Disclaimer: I received an entry to the Providence Marathon to review as part of being a BibRave Ambassador. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Ambassador, and check out BibRave dot com to review, find and write race reviews!

This was my first time running the Providence Marathon and my first time visiting Rhode Island. I enjoyed exploring a new area. This is not the fault of the race, but unfortunately, it was a hot and sunny day. The race started at 7:30 a.m., and I was out there for almost six hours (my time was 5:53:58 — I'd hoped to be under 5:29, but the heat had an impact).

The water stops were frequent, but some of them didn't seem to be that well-staffed, as I got my own cup(s) of water at several of them. The Mile 16 aid station ran out of cups, which was disappointing on such a hot day. The cups were smaller than usual race cups, so I usually had to get a few.

I liked the course, though I would not consider it flat, as it is described on the website. I live in a pancake-flat area. The first and last quarter of the race in particular were hilly, and there was a pretty long hill during Mile 7 into Mile 8. After that, the course was mostly flat-ish with a few hills until we came back to the Mile 6/Mile 20-ish point and repeated most of the first six miles in the other direction.

I thought the course was really nice except for an area around Mile 3-5/21-23 that included highway ramps and a construction area (that part just wasn't as scenic, and on the way back, it also included a long, gradual hill). A lot of the course was on the East Bay Bike Path, which was pretty. Runners were either on the path or a nearby road; there were not two directions of runners on the path at once. I liked that it wasn't a complete out-and-back, with some variations. It did help with knowing what to expect in the last six miles. There were a decent amount of bikers on the path.

I took a Bird scooter to the race from my Airbnb, which made access very easy, as I didn't have to worry about parking. I liked that the swag for this race was a hoodie — something different and more substantial than the average race shirt. The medal was also pretty, although it would have been nice to include the year. There were also free race photos.

I enjoyed the race and did not have a problem following the markings, though I saw someone else almost go off course and another who had gone off course and turned around. I thought there would be more food at the finish line, and while there were food trucks, I did not see the free samples that had been described (I think the food trucks were giving out samples and selling meals, but I didn't make it over there). I did get my post race beer from Fiddlehead, a banana and a water. Narragansett was also on-site (I went to the brewery later in the day), along with another beverage company.

Read my full recap at She Runs by the Seashore dot com.