This is absolutely a half marathon race with a full added on as an after thought. It's a beautiful half marathon. The 2nd half course is ugly with several out and backs that seem to make no sense and were just created to get an additional 13 miles.
I ran 4:00 and absolutely no food of any kind and only bottled water at end. That was a disgrace. Great race for a half, terrible for a full.

This was my eleventh marathon and I was disappointed overall with this race. First of all, the race was delayed for 10 minutes and the buses (from the parking lot to start) were running behind schedule.

Second, the race course is hilly and, as it is along the ocean, extremely windy. This year (2012) the weather conditions were bad, it was extremely windy the entire race. The race course is virtually unprotected, I expended an incredible amount of energy fighting the wind and was covered in sand from head to toe by the finish. Also, the course could have been more scenic, the back half of the course is boring(and I live in Newport, there are better routes to showcase this city).

This is also a half marathon race - marathon runners run within 20 feet of the half marathon finish. After finishing, half marathoners were crossing the race course (on the way out of the finish area) getting in the way of the marathon runners.

Additionally, there is no crowd support for this race - no musicians and no organized cheering sections.

Finally, the race expo was the worst expo I have ever been too. There was essentially only a packet pick-up with maybe 5 vendors at most. There also was no additional 'marathon gear' to purchase.

I ran the 2012 race for my Rhode Island marathon. For the most part I really enjoyed the experience.

The expo was in beautiful Historic Newport. I got in and out effortlessly. There were a few booths, enough that you could get gels and any other last minute supplies. I spent some time in Newport. There was a seafood festival going on and lot's of shops.

I've read some complaints about the shuttle system but it worked smoothly for me. I arrived there around 6:15 (8:00 start) and had no issues. I suspect the problems were with folks who got there late. The race began almost 15 minutes late and seeing buses still arriving one can only guess the delay was for that. The website did encourage folks to arrive early for the shuttles. After the race the shuttle worked just as efficiently for me.

The course is the most scenic I have ever run, especially the first half. You see beaches, marinas, stunning mansions, an historic army base and a wildlife refuge. When the views are beautiful and diverse that's the ideal.

This year we had overcast skies and blustery wind. So windy that I saw some of the sandwich sign mile markers blown over. I'm sure the wind was worse than usual but running along the water I suspect some wind is always an issue. There are lot's of rolling hills along the course. Only one or two can really be called steep and most are very short but collectively they do take a toll. You do hit a tough short but steep hill around 24.3 that was unappreciated. :(

I've read some complaints that this race is a half marathon with a full just thrown in. I'm not sure I completly agree with that but I can see why folks say that. The first half is the most scenic (altho the second half is quite nice) and its one of those races where you run with the halfers for the whole first half and suddenly feel lonely as you pass the finish line and head out for the second half. The roads are closed the first half but are open the second half. I experienced no issues with cars and I don't think the second half needs closed roads but others may disagree.

My only complaint is I felt the second half didn't have enough water stops. There were seven and even though it was cool (around 60) and overcast it was humid and I didn't feel like 7 was enough. I believe marathons need more water stops the second half than the first. The second half stops did all have gels and the volunteers were great. One stop (that we passed multiple times) we were greeted by folks in costume claiming to be the zombie stop.

To the person who ran a 2:28 and said they were out of food. I ran a 4:37 and there was plenty of food for me. They had soup, pizza and lot's of smaller bars and banannas. I can't eat pizza after a marathon but I saw lot's of folks who obviously can.

You get a nice short sleeve tech shirt and the medal is also nice. In short I think this is a very good marathon.

A very beautiful but challenging course. Along with a persistent wind that always seemed to be in our faces, there was blowing sand and lots of moderate hills. None of the hills were too bad, except the killer hill in the final miles.
I thought that the organization was very good. I arrived early and had no problems parking and the shuttle system worked very well. I didn't like that cars were allowed onto the course and were mixing in with the runners. The aid stations were excellent and I was offered gels more often than at any other race.
The shirt and medal are both first rate. I imagine that I will wear the short sleeve shirt often.
Overall, many more areas to praise than criticize. It is a great way of getting Rhode Island for fellow 50 staters.

Packet-Pickup: Quick and easy, not much to see but that's what I expect from a small marathon

Tshirt: design and quality were average, but it would be nice if they had my size.

Parking: Fine for me as I got there 1.5 hours early, but I know it was a nightmare for many.

Course: nice course with great ocean views was pretty flat in the beginning and some some harder rolling hills in the second half. The course should have been cleared of parked cars. The half-way part where the half finished needed course marshals because it was clogged with spectators. I was dodging spectators who were standing in the middle of the marathon course with baby strollers. They weren't crossing, just standing there in a small crowd.

Start: They started 15 minutes late without any warning, communication, loudspeaker, etc. This was poorly executed. Also, the fact that the pre-race area (packet-pickup, gear check, bathrooms, etc.) is in FRONT of the start it's challenging for people to make their way around the back of the start corral. If I was the RD I'd consider moving the start location to the west or reversing the course.

Volunteers: On-course volunteers were nice, but some of the early stations were poorly organized. At one point I came to a table with 4-6 people, dozens of large bottles of Gatorade, and ONE guy pouring it into cups so people had to wait in line. it's not tragic, but with a bit of coaching it could have been much better.Volunteers I encountered after the race were disappointing. Post-race volunteers handling food seemed like the local high school football/wrestling team without a chaperone. Instead of handing out food (much of which was still in boxes on a palette) they were eating the food and goofing off with their buddies. Good volunteers can make up for a lot of weaknesses in a race, but this crew needs some coaching and oversight.

Post-race food: Okay. I got water, gatorade, and a banana. The soup was awesome and the woman serving it was working harder than every teenage boy combined!

Post-race shuttle: I got back to my car quickly without a hassle.

Pros:
-Staying at the hotel down the street made it extremely easy - 3 minute walk. So, I can't comment on getting to the event. It started 15 minutes late and saw buses coming in the whole time.
-Beautiful run! I grew up in RI but if from out of New England, I recommend this race for scenery alone. Challenging run - especially if there is wind like we had.
-Medal, shirt and 'swag' were very nice.
-Support was light along the route but some people made up for that with enthusiasm.
Cons:
-NO food at end of race!! :( For me that was 2:28. I saw people walking away with boxes of pizza! They should NOT let non-runners into the food/beer area nor let runners take whatever they want.

If you're looking for a very scenic race with rolling hills, then this marathon is for you. The volunteers were plentiful and the water stops were terrific and each included energy drinks and bathrooms.

Positives: Extremely beautiful course. Bus transportation between remote parking was efficient.
Negatives: Absolutely awful traffic control getting to marathon parking even following their instructions to the letter. No gatorade the first couple of aid stations. Parked cars along the crowded early miles and very little course protection from vehicles. Another race that highly favors the half marathoners to the detriment of the marathoners.

This is the worst organized race I have the misfortune to participate. There are about 4000 or more runners in the marathon and half marathon all trying to get into parking spaces on long lines. At the start no one seem to be in charge or could direct us to the start line. The race started 15 mins late and no one announced this.

The course is absolutely breathtaking in the first half. Challenging but not over the top in terms of difficulty. The views and vantage points are just amazing.

The second half is very rural and it is an out and back. Nothing to write home about but the first half makes up for it!

My opinion was that the post race setup was great, but I would like to see more runners being a bit less selfish when it comes to taking WHOLE PIZZAS for their friends and filling their bags with Gatorade bottles. Not sure if that became an issue for the later finishers.

The t-shirt and medal were nice, if that is important to you.

Crowd support was OK. Relatively speaking this is not a huge race, and many areas are not prone to crowd support. In the later half, the scenery is not as great but the crowd support is better. So choose your poison...

Only complaint is that the expo was pretty light on information and was also very difficult to get to. I recommend that they hold the expo on the Middletown side where there may be more adequate parking and less tourist congestion.

This was my 'RI' on the 50 states, but as an NJ resident, I would run this again because it is fun and Newport is beautiful!