Massachusetts ultrarunners didn’t have to venture far from home to race on June 24-25 – well … other than the lucky few who got to run Western States (that’ll be included in another article) – because the Catamount Ultra 50K in Vermont and the inaugural 50K at the Bay of Fundy Marathon in Maine took place last weekend. Massachusetts residents won both of those races. Additionally, we tracked down results from the Bryce 50K on June 17 in Utah to round out this week’s roundup.

Catamount Ultra

Dan Grimm made a mighty impressive ultramarathon debut at the fourth annual Catamount Ultra.

Grimm, 26, of Beverly, Mass., was the only runner in the 50K field to throw down a sub-four-hour performance on a day where the typically hard-packed dirt trails were mostly muddy. Grimm cruised through the two-loop course in 3:59:40, dipping just under the four-hour mark while comfortably outdistancing the field on Saturday, June 24, in Stowe, Vt.

Kanoa King, 28, of Portsmouth, N.H., finished second in 4:10:23, and Marek Telus, 41, of Hopkinton, N.H., earned a third-place finish in 4:25:40.

Fifteen Massachusetts runners – including Grimm – were among the 99 who completed the 50K within the nine-hour time limit. Boston resident Thomas Gennaro, 30, joined Grimm in the top 10 with his seventh-place overall finish (sixth-place male) in 4:39:59.

The first-place female – 25-year-old Rachel Long of Warren, Vt. – finished two minutes ahead of Gennaro in 4:37:51. Long dominated the women’s field, winning by 40 minutes. The race for the next few spots was tight, however. Nineteen minutes separated the second- through ninth-place women including a trio from Massachusetts. Somerville’s Elizabeth Ryan, 30, finished fourth (18^th overall) in the women’s field in 5:22:59, four minutes out of third. Danvers resident Lori Wetzel, 44, was sixth (22^nd overall) in 5:30:16, and Boston resident Alicia Green Gennaro, 31, finished ninth (27^th overall) in 5:36:16.

Other Massachusetts finishers included Matthey Henschel, 38, of Jamaica Plain (6:00:08); Craig Reed, 50, of Westfield (6:05:10); Joey Kile, 28, of Cambridge (6:12:29); Sara Staats, 41, of Winchester (6:33:39); Jason Voccia, 35, of Wellesley (6:37:00); Jennifer Yee, 31, of Brookline (6:40:24); Christopher Lay, 37, of Somerville (6:44:31); Dan Knauss, 31, of Glendale (6:50:01); Michelle Ladonne, 30, of Rockland (7:15:45); and Al Catalano, 64, of Newbury (8:41:05).

In addition to the 50K race, Catamount also offered a 25K race. The much larger field at that distance had 239 finishers.

Bay of Fundy International Marathon

The Bay of Fundy International Marathon has long been popular for its unique feature of taking runners across the United States-Canada border with no hassles related to customs thanks to pre-race clearance.

The experience extended a few extra miles in 2017 with the addition of a 52K ultramarathon, and Dave Dunham of Bradford, Mass., took advantage of the opportunity to earn an ultra victory in the unique two-country setting on Sunday, June 25.

The race began on the waterfront in Lubec, Maine. Runners completed an out-and-back to West Quoddy Head, and then crossed the border to Campobello Island and out to East Quoddy Head before returning across the border to Lubec. Dunham – who won the Ghost Train 15-miler in 2016 – dominated the distance as the 53-year-old cruised to victory in 3:53:31. Runner-up Nathaniel Graber of New Castle, Del., was a distant second in 5:02:40. Bill Schade, 46, of Marlborough, Mass., joined Dunham in the overall top 10 as he finished 10^th overall (sixth-place male) in 6:09:58.

The top five women made up spots four through nine overall, led by Corrie Kavanaugh of Northport, NY, in 5:21:40.

Other Massachusetts finishers were Needham Heights resident Richard Miller in 7:20:32 and Boston resident Jessica Lanzoni in 7:40:04.

Bryce

A mixture of mountain and desert conditions at the Bryce 50K made for some tough running Saturday, June 17, in Bryce Canyon, Utah.

More than 200 runners took on the 50K course – which was part of a larger event that also included 100-mile and 50-mile races – including one Massachusetts resident.

Kelsey Hoontis, 33, of Harvard, Mass., finished in the middle of the field as she completed the 50K in 9:55:56.

Travis Swain, 29, of Phoenix, Ariz., was the overall champion and lone sub-six-hour finisher as he completed the race in 5:28:20. The first-place female, 26-year-old Alyssa Jojola of Bosque Farms, N.M., took third overall in 6:04:48. Only 14 runners finished the 50K in less than seven hours.

No Massachusetts residents were among the finishers of the 100-mile and 50-mile races.

*Editor’s Note: Results are found on a variety of sites, including ultrasignup.com, UltraRunning Magazine, and official race websites. We do the best we can to find as many results as possible to report on and recognize the local ultrarunning community.