”

Shadrack Biwott, of Mammoth Lakes, won the men’s half marathon with a time of 1:01:55. The 31-year-old, who is training for the New York City Marathon, scored one of the fastest half marathon times by an American this year, Byerly said.

Sally Kipyego, of Kenya, came in first in the women’s division with a time of 1:09:53.