“Rhode Island is the smallest state, but it has the biggest heart”.
(Gina Raimondo)
My Walk into the Future took me back to Providence, Rhode Island for the 2024 Rhode Island Half Marathon. This was the inaugural running of this race and was advertised as a scenic route through East Providence neighborhoods. The race was also advertised as completely flat—I’m guessing folks in Rhode Island do not comprehend the term ‘flat’ like we do in Florida. 😊
I ventured over to Providence when I visited New England back in October 2023. I flew up on Breeze Airways to explore Hartford, Connecticut and made stops in Springfield, Massachusetts and Providence. Providence seemed to have a lot to offer so decided to head back there directly since Breeze Airways added direct flights from Vero Beach to Providence/Boston.
I wanted to explore as a running tourist so looked for half marathons in the local area. I booked flight and hotel accommodations once I discovered the 2024 Rhode Island Half marathon. I’ve never run in New England but felt the weather would be good in mid-May and would get me out of the Florida humidity. Most of my training and road races are in the south and I’m always trying to balance weather, humidity and course conditions. Rhode Island seemed the perfect getaway to explore and experience good weather. Check and check on both items.
Flew out of Vero Beach on a Friday morning so I would not have to rush to attend packet pickup. Arriving on a Friday also provided additional time to explore the local area and find local food spots. My hotel was only 9 miles from the airport and in the heart of downtown Providence. Decided to walk and explore a bit after I checked into the hotel. The folks at the valet stand were very helpful identifying local eateries they recommended. Set out for The District because of the variety on the menu and it was less than two blocks away.
Made my way over with designs to sit at the bar and watch NBA playoff basketball. The District is a smaller venue and every sit at the bar was taken by locals—guess this is their Friday night hangout spot. No worries—got a seat at a high top in the bar area and tried one of the local light beers. Turns out my waitress was running her first half marathon (Rhode Island) on Sunday, and we bonded over talking about training and projected times. Didn’t feel too adventurous on my food selection so went with wings, fries and multiple beers to help with my carb loading process.
Packet pickup was scheduled for Saturday at the local run shop, Marathon Sports. This shop is in Providence Place, which is a fancy name for a multi-level mall. Marathon Sports was a short walk from my hotel so decided to use the walk on Saturday to stretch my legs. Also, wanted to get acclimated to the weather since the temperature was in the low 50s. Race day weather was projected to be just as cool so wanted to experience the cooler temperatures to ensure I knew how to dress on race day. Packet pickup was uneventful—wanted to buy some new gear but Marathon Sports did not offer many things I would buy and/or wear. Got my customary photo during packet pickup and headed off to find more carbs.
https://www.marathonsports.com/
Harvard
My next adventure was to head north to Cambridge, Massachusetts. Always wanted to walk around Harvard and this was my opportunity to visit the famed campus and do a walk-about. Cambridge was an hour drive from Providence so headed that way once I got back from Marathon Sports. The weather was still cool, and it started to rain a bit but not enough to keep me from making my way to Harvard. The drive up was not bad—no big traffic issues on the way up.
Traffic around Harvard was thick with cars and pedestrians—looked like others had the same idea as me to visit and explore the campus. Found parking about two blocks from campus and made my way over to Harvard. Made a trip to the famed bookstore to pick up some mementos and then did a walking tour to soak in the history of the campus. Felt great being there and experiencing the atmosphere of the Harvard campus and local community. Felt like I was in a movie. 😊
Race
Got to bed early so I could make my way to the race start line with plenty of time to warm up. The race start and finish lines were both at Pierce Memorial Stadium. Not use to starting or finishing a half marathon in a high school football stadium but there was plenty parking so that helped.
I had to adjust my race outfit to include a long sleeve dri-fit shirt since the temperature was 51 degrees. Thought I could get away with just an Orlando Track Shack tank top but needed something more on my arms. My color coordination was off for this race to accommodate the long sleeve shirt and to keep warm.
The race had a strict runner limit of 2,000 runners. Not sure we got to that number but there were a lot of runners ready to toe the line. There were not enough runners for corrals, so everyone just lined up regardless of projected completion times. I made my way towards the back of the pack so I could gauge the pace of others and avoid congestion during the first few miles.
I did not have a set finish time in mind but wanted to run faster than my last half marathon in Nashville back in April 2024—mission accomplished!
I ran consistent mile splits (9:26 – 10:30) for the first 10 miles and slowed a bit after that. It was not a hot day, but the non-flat portion of the race jumped up after mile 10 and I slowed a bit making my way up the hill. Still, I had a bit of a kick at the end and crossed the finish line with a smile on my face and a time of 2:16:42—4 minutes faster than the last go in Nashville. I’m happy to see an improvement and can use this effort to gauge my training for the Chicago Marathon in October.
Marathon training starts next month. Excited to begin the journey again towards another full marathon finish.
I’m sure I will chronicle my training program throughout the summer. Who’s ready to follow my training program? 😊
Irie!
Walk Into the Future 