TARC Fall Classic Returns with New RD, Huge Turnout and Big Performances

For years the TARC Fall Classic was something of the Patrick Caron show. The native of Needham, Mass., made his ultrarunning debut at the 2015 event and turned heads with his runner-up finish in the 50-mile race in 8:19:45 at just 18 years old. He returned to run the 50-miler during each of the next three years, setting new course records each time, concluding with a sizzling 6:52:04 performance in 2018.

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MassUltra Roundup: Kilkenny Ridge, Grindstone, and Run Rabbit Run

From New Hampshire to Virginia, all the way out to Colorado, Part 2 of our roundup from the Sept. 16-18 weekend focuses on big, burly courses. We start in New Hampshire with the brutal Kilkenny Ridge 50-miler that took runners over two of the state’s 4,000-foot peaks twice. From there, we head south to Virginia to the Beast Coast classic Grindstone 100-miler before closing out at the high-altitude Run Rabbit Run 100-miler in Colorado.

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MassUltra Roundup: Forgotten Forest, Red Feather, Barkley Fall Classic, and Pawling

The jam-packed September racing calendar rolled on during the Sept. 16-18 weekend, and that means another two-part roundup is necessary to capture the action of the New England crew. We’ll catch up on the Kilkenny Ridge 50-miler, Grindstone and Run Rabbit Run in Part 2, but here in Part 1 we’ll catch up on Daniel Grip’s pursuit of the course record at the Forgotten Forest 9-Hour Ultra in Connecticut, and then head to Colorado for the Red Feather Trail Jamboree before closing out with the Barkley Fall Classic in Tennessee and the Pawling 24-Hour Trail Festival in New York. There’s plenty to read – and that’s just Part 1!

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Results: BURCS Free to Run Trail Races

Following two years of virtual events due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Berkshire Ultra Running Community for Service (BURCS) welcomed back runners for in-person racing at the eighth annual (and sixth in-person) Free to Run Trail Races on Saturday, Sept. 17, at Pittsfield State Forest in Pittsfield, Mass. Runners once again took on 50-mile, marathon or half-marathon distances on a 12.5-mile technical trail loop course with plenty of climbing.

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MassUltra Roundup: Shawangunk, Virgil Crest, Wasatch, and Pine Creek Challenge

September is typically the busiest month of the ultrarunning racing calendar, and the Sept. 9-11 weekend was no exception with dozens of races throughout the country – including a few in New England, including the popular TARC Fall Classic in Massachusetts that attracted more than 300 runners. Part One of this week’s roundup featured the Groton Forest Trail Run in Vermont, Megunticook 50K in Maine, Tunxis and Macedonia trail ultras in Connecticut, and the Hainesport Hundred in New Jersey. Here in Part Two we feature wins by two Massachusetts residents at the Shawangunk 70-mile and 30-mile ultras, and also catch up on Virgil Crest, the Wasatch 100 and the Pine Creek Challenge.

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MassUltra Roundup: Groton Forest, Megunticook, Tunxis, Macedonia, and Hainesport Hundred

September is typically the busiest month of the ultrarunning racing calendar, and the Sept. 9-11 weekend was no exception with dozens of races throughout the country – including a few in New England. The Trail Animals Running Club’s TARC Fall Classic (separate recap to come) was by far the largest attraction in the region, but several runners took on other races in the region and across the country. In fact, so many did so that this week’s roundup will be a two-parter. Here in Part One we recap Mead Binhammer’s record-seeing run at the slightly-beyond-the-marathon Groton Forest Trail Run 26.5-miler, as well as the Megunticook 50K in Maine, Tunxis and Macedonia trail ultras in Connecticut, and then catch up on the Hainesport Hundred from Sept. 3-4. Part 2 will include Virgil Cres, Shawangunk, the Wasatch 100 and the Pine Creek Challenge.

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MassUltra Roundup: Firebird and The Rut

Results have been slow to trickle in from a jam-packed Labor Day weekend of racing, but results are in from a few races beyond the Bay State that saw New England residents among the finishers – and both had quite a few. First up, the fourth edition of the Firebird Trail Races in Maine saw Mary Iaculli and Jay Frontierro set women’s and men’s course records with big performances. A day later, 11 runners from the region finished the grueling The Rut 50K, and former Vermont resident David Sinclair smashed MUT king Kilian Jornet’s course record by five minutes. Both of those races are included in this edition of the roundup.

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MassUltra Roundup: Jigger Johnson, Continental Divide, and Green Lakes

While much of the ultrarunning world was focused on the European Alps and the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc festival with its week-long series of races and thousands of runners, a new event quietly made its debut in the White Mountains that put the beast in “Beast Coast.” After years of work, White Mountain Endurance introduced the world to the Jigger Johnson Ultras. Eighteen runners ultimately finished either the 100K or 50-mile offerings while also checking off multiple 4,000-foot peaks. As the new kid in the neighborhood, this race leads off this edition of the roundup.

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