In Part I of the May 17-19 weekend roundup we focused on results at ultras in the Northeast. Here in Part 2, we turn to the rest of the country. New Englanders had big performances from coast to coast, but nobody threw down harder than Rhode Island resident Ben Quatromoni who smashed the course record at the grueling Cruel Jewel 100-miler in Georgia. From there we turn to Virginia and the Massanutten Mountain Trails 100, and then stop off in North Carolina before heading West to Utah, Colorado, and California.

Cruel Jewel 100

Ben Quatromoni went down to Georgia to take on a devil of a race – the Cruel Jewel 100 – on May 17-19 in Blairsville, and he returned home with a victory and course record to his credit. Quatromoni, 36, of Newport, R.I., took on the brutal 103.5-mile course in the Chattahoochee National Forest and North Georgia Mountains, conquered its 33,000 feet of climbing, and won the 11th annual event in dominant fashion in 21:41:31. Quatromoni eclipsed Canyon Woodward’s record of 22:36:05 from 2021, and he outdistanced overall runner-up Peter Mortimer, 43, of Flagstaff, Ariz., by more than 2 1/2 hours. Mortimer finished in 24:12:12. Michael Mangenello, 50, of Durango, Colo., was third in 24:13:46. In the women’s field, 32-year-old Flagstaff resident Sarah Ostaszewski broke the women’s course record and won in 24:50:52, eclipsing Liz Canty’s mark of 26:34:53 from 2022. Ostaszewski was fourth overall.

Six other New England residents joined Quatromoni among the 149 finishers. Jared Dybas, 24, of Groton, Conn., went sub-30, finishing 22nd overall in 29:56:14. Other finishers were Kristijan Begic, 38, of Waterbury, Conn. (71st, 36:12:59); Keith Hoffman, 33, of Newtown, Conn. (81st, 37:28:08); Steven LaBranche, 50, of Oakdale, Conn. (101st, 39:50:20); Eric Nelson, 41, of Somerville, Mass. (132nd, 43:36:46) and Tek Ung, 42, of Cranston, R.I. (136th, 44:39:14). Former Massachusetts resident Dane LeBlanc, 66, now living in San Antonio Tlayacapan, Mexico, finished 125th in 42:52:24.

Massanutten Mountain Trails 100

A top-10 finisher, a young standout, and a local legend all represented New England among the finishers of the 28th running of the Massanutten Mountain Trails 100-miler on May 18-19 in Fort Valley, Va.

Matt Ouellette, Tobias Tello and Kevin Mullen all were among the 119 runners who overcame 18,000+ feet of climbing and plenty of technical trails to finish within 36 hours. Ouellette, 36, of Newton, Mass., finished seventh overall in 23:16:11 in just his second 100-mile race; the 2022 Midstate Massive Ultra-Trail 100 was his first. Stephen Knight, 38, of Wake Forest, N.C., and Justyna Wilson, 48, of Fairless Hills, Pa., were the top male and female finishers in 20:59:05 and 23:22:33, respectively. The top 14 runners finished in less than 24 hours.

Tello, a 19-year-old standout from Cheshire, Conn., earned his fifth 100-mile finish and placed 29th overall in 27:21:59. He previously completed the 2021 Midstate Massive 100, the Connecticut Ultra Traverse (CUT) 112 in 2021 and 2022, and the 2023 Eastern States 100. Finally, Mullen, 66, of Fairhaven, Mass., finished 93rd overall in 34:10:28. In addition to his countless ultramarathon finishes throughout New England, Mullen became an eight-time finisher of Massanutten (2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022, 2023, 2024).

Quest for the Crest 50K

Addison Sember wasted no time making her mark on the New England ultrarunning scene last year upon moving from Arizona to Brookline, Mass. She made her New England debut by finishing second at the 2023 TARC Summer Classic 50K, and followed it up with a victory at the Kilkenny Ridge 25-miler last fall. Sember then opened 2024 with a strong run at the G.A.C. Fat Ass 50K, finishing as the third female, before returning to Arizona and running the Black Canyon 60K in February.

Sember took on her first non-New England East Coast ultra when she headed south to race the 10th annual Quest for the Crest 50K on Saturday, May 18, in Burnsville, N.C. The point-to-point course challenged runners with plenty of big climbs, amassing more than 11,600 feet of gain. Of the 207 runners who started the race, 155 finished within 15 hours. Sember handled every challenge thrown at her by the course, placing 65th overall and ninth in the women’s field in 11:59:29. Kate Dohnal, 32, of Marquette, Mich., was 12th overall and the first-place female in 9:49:50.

Three runners finished in less than 9 hours, with 28-year-old Lukas Burrer of Waldachtal, Germany, taking the overall win in 7:50:03 and 47-year-old Marek Simko of Cold Spring, N.Y., following three minutes later as the men’s runner-up in 7:53:15. Rhett Bolick, 20, of Asheboro, N.C., was a distant third in 8:56:43.

Bryce Canyon Ultras

Big climbs and scenic views once again greeted runners at the Bryce Canyon Ultras on May 18-19 in Hatch, Utah. Runners overcame high altitude – most of the courses were between 7,000 feet and 9,000 feet above sea level – and challenging trails just outside of Bryce Canyon National Park.

Sixty-three runners finished the 100-mile race and its 12,000+ feet of climbing within the 36-hour time limit, including 44-year-old Amy Rusiecki of South Deerfield, Mass. Rusiecki placed 28th overall and seventh in the women’s field in 30:54:37. Joining Rusiecki in representing New England at the finish line was 40-year-old Connecticut resident Cory Sylvester who finished 32nd overall in 31:35:30. Sylvester made his ultra debut at the Bryce Canyon 50-mile race in 2023. Texas resident Art Hurtado, 38, and Utah resident Lauri Brindley, 38, were the top male and female finishers in 19:42:50 and 26:01:17, respectively.

Another 127 runners completed the 50-mile race and its 6,800 feet of climbing within 21 hours. Five New England residents were among the finishers. A trio of New Hampshire residents led the way – Paul Kell, 51, (14:40:01), Wiley Semrau, 43, (15:15:35), and Kim Carloni, 41, (15:15:36). Additionally, Massachusetts residents Anke Ueckert-La Plante, 52, (15:37:47) and Natalie Belongie, 35, (15:50:42), also finished the 50-miler. Utah residents Nate Jewkes, 34, and Lauren Kersjes, 32, were the male and female champions in 7:41:11 and 9:21:11, respectively.

Four New Englanders were among the 156 finishers of the 60K race. Massachusetts residents Robin Belton, 29 (58th, 9:30:51), Marziah Hashimi, 36, (4th, 10:18:49), and Emma Waligory, 26, (83rd, 10:29:39), all finished, as did 38-year-old New Hampshire resident Jason Inglis (131st, 12:59:07). No New England residents were among the 117 finishers of the 50K race.

Ram Party

Two years after making their ultramarathon debuts by finishing the 2022 Big A 50K in Maine, Brian Connelly and Erin O’Toole earned their longest ultra finishes yet when they completed the 55-mile race at the third annual Ram Party on May 18-19 in Woodland Park, Colo. The event offered 55-mile, 60K and 50K ultras as well as several sub-ultra distance options on the trails around Rampart Reservoir near Pikes Peak.

Forty-six runners completed the 55-mile race, led by men’s and women’s champions Tucker Melles, 27, of Fort Collins, Colo, and Salynda Heinl, 39, of Aspen Park, Colo, who went 1-2 overall in 9:19:20 and 9:54:04, respectively. Connelly, 36, of Boston, Mass., was third overall in 10:02:17, and O’Toole, 39, of Biddeford, Maine, placed 10th overall and fifth in the women’s field in 11:47:07.

Thirty-four runners completed the 60K race, though none were New England residents. Another 59 runners completed the 50K, including 26-year-old Matthew Loranger of Norton, Mass., who earned his first ultra finish in 6:52:15.

BuffaLoops Ultra

The Centurion Ultra Trail 33-hour race lurks a little more than a month away for Joseph Solemene, but the 30-year-old from Norwalk, Conn., gave his legs a final tune-up with a big performance at the BuffaLoops Ultra on Saturday, May 18, in Flagstaff, Ariz. The event offered 12-hour and 6-hour ultras on a 2-mile loop course as well as a doggie dash.

No New England residents were among the 12 runners in the 6-hour race. Solemene was the lone runner from the region in the 12-hour and he placed second overall out of six runners and was the first-place male with 52 miles. Michele Harmon, 58, of Sedona, Ariz., was the overall winner with 58 miles.

Born to Run Ultras

Alexander Tucker is building up to the Javelina Jundred 100-miler in October, but the 2023 UTMB finisher kicked his training up a notch with an early trip out West to race at the Born to Run Ultras May 13-19 in Los Olivos, Calif. The event offered four-day, three-day, 100-mile and 30-mile ultras. Tucker, 38, of Trumbull, Conn., was the lone New England resident at the event and he opted for the 30-miler. Tucker finished in the top half of the field, placing 42nd out of 93 finishers in 6:27:55. Rene Dorantes, 48, of Pasadena, Calif., led all runners in 3:47:16 and was the lone sub-4-hour finisher.

No New Englanders were among the 71 runners in the four-day race, 23 runners in the three-day race, or 31 finishers of the 100-mile race.

*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.