May 2, 2024
Current Year Results
Results Search
Biggest/Best Boston Qualifier
2024 Results
2023 Results
2022 Results
2021 Results
2020 Results
2019 Results
2018 Results
2017 Results
2016 Results
2015 Results
2014 Results
2013 Results
2012 Results
2011 Results
2010 Results
2009 Results
2008 Results
2007 Results
2006 Results
2005 Results
2004 Results
2003 Results
2002 Results
2001 Results
2000 Results
☰
Providence Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Providence Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 3.6 
Organization 3.4 
Spectators 2.9
Number of comments: 169 [displaying comments 161 to 166]
|
a. s. from ohio
(5/5/2008)
 "a lack of planning and thought!!!!!!!!!!" (about: 2008)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Providence Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 This must be the Cox's organizations first marathon. The late water stops ran out of cups.......giving a runner a whole bottle of gatorade to sip on and then discard is neither economic or sensible. They ran out of medals.The start was at the J&W University,the finish downtown,BUT the buses left from the State Capital [free parking].Do the organizers really think that having finished a marathon, people want to walk 10 or so blocks to their car???The course was OK,the initial 2 miles were somewhat rough.On a plus note..there was plenty of food for the late runners.I am not sure of the rational for a 9am start,or for the Sat expo closing at 4pm,although packet pick up was available prior to the start. | |
|
D. Z. from Central CT
(5/5/2008)
 "Decent first effort." (about: 2008)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Providence Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 Course: Some very pretty places, 2 pretty ugly places, lots of little hills. Excellent people support during the race, but water tables were dry for the slower runners before the 1/2 marathon split off. The logistics are kind of tough for a small race. The shuttle bus rides to the start took forever and finding my car at the end of the race was a challenge. For an out of towner, downtown Providence feels like the maze at the end of 'The Shining'. Starting and finishing near free parking would be a welcoming gesture. The boxed food at the end was better than average. Not many spectators which isn't unusual for a new race. Some of the urban neighborhoods could provide some in the future, but industrial areas, choke & pukes (4 lane commercial roads) and the really pretty bike path probably never will. Keep the bike path! | |
|
m. w. from chicago, IL
(5/5/2008)
"great course organization needs some tweeking" (about: 2008)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Providence Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 1 the course was a beautiful rolling hills course that takes you through some very pretty parts of Providence I did not know we were even there. Finish line had lots of good food and spectators, but no directions on where to go for food and drink you had to ask around. no help getting chips off either ouch!!! Start it was pouring rain and they aggressively threw everyone out of the building we were waiting in, about an hour and half before the race which was delayed for twenty minutes because the shuttle buses were late arriving. No communication to the runners that were waiting. I spoke with a woman at the end of the race who tried to stop because she was ill she went to the aid station workers for help they did not know what to do and sent her to a cop who said he did not know what to do. She stopped in a coffee shop and some kind man bought her tea and gave her cab fare back to the finish, NICE to know there are good samaritans in the world!! This can be a great race just needs some more organization and better communication to volunteers on help plans. | |
|
j. b. from Rhode Island
(5/5/2008)
 "Tough Course Set-Up" (about: 2008)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Providence Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 This was a local race for me and I had high hopes for the run. It was raining (pouring) at the start and the race started 10 minutes late. The course has uphills and downhills throughout, with two or three short and steep sections between miles 19 and 24. Tough finishing hills. OK organization for a first-year race; I hope it will get better next year. | |
|
S. F. from Massachusetts
(5/5/2008)
"Great spectators, poor organization" (about: 2008)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Providence Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 5 Pros: A challenging, but fair course. (Can you tell I PR'd?) Great pizza, and lots of it, at the finish. Best of all, a surprising number of surprisingly enthusiastic spectators. Cons: Starting-area Port-a-lets positioned in front of the start line...unbelievable. Undersized, undermanned and understocked water stations. And brittle plastic cups? The kind you can't pinch to prevent water shooting up you nose? Bad. Bad. Bad. Also, the whole bag-check scheme was a fiasco, unorganized, understaffed and totally insecure. At both the start and finish. Anyone could have picked up anyone's stuff and walked away unnoticed. Lastly, the post-race booths were in a muddy lot. A final suggestion for the organizers: the 1000 reserved parking spaces were nearly a mile from the finish, not the kind of walk folks want to make following a marathon or half. Please consider having the finish line be closer to the parking. | |
|
R. C. from Glastonbury, CT USA
(5/4/2008)
"Feeble First Attempt" (about: 2008)
4-5 previous marathons
| 4-5 Providence Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 8 portable toilets for almost 4,000 runners! That should say it all. No water and most water stations, very few spectators, course only partially closed to traffic. Johnson & Wales, theoretically a sponsor, had guards and school administrators chasing runners from buildings and grounds prior to the race... I appreciate the attempt to establish a race in this beautiful little city, but this was a poor first attempt. Not enough volunteers by half, intersections not blocked, traffics blowing horns at runners and cutting through and groups of leering men outside of topless clubs. I give the course a 4 because one can't deny the scenery along the river, the historic architecture and so forth. I really hope they get their act together. This could be a very cool race, but it wasn't what it was advertised as. |
© 2000-2024, All Rights Reserved by MarathonGuide.com LLC
