June 10-11 was a busy weekend for New England ultrarunners. Here in the region, runners took on the tough and technical Drummer Hill Trail Race in New Hampshire and the Centurion Ultra Trail Event in Connecticut. Additionally, a handful of runners in Rhode Island took on the Last Human Standing race. Results were unavailable as of this posting. Beyond the region, runners had big days racing on the West Coast at the SAMO 100, in the Midwest at Kettle Moraine in Wisconsin, as well as in Virginia at the Windsor Castle 10-hour. All of those events are included in this edition of the roundup.

Drummer Hill

Peter Bonito has been on a tear for the past three years, and his hot streak continued at the seventh edition of the Drummer Hill Trail Race.

When ultramarathon racing resumed following the COVID-19 pandemic, Bonito kicked off his racing with a victory at Beatdown on Drummer – also at Drummer Hill – in September 2021. He followed it up with a victory at the 2022 Drummer Hill 50K. More wins followed, including the Ragged 50K and the Wapack Fall Race 18-miler. He then opened 2023 with a victory at the Mt. Toby 50K in April.

Bonito returned to defend his title at Drummer Hill on Saturday, June 10, in Keene, N.H., and he succeeded. Runners took on a 12.5K loop course with lots of technical singletrack and had the option to choose how many loops they wanted to run, up to four loops for a 50K finish. Of the 99 runners who took part, 29 ultimately completed the 50K. Bonito led the way as the 37-year-old from Westmoreland, N.H., hammered the course in 4:30:03. The winning effort not only was 13 minutes faster than his time from 2022, but it was also the second-fastest time in course history.

Oliver Mednick, 32, of South Acworth, NH, was the runner-up in 4:51:07, the fifth-fastest time in course history. Jake Movsessian, 24, of New Ipswich, N.H., rounded out the podium in 5:10:50. Roy Van Cleef, 43, of Harvard, Mass., and Michael Patek, 46, of Keene, N.H., followed in 5:13:29 and 5:16:50, respectively.

Elisa Gardner, 31, of Surry, N.H., finished seventh overall and first in the women’s field in 5:49:38. Her performance was the fourth-fastest women’s time in course history. Sophia Novacek, 22, of Orford, N.H. was the women’s runner-up in 7:55:43.

Centurion Ultra Trail

The third edition of the Centurion Ultra Trail event saw its second 100-mile belt buckle handed out on June 10-11 in Stratford, Conn. Runners took on a 2.78-mile loop course through Stratford’s scenic Roosevelt Forest, either for 24, 30 or 33 hours with the goal of going as far as they wanted, up to 100 miles. Eleven runners took part in the event.

Julian Miranda, 47, of Corona, N.Y., was the overall winner and lone runner to achieve the 100-mile distance. Only one other runner – Chase Arsenault in 2021 – has completed 100 miles in the event’s three-year history. Tony Christy, 38, of Easton, Mass., was the runner-up with 86.1 miles, and 26-year-old Kyle Kodnia of Stratford, Conn., finished third with 83.4 miles. Other top performers included David Stawski, 41, of Manchester, Conn., and James Gawle, 71, of Webster, Mass., with 77.8 miles and 72.2 miles, respectively.

Heidi Mendoza, 48, of Watertown, Mass., was the first-place female finisher with 63.9 miles. Lee Zarder, 69, of New Milford, Conn., was the runner-up with 44.4 miles.

SAMO 100

Lukas Janulaitis was the only New England resident to make the cross-country trip to race the second annual Santa Monica Mountains (SAMO) 100 on June 9-10 in Malibu, Calif., and he turned in a memorable performance.

Janulaitis, 21, of Centerville, Mass., went big for his first crack at 100 miles by traveling to a West Coast course that measured 104 miles and around 20,000 feet of climbing.The out-and-back course began and ended at Point Mugu State Park with its turnaround point at Zumu Beach. Along the way, runners covered trails that are part of California classics such as the Sean O’Brien 100K and Ray Miller 50.

Runners had 33 hours to complete the race, and Janulaitis finished with plenty of time to spare. He was one of 67 runners to start the race and 39 to finish. Janulaitis finished fifth overall in 25:10:38. Jesse Haynes, 50, of Coto De Caza, Calif., led all runners in 19:34:28. Max Jolliffe, 31, of Costa Mesa, Calif., was a distant second in 20:52:57, followed by 40-year-old Louka Dlagnekov, 40, of Escondido, Calif., in 20:58:06. Megan Zdancewic, 44, of Seattle, Wash., was the first-place female and sixth overall finisher in 25:44:00.

Another 43 runners finished the event’s inaugural 100K race with Paul Sinclair, 54, of Los Angeles, Calif., taking the overall win in 10:50:07. No New England residents took part in the 100K.

Kettle Moraine 100

As far as 100-mile debut performances go, Jeremy Winter couldn’t have envisioned a much better effort than what he turned in at the Kettle Moraine 100.

The race boasts plenty of history, dating back to 1996, and the 27th edition on June 10-11 in La Grange, Wisc., saw several runners once again have a big day on the course’s rolling hills. Of the 170 runners who started the race, 119 finished within the 30-hour time limit. Winter, 32, of Brighton, Mass., was among the front-runners throughout the day and he stayed among the best for the duration on his way to placing on the podium. 

Reese Slobadianuk, 28, of Delafield, Wisc., topped the field in 15:32:43. Brian Simonick, 28, of Gravel Switch, Ky., was the runner-up in 16:27:57, and Winter rounded out the men’s podium with his third-place overall finish in 17:48:18. Rachel Burke, 38, of Chicago, Ill., was the first-place female in 22:03:05

Winter wasn’t the only New England resident who made Kettle Moraine their 100-mile debut. Benjamin Larwa, 30, of Waterbury, Vt., also had a solid first-time effort at the distance and placed 43rd overall in 24:49:46.

The event included three additional ultra distances: 100K, 38-mile and 50K.

One New England resident was among the 82 starters and 60 finishers of the Kettle Moraine 100K race. Kimberly Slininger, 41, of Wayland, Mass., finished in 19:20:42 for her first 100K finish and longest ultra ever. Phil Young, 37, of Davenport, Iowa, and Jill Wojta, 41, of Onalaska, Wisc., were the top two finishers and men’s and women’s champions in 9:22:49 and 10:23:42, respectively.

Seventy-five runners finished the Kettle Moraine 38-mile race and another 98 finished the 50K race. No New England residents took part in either of those races.

Windsor Castle 10-hour

Michael Pereiro was the lone New England resident to take part in the Windsor Castle 10-Hour Ultra on Saturday, Sept. 10, in Smithfield, Va., and the 27-year old from Shelton, Conn., was one of the top performers.

Eighty-six runners took part in the third annual event, which took place on a 3.1-mile loop course at Windsor Castle Park. The course had good footing throughout and around 150 feet of climbing per loop. Of those who started, 57 went beyond the marathon distance, 34 surpassed 40 miles, and the top seven eclipsed the 50-mile mark. That included Pereiro. He placed seventh overall with 52.7 miles.

Mitchell Spittle, 20, of Lebanon, Pa., led all runners with 62.0 miles, and 52-year-old Cynthia Robbs, 52, of Chesterfield, Va., was the first-place female and sixth overall finisher with 52.7 miles.

*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.