The summer ultramarathon calendar continued to heat up during the July 8-10 weekend as 135 runners took on a 1.9-mile loop course for hours – and in some cases days – on end at the Notchview Ultra in Windsor, Mass., but plenty of New England residents were also busy racing beyond the Bay State borders. That included several who gathered in Vermont for the inaugural Aliza Lapierre Fan Club 50K, while more headed to Colorado, Maryland, and all the way to Oregon to tackle challenging courses. Those out-of-state races are featured in this edition of the roundup.

Aliza Lapierre Fan Club 50K

Aliza Lapierre has been one of the most dominant ultra-trailrunners in New England for more than a decade, and the Richmond Trail Running Club played homage to the Vermont resident with the inaugural running of the Aliza Lapierre Fan Club 50K on Saturday, July 9, in Richmond, Vt.

Runners took on a course consisting of 23 miles of singletrack dirt and eight miles of road, climbing and winding their way through Huntington, Starksboro, Hinesburg, and Richmond, amassing more than 5,000 feet of climbing along the way as they journeyed from Brewster-Pierce Elementary School in Huntington to the finish line at Cochran’s Ski and Bike Area in Richmond.

Thirty-two runners completed the inaugural race, most doing so within 10 hours. Benjamin Jones, 24, of West Lebanon, N.H., led the way in 5:14, three minutes ahead of Huntington resident Joshua Burns, 37, who was the runner-up in 5:17. Lance Parker, 28, of Waitsfield, Vt., followed a minute later in 5:18 to round out the men’s podium. Close behind Parker was fourth overall finisher and top female Kaitlynn Miller, 30, of Craftsbury Common, Vt., in 5:23. Hilary McCloy, 39, of Jackson, N.H., was hot on her heels and finished second among the women and fifth overall in 5:25. Becca Waldo, 33, of Waterbury, Vt., rounded out the women’s podium and finished 10th overall in 5:56.

Eight of the top 10 overall finishers were Vermont residents. In addition to McCloy, 33-year-old Pierre Massat of Northborough, Mass., placed ninth overall in 5:52.

Hallie Grossman, 29, of Craftsbury Common, Vt., finished 11th overall and fourth among the women in 6:06. Sydney Dolan, 25, of Boston, Mass., was the fifth-place woman in 6:32.

The top 16 overall finishers completed the race in less than seven hours.

Leadville Silver Rush

The legendary Leadville 100 takes place later this summer, but runners seeking half the distance but plenty of altitude traveled to the historic mountain town to take on the Silver Rush 50 on Saturday, July 9, in Leadville, Colo. Runners tackled an out-and-back course that started at 10,200 feet above sea level, climbed above 12,000 feet four times and amassed 8,000 feet of climbing along the way while navigating a mix of singletrack and doubletrack trails and dirt- and rock-covered jeep roads.

Eight New England residents were among the hundreds who conquered the course. Don Brown led the way as the 53-year-old from Stamford, Conn., finished 38th overall in 8:46:54. The next two finishers from the region both hailed from Boylston, Mass., as 51-year-old Neil Feldman finished 71st in 9:23:36 and 50-year-old James Hughes finished 105th in 10:00:01. Other finishers from the region included Joe Joyce Jr., 29, of Shelton, Conn., in 10:15:16; Robert Perednia, 39, of Raynham, Mass., in 10:19:32; Jacqueline Johansen, 41, of Ridgefield, Conn., in 10:30:52; Gregory Lowe, 58, of Ipswich, Mass., in 11:14:11; and Michael Calascibetta, 25, of Jericho, Vt., in 11:16:08.

A pair of Colorado locals swept the men’s and women’s victories. Bryan Kerl, 30, of nearby Salida led the men in 6:16:17 while Lindsey Herman, 24, of Gunnison topped the women’s field in 7:31:19. There were 388 finishers within 14 ½ hours.

Silverton Alpine 50K

Steve Merrick’s second trail ultra was a high-altitude adventure in the San Juan Mountains. Merrick, 32, of Somerville, Mass., took part in the 17th annual Silverton Alpine 50K on Saturday, July 9, in Silverton, Colo., and navigated the Alpine Loop through multiple mining ghost towns, climbing as high as the 12,930-foot California Pass and spending the entire race above 9,300 feet. Merrick had a strong day, finishing 17th overall out of 151 runners in a speedy 5:14:00. Logan Moore, 19, of Hesperus, Colo., won and set a course record in 3:56:00.

Catoctin 50K

During his first two attempts at the Catoctin 50K, Michael Deloge was denied a finish by the difficult course. Perseverance paid off for Deloge, 41, of Somerville, Mass., when he returned to the race for the third time and secured a hard-earned finish on Saturday, July 9, in Frederick, Md.

Deloge completed the 27th running of the event in 9:14:28 and was one of 120 runners to complete the out-and-back course on the rocky Catoctin Blue Trail in Cunningham Falls State Park. He previously attempted the race in both 2019 and 2021.

Deloge wasn’t the only New England resident among the finishers. Mark Conley, 56, of North Kingstown, R.I., finished in 8:22:59. It was a solid step for Conley in his build-up to the 150-mile race at Tesla Hertz in October.

Patrick Blair led the men’s field in the Catoctin 50K in 4:45:20. Jana Fridrichova, 43, of Hagerstown, Md., was the women’s champion in 5:43:00.

Siskiyou Out Back

The Siskiyou Out Back trail ultras returned for their 23rd running on Saturday, July 9, in Ashland, Ore., and the classic Pacific Northwest event offered runners 100K, 50K and 50-mile distances with plenty of miles on the Pacific Crest Trail.

One New England resident was among the 84 finishers of the main event – the 100K – which challenged runners with 10,500 feet of climbing along the way. Kate Cook, 46, of Marblehead, Mass., finished 12th among the women’s field in 16:15:54. Allegra Krasznekewicz, 30, of San Francisco, Calif., led the women in 12:48:45, while 28-year-old Eric Neill of Clarksburg, Calif., led all runners in 10:11:54.

One New England resident was among the 166 finishers of the 50K race, which included 4,200 feet of climbing. Katie Crowley, 34, of Charlestown, Mass., finished in the top half of the field in 6:32:18. Colton Gale, 31, of Bend, Ore., led all runners in 3:56:20 while 41-year-old Felice Kelly of Portland, Ore., led the women’s field and placed 10th overall in 4:53:57.

Another 40 runners finished the 50-mile race, led by 33-year-old David Laney of Portland, Ore., in 7:37:49. No New England residents were among the finishers.

*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.