Providence is a nice middle size town..
The Marathon is small to medium size, growing in participants
Race Day pick-up of BIB and T-Shirt were a big positive.. but goody bag is not worse mentioning

Half and Full Marathon start together and share the same course for the first 2 Miles, so the beginning is crowded..

The course is mostly flat, one Hill in 2 parts at mile 6 and one at mile 23 followed by a steep downhill.. the downhill might hurt your quads..


I didn't like the bridge crossing at Mile 24, Bridge was narrow and bicycles and pedestrians were coming in opposite direction, also tough to overpass there.. worse is running down the pathway after the bridge..

It's not a closed course.. roads and bike paths are shared.. which might cause risky situation, as not everybody is patient and/or understanding towards Runners.

Sufficient aid and water stations, but spectator support can be thin or none at parts of the course..

After Race Pizza, Gatorade and Zico Coconut Water was available to take, also an EXPO with T-Shirt Sale and a Beer tent..

All in all good experience

This was my first marathon, and having run the Providence Half last year, I knew it would be well run. But I didn't appreciate how very beautiful the course would be compared to their half! There is adequate parking (prepare to pay though) and enough porta-potties at the start. There was great support from police, and people directing runners at almost every corner and intersection, and at the many water stops. I decided to not carry my water belt and it was a good decision - many water/Gatorade/GU/banana stops. Very nice people. Three med stations on the way. Much of the run was on a bike path in the woods; the rest was through waterfront neighborhoods and golf courses. So many wonderful people. Loved it and looking forward to my next one at Prov!

This was one of the best organized road marathons I've participated in lately. It exceeded my expectations. The best thing was the focus on the marathon. They didn't have relays and split the half marathon at mile 2.5 so you knew after that point you could settle in with those who would be along with you for all 26.2 miles. It seems like most cities try to lump together a half marathon, relay, 10K, etc., and I was pleased to see this race didn't follow suit.

City was very friendly toward runners. Hotel (Hilton) was accommodating despite being very busy, and various stores and restaurants were aware of the marathon, which always tells me a race communicates well with the city. For someone traveling to Providence, there were lots of great things to do for a weekend- art museums, shopping, and even a Little Italy to carbo load.

Expo was just the right size for me, but I prefer smaller, well organized expos. Enough to walk around and get what you need, and get out and get ready to race. Also, at the start, I saw runners staying warm before the race by waiting in the convention center. Great idea to start a race by such location so runners can stay warm and stretch. Lastly, aid stations were plentiful! I can't imagine that they could have run out of anything - they had water, Gatorade, bananas, GU, and medical support amply distributed along the course.

Great job, Providence! This marathon was very well organized and exceeded my expectations!

This was my second marathon and I have to say while it was fun I wasn't thrilled. The course was dead flat (I blinked and missed the one hill) and fairly scenic at times along the water. But, then, other times you were running under highway overpasses and along industrial warehouses. The bike path was nice but was confusing at times as you double-backed along it. The spectators were pretty cool, but there was hardly anyone outside of the downtown start/finish area. My biggest gripe, though, was the total lack of gels and little Gatorade/water near the end. Granted, I ran on a really hot day and am a slower runner, but by the time I was hitting stations at 18+, they only had water, or were already closing up shop (only three hours in?!). I was saved at mile 19 by a lonely local kid giving me water on his front lawn (thank you!). The end of the race was pretty cool, though, and had lots to do. The host hotel was also super nice; they actually held my race bag for me while running, and let me check in early and out late - totally worth the money! So, at the end of the day, a fairly nice race, but I might continue to shop around.

The Pros:
-I BQ'd (3:10), so yes, this is a good BQ course. There are a few minor hills in the beginning, then flat, and 1 very short (but steep) hill at around mile 23, going onto the bridge.
-The race is staged in a smart area. I walked about 400 meters from my hotel (The Biltmore) to the start. There were at least 2 other large hotels located the same distance away.
-Long-sleeve tech shirt. Nice medal.
-I liked the idea of the porta-johns in the race corrals.

The Cons:
-About a week before the race, reports starting saying it would be HOT that day, yet the course was extremely understocked for hydration/electrolytes.
-The course may have been too long. I make certain to run the tangents, yet my Garmin measured me in at 26.46 miles.
-Poor traffic control. At one point (in the very south) you were running around cars down a narrow street. My wife was driving to differnt spots to hand me water along the course and a cop directed her ON TO the course. She asked, "Are you sure?" and he politely, said, "Yeah, no problem!"
-A lot of this race is run on a bike path, which is fine except that it was open to walkers/cyclist who seemed to be bothered to yield to the racers.

I think if the race directors can fix these problems by next year, they will have a really great race to offer - one that I foresee will only grow in popularity. I would like to come back one day, but not until I hear that these problems have been fixed.

The course was okay, with a few nice views along the water, and there were more spectators then I expected, considering the size of the race.

There was always someone cheering you along and the support was much needed at times because there were NO gels as advertised. I would have brought my own or planned ahead had I known, but nothing was said at the expo when I picked up my bib. I don't think they ran out because I was a 3:30 finisher, but if that was the problem, it was poor planning on their part.

Pros: Well organized race day. Nice starting area. Clear directions where to be for the start. Nice breeze off the water.

Cons: Gels promised at 4 stops. There were never any, and no comment as to why. Would have brought my own if they had not advertised that they would be out there.

I ran this race three weeks ago, and as a whole, I would have to give it a large stamp of approval for a mid-sized race.

Pros:
- The course is great: Scenic, with a nice urban/rural mix, and I loved the run back into Providence along the water
- While there weren't as many fans as at the big-city races, i wasn't expecting that, and the fans that were along the course and at the finish line were phenomenal!
- Long-sleeve tech shirt
- Post-race food and beverage
- Registration was hassle-free
- Safe course

Cons:
- The expo has room for improvement
- Start and porta-potties could be arranged better

Overall, so long as you aren't expecting a Boston or New York, big-city atmosphere, this is a great race.

First, as a "50 States" marathoner, I say we should give this race support so that our athletes have a couple of options for RI rather than one or none. The marathon in Exeter is a qualifier, so that eliminates it as an option for many of us.

Needs Improvement:

-There was no electrolyte replacement or aid station support (outside of water between about miles 5 and 20). Admittedly, I was on a 5:30-6:00 marathon pace, but had I known in advance that water would only be available for marathoners ahead of a certain pace, I could have used a Camelbak or hydration belt. (Thanks much in part to two very nice lady volunteers who met some of us back-of-the-packers on the course, with a bag of M&Ms, etc. at about mile 18.)

-Some confusion about the so called "free race shirt to the first 4,000 registered." The default shirt (cotton) was the one "everyone" was to get and the tech shirt to the first 4K (all race distances). I had to "ask" about the extra shirt - which has a big "5KM" on the back. (It's still a nice perk, and I was happy to receive it, but my guess is that most entrants didn't bother to ask for it."

-I agree that the expo was small and limited.

-A little challenging at times with the foot traffic on the paths around 23-26 - composed of people who were indifferent to the marathon.

-The "Cox" Providence Rhode Race logo is understandable and interesting, but I would prefer that "Rhode Island" is spelled out!

Pros:

-Loved the course - a nice, rural/urban mix - not what I expected in RI. Neat park paths, golf courses, views of the bay, and so on.

-Beer and pizza at the finish

-Nice long-sleeve tech shirt and medal.

My first and probably only marathon, and overall I thought it was very well organized. My only beef was the lack of food and beer - and the fact that there was no one to tell me where it was after running for five and a half hours.