This was a nice mid-size Spring race. Very well organized, decent expo. Everything went off on time. Lots of aid stations and volunteers with water, gatorade, and tons of GU. The course was a little hillier than expected, but nothing really bad - just a long mile long steady uphill at mile 21. My only real complaint was the mile markers were off all race long. I'd have a 5:50 mile, then an 8:20 mile, then a 7:20 mile. I was probably the only person without a Garmin, but I'd rather have no mile markers than incorrect ones. I never knew if I was going too fast, too slow, etc. I'd rather have not known and could've run by feel, but I couldn't make myself ignore the signs because I was trying to run an exact pace and while I felt like I was running at that pace, seeing markers at 6 min, or at 8:30, made me scond guess my pacing. Other than that one issue, everything was fine. Nothing memorable, but nothing bad.

Only applies to 2012: Despite posting in numerous places that the course would be the same this year, closure of the bike path in one section forced organizers to route the course back over the biggest hill in the race to get to the finish. That hill really hurts 21 miles in.

The course is generally good, it's pretty flat from 6 to 20 and was well signed/coned for the most part. Mile markers were a complete joke, with some as far as 0.5 miles off. Some water stops had only TINY water cups, forcing you to try to grab two or three to get enough water. Water stops were generally well staffed.

I think everyone else here has said this, but man that bridge at the end is rough. Bikers were coming the other way and I had to wait to make a pass. Switchbacks aren't great, but at least they're wide enough to pass slower runners. There was a large (100+?) group of run/walkers in orange shirts who were allowed to start the race early and were often lined up 3-4 wide when you had to pass them (and stole some tangents). I was scared I was going to come up behind them on the final narrow bridge, but luckily that didn't happen.

Spectators were a little sparse, but good for a race this size. Lots near the end.

This race was OK, but could be great with a little more care and planning. They really have got to find another way over the river at the end - the narrow bridge and switchback could easily set you back a minute or more with the wrong set of circumstances.

I always take it as a bad organizational omen when you have you have to look up your own bib number to pick up your race packet and this race was no exception.

Packet pickup went smoothly and even on Saturday afternoon there was no line. Expo was very, very small, with only the bare necessities, which is fine with me.

They did have a baggage drop-off at the start, which is always a nice perk. I did not however take advantage of it.

I never found the port-a-potties at the start, but that was probably my fault. There were two at the first mile marker, which didn't nearly support the number of runners veering off to use them. Most of us ended up watering the nearby bushes.

At the start pace corral signs were not hung high enough to read over the runners. They were so low that I didn't even realize they were there until the race had already started, even though I had been looking for them. Fortunately, the race was so small it didn't really matter.

I have no idea what was going on with the mile markers - it's not clear that any of them were even remotely accurate. Many were a quarter mile or more off.

There was a dearth of water stops, and the water was dispensed in the tiniest cups possible - that is, if there were cups. I usually took two and was still thirsty. In fact, I spent most of the race thirsty. I hit the 15 mile water stop solidly the middle of the pack and they were already out of cups. I was not having a good race and I dropped to the back of the pack after that, and many of further water stops were also out of cups. I can't imagine what kind of disaster this would have been had the weather actually been hot. If I ran this race again (I can't imagine why I would), I would bring my own water bottle. There did appear to be plenty of Gu and bananas though.

There aren't many spectators, although there were a few very clever ones. This is also fine with me.

The course is just okay. In some areas it's quite nice, with pretty water views, or over a nice quiet bike path, but it does go through some rather industrial parts of the city. Traffic over most of the course is not closed off. Toward the end you are required to go over a bridge in single file and then take a back-and-forth ramp down to the ground.

The medal is the nicest I've ever seen. Unfortunately, medals are useless and I wish they'd spent that time and effort on the t-shirt, which is pretty unattractive. They do get points for offering an XS shirt though, and it is a tech shirt, so that's nice.

In short: Pretty medal, mediocre course, questionable organization, and drab tech shirt

I ran this course 5/6/12 in efforts for a BQ. This course is not condusive to serious runners. The course consisted of 16 miles or so of road running, and the rest was run along a bike path. At mile 24 it was a single track bike path, with no room to pass with on-coming bike traffic to dodge. If thats not bad enough, you need to zig-zag down a 5 level ramp to get to ground level making 180 degree turns at every corner. The mile markers were not well placed, and the course was long. On average the peopole I interacted with all have .35-.50 miles too long.

Would be a good course for a rec runner or for fun, but do yourself a favor and go somewhere else if you want to BQ or run a serious road race!

Good course, probably a PR type of course under good conditions which are difficult to have when the race starts at 7:30 when the humidity is at its highest.
Well staffed fluid stations with very friend volunteers but very spaced apart (one about 3 miles apart)
Aid stations ran out of cups at mile 14 and out of Gatorade by 16. Very humid day to go without water or Gatorade that long, thank God for volunteers who set up water tables.

Either the organizers made a mistake in their cup calculation or the humidity took them by surprise. Either way, at some point they should have sent a new supply to replenish the stations.

I chose this race as my first marathon because I have family in Providence. After reading other comments on this site, I was hesitant about the hills, lack of water, and disorganization at the finish. I found that the course was had a few hills at the start and end, but nothing too intense. The course was beautiful, with great views of the water and on quiet streets. There were plenty of water stops with Gu as well, the race was very well staffed and started promptly, and while the crowds were very thin for the majority of the race, those that did come out were enthusiastic. A fast course, I would definitely return.

I ran the inaugural race in 2008 and liked it then, and since then they have eliminated some of the boring stretches. It's an average course overall. Fairly flat. A few hills here and there to change up your stride, but nothing killer. The amazing thing was how far off the mile markers were. Sometimes it would be .8 miles between, sometimes 1.2 or 1.3. Unless you run with a GPS you would have no idea how far along you were. The aid stations were well-stocked. Some with Gu, most with water AND Gatorade. Some aid stations you had to serve yourself off the table.


They fixed the problem with the medals now being race-specific, and very nicely done by the way. They have NOT fixed the issue with the shirts being non-race -specific, but, small detail. The best improvement was in making the full start 30 minutes before the half. However, if you run under about 3:45 you'll share the last two miles of narrow bike paths and roads with some of the slower half-marathoners. Running 2:48 I had to do a lot of dodging and weaving and the speed differential between me and the halfers was enough to make it a bit hazardous. One other complaint: You all finish in the same chute so there is a lot of congestion for the faster marathon finishers. Tons of food was available at the finish. Bay State Race Services put the results up fast.

It's easy to stay in a hotel right at the start-finish. Overall a great mid-sized race if you're from New England but probably not a destination race unless you're a fifty-stater; and then I'd recommend the Gansett Marathon in mid-April for a better course...if you have a qualifying time.

The race is advertised as fast and flat, though I think that's stretching the truth a bit. There definitely are some hills throughout the course, along with a couple short steep ones at mile 23 and 25. Right after the mile 25 hill is a stretch of single track over a bridge, which was congested with runners and non-runners. This is followed by a steep switchback ramp to descend off the bridge, adding to the stretch of unpleasantness.

Providence seems like a nice city, but you don't see much of it on the course. I really wasn't a fan of all the twists and turns in the course since you start to lose track of where you are or what direction you're running in. There are a couple long stretches on the bike path, which are nice except that there are no water stops for several miles at a time. Other parts have you running on busy streets right along with traffic. While the police officers and volunteers were great controlling traffic, they can't be everywhere. I couldn't believe when I saw a car try to cut off a pack of runners to make a right turn. A spectator intervened to stop the car from driving into the runners.

The aid stations had plenty of water, gels and even bananas at some locations.

The only post race food I saw was tons and tons of pizza, which doesn't work for those of us who don't eat cheese. The beer garden was a nice touch though and had 3 varities of a local brew.


The expo was ok and had some gear and supplies to purchase. The technical race shirt you receive is ok at best. I think it's the same shirt that the half marathoners and 5k runners get. The finishers medal is also generic and doesn't specify marathon on it. Definitely some disappointment on the shirt and the medal.

The Hilton was walking distance to the start/finish line, the expo and several restaurants.

This could be a great race, but it doesn't seem like the community supports it. The morning news had coverage of the 5k that ran the day before, but made no mention of the marathon that was about to start within the hour. It would've been nice to get the word out there either to attract spectators or at least warn people that there will be some congestion on the roads.

Overall I was a bit disappointed with this race. It seems as though it has improved from past years based on previous reviews, but changes are still necessary in order to make this a fun, enjoyable race.

I ran this marathon on May 1, 2011 as my 8th marathon (I'd run 5 boston's previously and also Cape Cod and Shamrock-Virginia Beach). I live in Massachusetts about an hour away so I picked this race since it was only 2 weeks after the Boston Marathon and I could train all winter alongside my friends who were training for Boston. It was an easy drive on marathon morning to just drive there and get my number, shirt, etc. Providence/Cox was a great course for the mostpart except for the terrible 'switchback'ramp' on a bridge around mile 25. what a terrible place for that. my knees were buckling in and just before that we all ran on a very narrow bridge where you would be unable to pass another runner (I was not in the position to do so but if I had there physically wouldn't be enough room). I liked running on the bike trails although a lot of bikers would look annoyed at all the runners everywhere. My husband and kids were able to drive the course with ease and stop to cheer for me over 5 times (something that is impossible at Boston or any big marathon). I did a PR here by 6 minutes and I qualified for Boston by 10 minutes. The shirt is okay but could have been a lot nicer but I was thankful for a 'child's size L' since I'd requested XS and was able to get a shirt that actually fit me. I was able to park for free but that's because I went super early that morning and parked in the Capital Grille parking lot before any attendants arrived. Also, you may want to wait till November to sign up because I signed up the end of October and then a few days later got an e-mail saying if I signed up between Nov 1 and Dec 31 I'd get a coolmax hat and a 'deluxe' goody bag. However, since I signed up in October I was told I wouldn't get any of that unless they happened to have an extra hat.

This race has lots of potential, but for now it isn't worth going out of your way to get to or to train for. The course was lovely in a few places, but mostly it seemed to be ran through lousy neighborhoods and at one point around mile 25 it wrapped around an overpass bridge, there was no way to run that! They kept the finish line open until the last runner made it in and the massage people weren't in a rush to clean up and there was plenty of food on the course and at the finish even though I was a back of the pack runner for this one. So kudos on all that; it really needs work setting up a new course through scenic areas and they should close off the roads, not have us running along the sides.