SPRINGFIELD — Visitors should buckle up for a busy weekend downtown with tens of thousands of people expected to converge for multiple major events.

The Pride parade, block party and You Ball is expected to attract some 10,000 people on Saturday, and the Ironman competition will bring in more than 1,300 competitors, plus family and friends who will watch on Sunday. And that’s just a start.

The Massachusetts Veterans of Foreign Wars is holding its 105th convention, restaurant week is kicking off, MGM is offering a free concert, the Springfield school district is hosting its third Family Expo for its 23,700 students and their families, and there are multiple graduations and one prom scheduled, said Springfield Police Lt. Brian Elliott, who is part of a team of police who have been preparin

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