As the final hours tick down to the start of the lottery drawing for the Western States Endurance Run, not every applicant will endure the rush of nerves while anticipating having their name called for a berth in the 46th edition of ultrarunning’s original 100-mile race.
Kyle Robidoux of Roxbury, Mass., and Aliza Lapierre of Williston, Vt., can sit back, relax, and enjoy watching the spectacle unfold, comfortable in the knowledge that they’re already in. Continue reading Western States Lottery Includes More Than 100 New England Hopefuls →
Fresh off of the Thanksgiving holiday, a light slate of ultramarathon races were on the docket in the United States. Many Massachusetts runners took to the local trails to log some miles, but the Bay State was only represented at the finish line of one race during the Nov. 24-25 weekend: the Quad Dipsea 28.4-mile ultra on Saturday, Nov. 24, in Mill Valley, Calif. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Quad Dipsea →
Make no mistake, runners didn’t go on a pre-Thanksgiving mileage diet at the Trail Animals Running Club’s third annual TARCkey Trot 6-Hour Ultra on Sunday, Nov. 18.
Sure, the top mileage total looked a bit lighter than the previous two years, but that had nothing to do with cutting back; there’s a reasonable explanation. The first two years of the race were dominated by Patrick Caron, one of American ultrarunning’s top young prospects. After posting 37.2 miles in 2016 and 40.3 in 2017, the 21-year-old from Needham, Mass., missed this year’s TARCkey Trot to compete at the North Face Endurance Challenge championship race in San Francisco (ultimately canceled due to poor air quality from wildfires), leaving the door open for a new TARCkey Trot champion to emerge. Continue reading Runners Feast on Miles at Third Annual TARCkey Trot →
The Trail Animals Running Club played host to the third annual TARCkey Trot 6-Hour Ultra on Sunday, Nov. 18, 2018, at Wright Locke Farm and Whipple Hill in Lexington, Mass. Runners had six hours to complete as many 3.1-mile loops as possible on rocky, technical trails. Additionally, a one-loop 5K race was also offered. Continue reading Results: TARCkey Trot 6-Hour Ultra →
The North Face Endurance Challenge championship event slated for Nov. 17 in San Francisco was canceled due to poor air quality caused by the wildfires in California, and that kept Needham’s Patrick Caron from showcasing his potential against some of the top ultrarunners in the United States. The cancellation of that marquee event didn’t mean it was a quiet weekend for racing in the United States, however. Numerous runners in Massachusetts took part in the TARCkey Trot 6-Hour Ultra in Lexington, Mass., while a handful of others ventured beyond the Bay State to compete at races in Arizona, New York and Maryland. Winchester resident Roos Karssemeijer highlighted the weekend with a victory at the Pass Mountain 50K in Arizona. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Nov. 17-18 Races →
The Stone Cat 50 bills itself as having a “very runnable” course. That’s a true statement in ordinary years for runners who take the challenge of navigating four trips around the 12.5-mile loop course with its singletrack and doubletrack trails and rolling hills.
The 18th annual Stone Cat 50 wasn’t an ordinary year, however. Continue reading Pulli, Pandiscio Prevail at Stormy Stone Cat →
Nov. 10-11 was a light weekend for ultramarathon racing, but a handful of Massachusetts residents still found courses to tackle. Wendell’s Kelsey Allen took her talents out west and did battle at the competitive Run the Rock 50-miler in Oregon, while Allston’s Caroline Tangoren earned her first ultramarathon finish in North Carolina. Both Run the Rock and the Lake Norman State Park 50K are featured in this roundup. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Nov. 10-11 Races →
The always-popular Stone Cat Trail Races in Ipswich, Mass., were once again a major draw on Saturday, Nov. 3, as more than 250 runners took part in the 50-mile and marathon races, but there was still a large contingent of ultrarunners from the Bay State who took to the road and the air to travel for out-of-state ultras on Nov. 3-4. In fact, runners from Massachusetts took part in at least seven races beyond the Bay State at destinations as close as New Jersey and as far away as New Mexico and California. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Nov. 3-4 Races →
The 18th annual Stone Cat Trail Races challenged runners with 50-mile and marathon distances on Saturday, Nov. 3, 2018, at Willowdale State Forest in Ipswich, Mass. Continue reading Results: Stone Cat Trail Races →
Going beyond the marathon in Massachusetts
MassUltra 