Running this marathon was a late decision for me, but I was not disappointed. I arrived late Friday night so I had to do a race-day morning registration. It was smooth and seamless. When I arrived at the Yacht Club around 6:30 a.m. Saturday, the expo was already going, and appeared to continue through the day. There was fruit and coffee available to the runners before the race started.

The overnight low was 51 and daytime temperature was 57. Sky was mostly overcast, but it was sunny briefly later in the morning. A bit on the cool side, but great weather for running with a long sleeve shirt and shorts. The wind was a factor in this race, but not continuously. The course was anything but straight, so the wind seemed to come and go with the short segments we ran in different directions.

The race started on America's Cup Blvd., passed the Yacht Club, and headed out of the business district. Along the way, we passed Fort Adams, now a park, and you could easily imagine the Colonials lobbing cannon balls at British ships during the Revolution. After that, the course wound along the Atlantic shore - an awesome sight - both the ocean and the homes and mansions along the way. You realize why Rhode Island is called the Ocean State. There is a lot of ocean shoreline.

The early course was pretty flat, but there were three significant hills later in the race. The hills were at mile 18, 20 and 25. They looked worse on the profile chart than they actually were.

There were water stations along the way staffed with friendly volunteers. Gatorade and water were the drinks, but also available along the way were Skittles, M&Ms, Pringle chips, PowerBar pieces, and fruit.

The course was well marked, and there was never uncertainty as to where the course went. Volunteers were stationed along the way to help guide the runners. However, there was a turn-around point between mile markers 16 and 17, and there was not a person stationed there, and there probably should have been. Still, the pavement was well marked with painted arrows.

Fan support was not great, but there were still pockets of enthusiastic fans along the way cheering the runners on.

The finish line was about a mile from the Yacht Club, so buses transported runners back. The post-race area had quite a spread of hot food, more fruit, and Smoothie-type drinks. Overall, this race was well organized, well executed, and supported by the community. I recommend this October race in Rhode Island.

First of all, congratulations to the race director and volunteers for all of their hard work on this marathon - organizing such an event is always very challenging, so thanks for all of your efforts.

This is a really beautiful course, especially the sections that run through Fort Adams, along Ocean Drive, and to the Wildlife Refuge.

However, this is definitely NOT the course you want to run if you are trying for a PR or wish to qualify for Boston (I felt some solace that I finished about 40 minutes slower than my last race in Oklahoma City in April, but the "elite" times were also at least 30 minutes off)! There are some major hills in the last 10K, including the dreaded uphill transition from Paradise Ave to Purgatory at Mile #25.

There should definitely have been more water stops, and unfortunately the lack of water (literally, NO (zero) water was available) at the finish, which poses a serious safety risk to everyone. Providing marathon finishers with the same medal as the relay team finishers was also a bit disappointing.

Perhaps my greatest disappointment with this race was the lack of publicity. Salas' Restaurant, the famous pasta place located right next to the registration tent, didn't know anything about it (nor did Olympia Sports, EMS, Foot Fitness Too, etc.). The pre-race "expo" was the worst I have ever experienced. Again, there needs to be more marketing because this race has much to offer and could be a big draw for New Englanders and others interested in a nice fall non-PR race (I understand they are adding a half-marathon next year, which has even more potential for growing the size of this event).

In summary, this is a nice, challenging course that simply needs a bit of a boost in terms of a pre-race expo, water stops, finish line amenities, and advertising, in order to be a first-class event.

This was my first marathon. The route was great, especially the first 18 miles or so. For the last 8 miles, you end up having to share the road with cars and its more residential neighborhoods (as opposed to the beautiful seaside views and the mansions). I did feel a little nervous about the cars as well, especially near the end when I was already feeling wobbly and the cars were zooming by me. As advertised, the course is somewhat hilly. The hill in the last mile and half wasn't as bad I as thought it would be. The weather was crummy. But then, this is New England, so what do you expect? The volunteers were great and really outstanding. They helped make this a great experience. I also honestly did not expect any spectators, but even though I was in the last group of finishers, people were still out there cheering and encouraging. The race expo was so-so, but the post-race pasta, clam chowder and pizza were good. I wish that I took advantage of the post-race massage. I would definitely run this one again.

Newport is a beautiful half-marathon, but not an overly friendly or well-marked marathon. The bag pickup is not well marked when you are from out of town and trying to find it in the dark, even with their directions. I echo that the race director is pretty mean and definitely not sympathetic to people coming in from out of town/not knowing their way around. Find your own hotel. There are lots close to the start that they don't mention on the website and they actually bus you back to the start - whereas no one (neither hotels nor the race itself) near the finish sent buses to the start. The start of the race is about a quarter-mile up the road from the packet pickup and you just have to follow people to get there. According to the race everything is "right out on America's Cup Blvd." as if the road only has one address. The online map of the course is pretty much worthless without knowledge of the town. I know people who got lost driving the course the day before.

The first half of the marathon is beautiful and well-spectated. The spectators are super enthusiastic early on. Then, the second half comes along with lots of hills and spread out spectators. Miles 22-24 are especially poorly marked, and it sends you out into less populated areas of town with more cars. The cars are pretty respectful, but this was when I realized that I had seen no medical support along the course. It has to be there, but I don't remember any. My wife said an ambulance went out on the course at one point, but I didn't see anything waiting along the way or at the finish (same as the halfway point). There were police at turns in the course and biking police at some points along the course. At the end the spectators looked bored (my wife said about 8 people were there for the first-place finisher) until the very last 50 yards or so.

At the finish there is no food, just water and a medal. You have to take the bus back to the start for the after-race food, but I had booked my hotel to be near the finish, so I missed out on all of that. Glad I got some bananas out on the course and from my wife. All in all, there are a lot of little things that can be improved, so register early (to save money) and come with some patience.

The course is the real star in this race. What a beauty! The miles clicked by very quickly along the seaside roadways. Wind can be heavy, so dress accordingly. You can go fast on these roads. My wife was even able to shop in town while I ran... so you can guess that she wants me back next year!

I like Saturday marathons. More time to celebrate the finish and still make it back to work on Monday. It's easy to get to Newport. No traffic so early on race day. Parking not a problem. It's nice not having an expo and just picking up my number. What a relief from the bigger races. No stress. Just show up and run.

It's a fan-friendly course. It's easy to drive around and cheer on a runner multiple times. Most of the roads were car-free so early in the am, which was nice. The fellow runners were a friendly lot.

This is a BQ course, so I'll be back to try for my fastest.

I ran this marathon two years ago and was excited to do it again when I heard about the new course. I am so glad I did. This was by far the nicest marathon course I have run. Beautiful ocean views, a historic fort, homes fitting in with the natural scenary, and lovely rural roads just begin to describe the course. The volunteers at the water stations were friendly and the finish line spectators were enthusiastic. I would highly recommend this race. The only downside was there were areas in the end where we could have used more direction. Otherwise a perfect day.

Good news: you see a lot of Newport while running Breakers; however, it was a very tough run. The weather was cold and windy, but no one can control that, given that it is mid-October in RI. The course was poorly marked and very hilly. Not a flat course at all. There are several places where the drivers didn't seem to care that we were running a marathon because they were driving fast and close to the runners. At the finish line there was no water, food or medical tent!! I had to get on a bus and ride back into town to get what I needed.

MOST UNDERRATED (of 29 I've seen) COURSE I know: this was a beautiful, New England, seacoast run, circling the town of Newport. Postcard-perfect clean downtown of shops and restaurants left quickly to the coastline, sailboat harbors, parkland, rocky beaches, and mansion-laden coast and neighborhoods. The few hundred marathoners were privileged in my mind to find this run.... As a matter of fact, avoid it. No fun at all. Stay away. Gentle hills and easy logistics are simply annoying. Perfect temperature provided no challenge. Poking around town afterward just reveals too much seafood, over-priced ice cream, and a wonderful end to a picturesque day. Blecch. ;-)

This was my 44th marathon, and I have to say it was the most scenic one I've run! The views really don't get any better than this... ocean, boats, bridge, fort, mansions, fall foliage, wildlife refuge, etc. There was enough variety to speed the miles along, so that I actually didn't even mind the hills near the end! The weather was perfect for running (high 40s, overcast most of the time), even if the wind was a little brisk at times. You HAVE to run this one, if only to experience the beauty of this part of the country!

That said, there were some areas for improvement:

1. The website said you could bring your personal Champion Chip along and it could be programmed in at the expo. Not so! I asked several times, and apparently they just hadn't made any arrangements for this. The issue was important to me because they also didn't have any "ties" for their chip, and suggested weaving it into your shoelaces. As predicted, the finish was a mess, with their having to untie shoe laces to get chips out (and then not bothering to retie them, but expecting tired runners to do that!).

2. It's been said before, but the race finish is 1-1/2 miles from "town" (where the post-race area and hotels are). So you have to wait and board a school bus to take you from the finish. I was grateful for the bus, but this really crunched my ability to make the late checkout time! The lesson here is to plan an extra 20-25 minutes after the finish for the lace untying and school bus catching/riding in your travel plans. I wish they would have an earlier start (say 7:00 a.m., versus 8:00 a.m.), to help with this challenge.

That said, the issues were relatively minor compared to the specialness of the race. The "expo" is very small, but adequate. The T-shirt is long-sleeved, but cotton and a boring "gray" color (with one color design print). There were enough porta-potties to keep me happy, and the finisher's medal is nice. The race director apparently listened to feedback, and added a much-needed water station around mile 25. The post-race food was superb, even if the "awards ceremony" hadn't happened by the time I had to leave for a plane (1:30).

Overall, I would highly recommend this race. Although I'm going for the 50 states, this is one I wouldn't mind coming back to in the future.

This is a pretty nice marathon, with some of the best scenery around. We got to see an old fort, some really nice mansions, and lots of ocean. There were a few hills, cold weather and some wind, but I haven't found an RD yet who can control the weather. Water stops were great. The post-race food was tremendous, with pasta, clam chowder, etc. The busing from the finish to the post-race area worked out better than I thought it would.

The only real negative is parking. The day before the race, the RD told me to park in the lot behind the visitors' center, and that it would cost about 8 or 9 dollars. We parked there on race day from 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., and it cost $21.75!! While I was willing to pay $10, the amount they charged was outrageous.