MILTON, Mass. – Howie Breinan gathered the crowd of runners near the starting line by Houghton’s Pond for the pre-race briefing. Breinan scanned the faces looking back at him and recognized a few, but most were a bit unfamiliar – at least at this starting line.

“If you haven’t been here before, you picked a good day for it,” Breinan told them. “There’s a lot of great trails and it’s going to be a fun day. We’ve got a great group of people here; hopefully you’ll make some new friends today.”

Most of this crowd hadn’t been here before; the same was the case for the smaller group of runners who started two hours earlier. It was Sunday, April 16, and this was the start of the 27th annual Trail Animals “Don’t Run Boston” 50K at the Blue Hills Reservation.

The original race for the Trail Animals Running Club, Breinan crafted the course for its inaugural running in 1997. Though the names and faces of some of the participants have changed through the years, much has remained the same. The course has been tweaked only slightly where the reservation closed a trail for environmental restoration purposes. The course is still unmarked, requiring runners to carry a map, stick with a race veteran, or practice on the course and memorize it in advance. The event also remains free, with the sole request that runners make a donation to support the Blue Hills’ Trailside Museum.

Given the event’s unique format – not to mention the rigors presented by the Blue Hills’ rugged terrain and 5,700 feet of climbing over 31 miles – DRB for many years saw between a handful and two-dozen runners show up on race day during its first 19 years when it was an unpermitted event and Breinan had to cap participation at 25 runners. Upon receiving a permit in 2016, he was able to expand the field of entrants. Since then, more newcomers have been tempted to take on Breinan’s puzzle of a course that winds, weaves and climbs all over the massive reservation.

This year’s event had the second-largest starting field in DRB history with 45 runners toeing the starting line that Breinan dug into the gravel path next to Houghton’s Pond. The 2017 edition was the largest DRB field ever with 55 starters and 43 eventual finishers.

A few minutes after 8 a.m., Breinan led the runners in the traditional TARC yeti howl as they fired off the starting line and prepared to tackle his course. 

Though the days leading up to DRB were scorchers, runners were treated to near-perfect conditions on race day. It was 50 degrees and foggy at the start, and temperatures only reached the mid-50s by mid-afternoon. It was overcast with occasional light drizzle throughout the day, and the trails were almost completely dry. That meant route-finding and navigating the technical trails were the biggest obstacles runners had to overcome.

About 2 1/2 miles into the run, they crossed paths with the lead runners from the 6 a.m. start – five of them were attempting the 14th edition of the DRB 50-mile. After another mile, the group took a sharp left off of one of the rocky fire roads and made a steep ascent up a hard-to-spot trail. It was the first of many tricky to find, oftentimes unmarked trails on Breinan’s course. That’s the first point where runners often miss a turn and get lost, and it’s where the pack of runners started to spread out.

Breinan, Wilson Ray, and a few other runners formed a small lead pack. Alexandra Brinkert, Chris Wristen, Fernando Salcido, Bryan McCusty and Brittany Linn formed another. Though the packs shrunk over time and a few runners broke off on their own, teamwork largely ruled the day in typical DRB fashion.

One of the DRB newcomers, Wilson Ray, eventually took off on his own. He’d done his homework on the course prior to the race, and that preparation paid off. Ray, 26, of Boston, Mass., had only one briefly missed turn that he course-corrected within a few strides, but otherwise put together a masterpiece of a debut performance and capped it with a victory in 5:38. Another DRB newcomer, 23-year-old Toby Harding of Boston, Mass., finished second in 6:04. Another pair of newcomers – 29-year-old Eli Converse of Cambridge, Mass., and 41-year-old Jason Kaplan of Brighton, Mass. – tied for third in 6:09 and then continued onward in their quest to complete the DRB 50-miler. Breinan, 54, of Manchester, Conn., finished fifth overall in 6:28 for his record-setting 19th DRB finish. Two-more first-timers followed as Robert Struck, 44, of Taunton, Mass., and Denise Klatt, 31, of Brookline, Mass., both finished in 6:45. Klatt earned first place in the women’s field for her effort.

Joining Klatt in the women’s top three were 24-year-old Brittany Linn of Cambridge, Mass., who finished her first ultramarathon in 7:16, and DRB veteran Alexandra Brinkert, 36, of Norwood, Mass., who finished in 7:39.

Of the 45 runners who started this year’s race, 32 ultimately finished. Several others logged extensive mileage but did so off-course and didn’t complete the race.

Of the five runners who attempted the 50-mile distance, four finished. Converse followed his third-place 50K effort by winning the 50-miler in 10:10. Kaplan was the 50-mile runner-up in 10:28. After reaching the 50K mark in 6:58, DRB newcomer Rob Rives, 33, of Duxbury, Vt., went on to finish the 50-miler in 11:59. Lisa Rising, 32, of Somerville, Mass., was the lone female finisher of the 50-miler, completing that distance at DRB for the first time in 13:14. She also earned her second 50K finish in 8:07.

McCusty Completes the Traprock-DRB “Double”: A few runners have pulled off the DRB-Boston Marathon “double” through the years, completing the DRB 50K or 50-miler on Sunday and then finishing the Boston Marathon the next day. Beginning in 2012 with Brenda Morris, a second “double” was tracked, the Traprock-DRB “Double” for completing the Traprock 50K in Connecticut on Saturday, followed by the DRB 50K on Sunday. Only one runner pulled off a “double” in 2023. Bryan McCusty achieved the Traprock-DRB “double,” beginning with a 7:36:40 finish at Traprock and following it with his 7:16 finish at DRB. McCusty is the fourth person to complete the Traprock-DRB “double,” joining Morris in 2012, Jen Barker in 2013 and Howie Breinan in 2021.

Veterans and Newcomers: While DRB welcomed a large number of newcomers to this year’s event, including 21 first-time finishers, the Trail Animals’ original event saw several familiar faces complete the course once again. Eleven of the finishers had successfully completed DRB previously, some of them many times. Race founder Howie Breinan earned his record 19th DRB finish. Other long-time DRB legends who added to their tallies were Rich Collins, 66, of Cape Neddick, Maine, who earned his 12th finish; Norm Sheppard, 65, of Newton, Mass., who finished for the 11th time; and Bob Najar, 66, of Portsmouth, N.H., who earned his 10th finish. Dietmar Bago, 55, of Andover, Mass., inched closer to the rare double-digit finishing status by notching his eighth DRB finish. Additionally, Chris Wristen, 42, of Norwood, Mass., finished for the fifth time; Alexandra Brinkert, 36, of Norwood, Mass., and Marcy Beard, 53, of Livingston, Texas, each finished for the fourth time; Julie Huber, 60, of Newton, Mass., became a three-time finisher; and Lisa Rising, 32, and Emily Andrews, 32, of Boston, Mass., became two-time finishers.

Trail Animals Support Blue Hills Trailside Museum: Since its founding, DRB has collected funds to support the Blue Hills Trailside Museum. Runners amassed a $692 donation in funds collected on race morning, while others made contributions online or dropped off donations prior to the race.