The 2023 Red Island State Half Marathon was on Friday, May 5th in Warwick, RI. It’s part of the 3-day New England Challenge. It’s 50-state friendly with a race in Rhode Island Friday, in Massachusetts Saturday and in Connecticut on Sunday. Three states in one weekend is a deal for your schedule and wallet, but not for your body. I opted just for the Friday race in Rhode Island.

It seems like a random trip and race, but Nolan had to be in Providence for a work trip that week, so a Friday race was actually perfect timing. I did debate doing Massachusetts on Saturday morning, but the location was 2 hours from where we were staying in Rhode Island. It would have meant getting up super early Saturday, driving 2 hours, me running 2 1/2+ hours, driving back 2 hours, then catching a flight back to Charleston.

We ate at Vanda the night before. The food was so yummy! We shared some focaccia bread with the most amazing pickle butter. Then I had some pesto pasta and meatballs. I love exploring local restaurants.

2023 Red Island State Half Marathon Race Recap

Overall, I had a great race! I was a little nervous because I didn’t do as much training as I would have liked, and my last long race was in January. But, I stayed mentally strong, didn’t bonk at mile 9 and finished strong! I even ugly/happy cried at the end. (Sorry Nolan!) Even though I was mentally strong, my math game was not. At mile 12, I was like “Ok, only two more miles- I got this!”

For races, I rarely use headphones because I like the crowd noise and talking to people. Knowing this was a small race with likely zero crowd support, I opted to bring my headphones. My playlist is all over the place. I had songs from Bob Seger, a Whitney Houston remix, Bruce Springsteen, Eminem, Lizzo, Paul Simon, Reba McEntire, Justin Bieber, Johnny Cash and Beyonce.

The weather was perfect for running! Overcast and high 40s/low 50s! I’m still glad I brought my water bottle. My little sips through the loops was helpful and I never had to stop to refill. I also forced myself to eat my nutrition at mile 4 and mile 8.

The Loops

I thought for sure that I’d hate doing a 4-loop course, but I actually kind of liked it. The park was very scenic, shaded and the course was 95% paved. I did chat with a few people, but I was mostly by myself cruising up, down and around the park. The loops provided lots of reasons to celebrate and look forward to. Each loop was about 2.7 miles (we started with a short out & back).

A looped course was great for spectators too. Nolan was able to see me and check in every loop (thus four nearly identical pictures). He said that other people stopped at their cars, grabbed water/snacks or shed layers. People doing all three races over the weekend are less likely to care about time verses finishing – especially those doing the full distance! Speaking of finishing, that’s me below finishing strong.

The Swag

The “swag” was a medal and a t-shirt. The medal is nice and will look good on my medal rack. The t-shirt is kinda cheap cotton and has all three states from the challenge highlighted, so I’d kind of feel like a phony wearing it. I did see they gave out plaques to the top finishers that looked nice.

The Organizers

The organizers were super friendly! For a small race, their post-race food and snacks were awesome! Pickles, chips, cookies, pretzels, pesto pasta, PB&J, and hot grilled cheese! Pickles were my favorite and a definite favorite. It was a girl’s 18-birthday that day and they called her up and we all sang happy birthday to her! Small race perks. (PS: I did not run a half marathon on my 18th birthday.)

Full or Half Marathon in Every State

Rhode Island marks state #19! Next up? Fargo, ND in a few weeks!

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