New England ultrarunners took to the trails in both eastern and western Massachusetts during the Oct. 21-22 weekend for the Mt. Tom Trail Race 50K in Easthampton and the Womp Romp 50K in Hingham, but those popular events weren’t the only racing destination for runners from the region. A few took on a road ultra in Maine at Farm to Farm, and others toed the starting line at Bimblers Bluff in Connecticut. Several more tackled up to 30 hours at Survival of the F.I.T.test in Rhode Island, though official results of that event aren’t yet available. Many more ventured beyond the region to places as far south as Florida and as far west as California, and places in between, to take on tough courses. Several races have yet to post their results, but we’ve caught up with as many as we can in this edition of the roundup.

Bimblers Bluff 50K

Justin Kousky has raced countless ultras throughout Connecticut and the Northeast region, winning many of them and finishing on the podium nearly every time. Still, in his more than a decade of ultrarunning, Kousky had never toed the starting line at the Bimblers Bluff 50K.

That changed on Sunday, Oct., 22, when he took on the 15th annual event in Guilford, Conn.

Kousky smoked the technical singletrack trails and rolling forest roads and led the pack of 95 finishers within 11 hours, winning in a speedy 4:30:34. Last year’s fourth-place finisher Daniel Rogoz, 31, of Hamden, Conn., was the runner-up this year in 4:43:38, followed by 49-year-old Ryan Brown in 5:01:28. 

In the women’s field, 41-year-old Marie Arnesson Galler made a successful ultra debut and won in 5:17:39. She was followed by 44-year-old Jessica Crandall of Berlin Conn., in 6:16:35. Like Kousky, Crandall won the Mohawk Mountain Marathon the week before. Rounding out the podium was 48-year-old Debbie Livingston of Bolton, Conn., who earned her fourth Bimblers Bluff finish – and fourth podium finish – in 6:23:14. Livingston won the Nipmuck Trail Marathon three weeks earlier.

Farm to Farm

A year ago, Lila Gaudrault made her Farm to Farm Ultra debut by dominating the field on her way to the overall win in the 50-mile race. Gaudrault returned for the 11th annual event on Sunday, Oct. 22, in Freeport, Maine, and tackled the 50K distance this year. The result was the same.

Gaudrault, 21, of Cape Elizabeth, Maine, scorched the paved course and rolled to the overall win and overall course record in a sizzling 3:39:30. Brad Jackson, 34, of Portland, Maine, was second overall and first in the men’s field in 5:20:05. Women’s runner-up Cristina King, 42, of York, Maine, finished third overall in 5:48:18. Other finishers included Rodney Kelshaw, 48, of Brunswick, Maine (6:08:06); Paul Baxter, 61, of Lisbon Falls, Maine (6:53:34); Michele Cyr, 61, of Topsham, Maine (6:55:18); John Tower, 50, of Brunswick, Maine (7:08:57); Mandy Hufstader, 43, of Dresden, Main (7:55:10); and Melissa Cusano, 55, of Topsham, Maine (8:17:01).

Two runners completed the 50-miler this year. Patrick Kistner, 31, of Lisbon, Maine, was first in 8:13:25 and 33-year-old Meaghan Geroux of Orrington, Maine, was second in 9:20:06.

No Business 100

After a year of big performances including a runner-up finish at the G.A.C. Fat Ass 50K in January, a 110-mile effort and victory at the TARCtic Frozen Yeti in February, and a top-10 finish at the Waldo 100K and win at the TARC Summer Classic 40-miler in August, Brian Burke closed out a busy racing season with a huge effort in Tennessee.

Burke headed south to race the seventh annual No Business 100 on Oct. 20-21 in Jamestown, Tenn. The test at hand was a 102-mile single-loop course through the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, as well as several miles across the state line in Kentucky. The mix of fast-running and very technical trails, along with 14,500 feet of climbing, made for a tough challenge. Burke was fully up to the test.

Burke 41, of Medford, Mass., ran in close contact with 21-year-old Jacob Morgan of Monticello, Ky., for much of the race before taking the lead at mile 77 and hanging on the rest of the way for the win in 20:06:00. Morgan was second in 20:35:11. Women’s champion, Lauren Jones, 41, of Atlanta, Ga., was third overall in 22:01:53.

There were 171 finishers within 33 1/2 hours, including three more New England residents. Benjamin Martin, 35, of Middletown, R.I., placed 35th overall in 26:30:37. Greg Wolodkin, 56, of Sutton, Mass., was 88th in 31:30:23. John Sherback, 44, of North Easton, Mass., was the final New England finisher, placing 141st overall in 32:55:57.

Gate2Gate 50K

Stephen Baiardi made his ultramarathon debut with a strong showing at the eighth annual Gate2Gate 50K on Saturday, Oct. 21, in Alachua, Fla. Baiardi and his fellow runners tackled the rolling hills and singletrack trails of the San Felasco Hammock Preserve State Park on a 25K loop that they had to complete twice. Seventy-three runners did so within 8 1/2 hours, including Baiardi. The 23-year-old from Rowley, Mass., placed 19th overall in 5:50:43. Wrigley Longstreet, 19, of Alachua, Fla., won the race in 3:35:52, and 38-year-old Ava George of Gainesville, Fla., finished second overall and top female in 4:27:32.

Patapsco Valley 50K

A trio of Massachusetts residents earned their first ultramarathon finishes at the 10th annual Patapsco Valley 50K on Saturday, Oct. 21, in Baltimore, Md. The race used an approximately 25K loop course – measuring in at 16.2 miles – that ultrarunners had to complete twice for a “heavy” 50K finish with around 3,500 feet of elevation gain.

The Bay Staters – 31-year-old Andrew Blomberg of Falmouth; 30-year-old Jacob Garber of Washington; and 30-year-old Laura Hernandez of Boston – all got it done and finished in the top half of the field of 203 finishers within 10 hours.Blomberg placed 67th overall in 6:39:54; Garber was 95th in 6:58:08; and Hernandez was 100th in 7:04:55. Patrick Blair, 42, of Cantonsville, Md., led all runners in 4:33:40. Niki Cochran, 38, of Takoma Park, Md., topped the women’s field and placed 10th overall in 5:19:49.

Pumpkin Holler Hunnerd

Ken Skrien ran his first ultra in February when he traveled to Arkansas and conquered the White Rock Classic 50K. On Oct. 21-22 he returned to the region to take on his first 100-miler at the 13th annual Pumpkin Holler Hunnerd in Tahlequah, Okla.

Racing on gravel roads in the J.T. Nickel Preserve in the Ozarks, Skrien pushed the pace and finished 11th overall out of 33 finishers in 23:04:13. William Kent, 32, led all runners in 16:34:07, followed by 35-year-old John Dutton in 15:52:46. Kent broke the course record by 5 minutes.

The event also had 100K and 50K ultras. No New England residents competed at those distances.

Lake Sonoma

A pair of New England residents earned their second ultramarathon finishes and first 100Ks at the third annual Lake Sonoma 100K/55K Ultras on Oct. 21 in Healdsburg, Calif. Charles Thompson, 35, of Cumberland, Maine, ran his first ultra in May 2022 at the Big A 50K in Maine. For his second, he traveled to the West Coast to race the Lake Sonoma 100K. He finished near the middle of the pack in 16:07:10. Joining him among the finishers was 44-year-old Janica Lane of Boston, Mass. Lane ran her first ultra in June when she completed the Catamount 50K in Vermont. Lake Sonoma was her second ultra and first 100K, and she finished in 19:04:20.

Geoffrey Burns, 33, of Colorado Springs, Colo., and Nichole Abma, 32, of Canmore, Alberta, topped the men’s and women’s fields in 9:35:26 and 12:11:04, respectively.

Another 106 runners completed the Lake Sonoma 55K race within 12 hours, including one New England resident who made his ultra debut. Tony Duris, 58, of Londondeery, N.H., finished 22nd overall in 6:51:15, earning his first ultra finish. Ben Gallegos, 32, of Oakland, Calif., won the race in 5:19:32, less than a minute ahead of overall runner-up and women’s champion Zuzana Trnovcova, 37, of San Francisco, Calif., who followed in 5:20:25.

Moab 240

Since running her first ultra at the Moosalamoo 36-miler in Vermont in 2016, Emily Wivell has steadily amassed a resume of at least 20 ultra finishes, including a handful of 100-milers. A year ago, Wivell ventured beyond the 100-mile distance for the first time when she took on the 170-mile Grand to Grand Ultra in Utah, placing 16th overall and third in the women’s field.

On Oct. 13-18, Wivell tackled her first race of 200 miles or more when she traveled to Moab, Utah, and raced the seventh annual Moab 240. The course took Wivell through a variety of difficult terrain, from mountains to desert canyons. Wivell was up to the task as the 35-year-old from Barre, Vt., placed 68th overall out of 112 finishers within 116 hours. She was also 11th in the women’s field in 105:09:09. Sally McRae, 44, of Huntington Beach, Calif., was the first-place female and 12th overall finisher in 86:18:33, topping the women’s field by a 74-minute margin. In the men’s field, Jesse Haynes, 50, of Coto De Caza, Calif., edged 42-year-old Jeff Pelletier of North Vancouver, B.C., by less than 6 minutes with Haynes finishing in 70:47:49 and Pelletier following in 70:53:16.

*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.