Coffee Milk Half Marathon, 10K & 5K
North Kingstown, RI
- Half Marathon, 10K, 5K
- Road (Paved)
- Official race website
If you are looking to set a PR, then the Coffee Milk Half Marathon course will be a great place to start. Quonset Point is an old Naval Base. The course is open to traffic, however, there are only a few businesses there, so traffic is very limited. Throughout the … MORE
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Cheap Well Run Race
This was on the smaller side of races. I signed up on black Friday and paid $40. Good race communication leading up to the event. Packet pickup was easy, only … MORE
This was on the smaller side of races. I signed up on black Friday and paid $40. Good race communication leading up to the event. Packet pickup was easy, only offered on race morning. As far as scenery, it wasn’t super exciting and very little crowd support. Aid stations only had water. Course was fast, some hills but not bad. Post race had RI style pizza. Shirts were cheap cotton (not complaining for $40 race). Medals were on the smaller size, I don’t do races for the “bling” but if someone is looking for big medals, this wouldn’t be it. The only thing I would change about the medal is to have the date on them. I wouldn’t travel back to do this race but definitely wasn’t disappointed in my decision to check off RI with this race. I like to mix in smaller races, they have a nice hometown feel too them.
A Race for PW
Don't run this race. It is terribly organized. Positives: 1. It is not expensive. 2. There are plenty of hotels nearby. Negatives: 1. Most of the water stations are just … MORE
Don’t run this race. It is terribly organized.
Positives:
1. It is not expensive.
2. There are plenty of hotels nearby.
Negatives:
1. Most of the water stations are just tiny tables with cups on them. The tables are really short and often placed on turns, so it is hard to pick up the water. There are no volunteers helping the runner. No Gatorade. No gels.
2. The elevation map on findmymarathon is wrong. The elevation gain was 464 ft from Strava and 454 by Garmin map. There were a few steep hills.
3. Don’t expect any spectators. I only saw tens of spectators near the start/finish line.
4. The worst part was the organization. The race director always figures out a way to mess up the race.
In 2021, it was reported that the course was short because the director placed the timing matt wrong.
In 2022 when I ran the race, there were many direction marks missing on the course from around Mile 2. I got lost twice and ran 1.5 extra miles. Some people got lost even more. And hilariously, when I got lost for the 2nd time, I saw a female runner came from a different direction. Even worse, the race director yelled at me when he saw me on the wrong side of the course. WTF?!
The course only had time matts on the start and finish, and it was really easy to cheat (no volunteers on the course to direct the runners or check if anyone was cutting short.) I honestly don’t know how it was a certified course for BQ.
In my year, the website said there was going to be awards for top runners, and nothing happened.
Overall, if you don’t want your hard training wasted,
AVOID any races by OCEAN STATE MULTISPORT!!!
Small race, run very well
The race director did an incredible job with this small race coming out of COVID restrictions. It was organized and run very well. The race had some wonderful scenery of … MORE
The race director did an incredible job with this small race coming out of COVID restrictions. It was organized and run very well.
The race had some wonderful scenery of the bay and some parkland.
Small, no frills race - well run
Good small, cheap, local race. Not much crowd support, although if you bring your own fans, they can access much of the course easily. While the terrain is generally pretty … MORE
Good small, cheap, local race. Not much crowd support, although if you bring your own fans, they can access much of the course easily. While the terrain is generally pretty flat, there are some elevation changes. I would call it mild rolling hills. In several areas, there are very pretty views of the by, but in general, the scenery is nice but not fantastic. Most of the course is along open roads with cones identifying which side of the road you should run on. Police stopped / directed traffic at the intersections and stopped the cars well before I arrived so I never had to break stride. The roads were not heavily trafficked but there were some sections where the cones guided me to be on the wrong side on a blind turn.
I was glad that I carried energy gels. Water stops without electrolytes were about every 2 miles. I was hoping for a few extra stops close to the end, instead it seemed like one of the stops was missing or placed around mile 21.
Weather was cool, especially at the start, with almost constant wind. They have a bank of port-o-pots. Parking is a 5 min walk to the start, so we stayed in the car until just before race start.
Fun Small Town Race
This was a fun small town race. No pacing groups. Slight hills throughout the course. I really enjoyed the scenery on the course! There were water stations about every 2 … MORE
This was a fun small town race. No pacing groups. Slight hills throughout the course. I really enjoyed the scenery on the course! There were water stations about every 2 miles. No electrolyte drinks. Bananas and protein bars were available at two water stations. If you plan to only run one race in Rhode Island, I don’t think this should be the race that you pick, but I still had a good time and met some great people!
Keep looking!
If you're looking for a RI race, this won't be your favorite. The town is nice and the volunteers are great, but the course was awful ... it goes through … MORE
If you’re looking for a RI race, this won’t be your favorite. The town is nice and the volunteers are great, but the course was awful … it goes through some weird parking lot, onto a greenway briefly, to a super busy stretch where two runners almost got hit by a car, and toward the end, you have to go over a freeway bridge, then literally pass the turn for the finish line to run around a cone first then go back. There is no place to wait at the beginning of the race and very little worth sticking around after the race. If you want spectators and a well organized race, keep looking.
Nice small race
While this course is "relatively flat" the downhill portions seem flat, while the hills are long slow climbs - the steepest part of the course is going up an overpass. … MORE
While this course is “relatively flat” the downhill portions seem flat, while the hills are long slow climbs – the steepest part of the course is going up an overpass.
If you’re looking for a fun smaller race in Rhode Island, I can’t recommend this one enough!
Another RI option
The Fighting Seabees Marathon first got my attention because of the cool medal. I also needed a Rhode Island race for my fifty states quest, so I registered sort of … MORE
The Fighting Seabees Marathon first got my attention because of the cool medal. I also needed a Rhode Island race for my fifty states quest, so I registered sort of last minute to make it happen. This was a quick trip and not really a scenic marathon, but it fit the bill.
I’m going to call it bare bones, but I don’t mean for that to be negative necessarily. I think the race director honestly cares about his runners and puts a lot of work into making his events happen. If you rely on spectators, this isn’t the race for you. If you rely on breathtaking scenery, this isn’t the course for you. If you want to cross a state off your list and it fits your schedule, it’s a good option.
There is a hotel that’s fairly convenient to the start (TownePlace Suites, about 2 miles away) and there’s race day packet pick up which I needed. If you do the race day, get there early! I arrived early to park (very close, no big deal) and get my bib and shirt. I walked right up to the table without having to wait, but as we got closer and closer to the start, I noticed the line was huge. So be aware of your timeline.
I had requested a small t-shirt but somehow they didn’t have any left, so I got a medium. It’s huge, so it went right into my “make into a quilt bag” of shirts. After pinning my bib I sat in my rental car for thirty minutes since it was pretty frigid and windy out. At the start line, Gary the RD made some announcements. One of the things that I appreciated about him was that he said “I don’t care who wins, I just want to make sure everyone crosses the finish line” (that’s not verbatim but you get it). He also wrote his cell phone number on every mile marker sign in case anyone had a problem. I thought that was cool, and something only a small race can do. A nice touch.
The start was delayed about 10 or 15 minutes because of people trying to get their bibs still. That was annoying but it happens. As for the course, it’s kind of a double loop, with a few variations on the second loop. Actually the “loop” has a lot of turns, which at first concerned me, but it was very well marked with volunteers and signs, so no problem there. It’s, I would say, mostly flat, but has a few hills here and there, nothing monstrous. It’s not particularly scenic. There are a few places where you see the water, which is nice, but brief! It’s mostly parking lots full of cars coming or going from the port. The roads aren’t busy though so that was something. By the way, it’s run on Quonset Point, an old Navy/Seabees base. Not a whole lot to see. It was a beautiful day, but SUPER WINDY, making it all the more challenging.
As with most races that have a half and full option, most people ran the half, so when we finished the first loop and the half runners all went to the finish line, the full kept going. It got very spread out. At some points I was practically alone, with maybe a runner way back in the distance or someone coming at me on an out-and-back stretch.
The volunteers were great, and the aid stations were plentiful, since you pass them twice. I think the sports drink was Heed, which I hadn’t tried before and didn’t really like the taste, but there was also water.
The finish was low key. I got my medal, a bottle of water, and headed back to get a shower and make my late checkout before heading to the airport.
Like I said, it’s bare bones, but has all that you need for a successful race. Be prepared for wind!