MILTON, Mass. — In the years since 2019 when he ran his first ultramarathon, Adam Hoffman was tempted many times to run the Trail Animals Running Club’s classic “Don’t Run Boston” 50K or 50-mile race at the Blue Hills Reservation. There was plenty that appealed to Hoffman, from the low-key, no-frills nature of the event, to the technical terrain that presented an enticing challenge.

Still there was one particular detail that kept Hoffman—and many others like him—away: the course is not marked.

“I’d been thinking about DRB for a few years, but it always sounded so crazy to me because of the complex route and lack of course marking,” Hoffman admitted.

The “Don’t Run Boston” 50K course consists of five segments drawn on a map in different colors of highlighter (pink, blue, yellow, green, orange). The 50-miler—which was added in 2010—adds a sixth color, neon pink, for the additional 19 miles. Since the inaugural running in 1997, runners have been expected to carry a map and figure out the course as they go, study and learn the route in advance, or stick with someone who knows the way. Some trails aren’t labeled, and many turns aren’t obvious. Bonus miles are common. Wrong turns require backtracking to course-correct rather than course-cut, and runners are on their honor to complete the course correctly or take a DNF and try again in the future.

As Hoffman grew as an ultrarunner, gained more experience, and ultimately worked his way up to completing 100 miles at Ghost Train in October 2023, he found himself becoming increasingly fascinated by race courses. In particular, his interest was piqued by figuring out courses when signs, ribbons and flags don’t mark the way. He developed a passion for studying race courses and previewing them in advance, locating course maps on Strava, or downloading a GPX file when available and then analyzing it carefully. He would take that research and then attempt to figure out the course – sometimes running solo, other times leading a group – and do his best to get it right.

“I’ve really come to enjoy this aspect of training,” Hoffman said. “Whenever possible for races, I get out on the trails and try to get familiar with the route. There’s something really fun to me about planning a long training run in advance, mapping things out, mentally logging the unique landmarks and having no-pressure time to appreciate the place.”

Suddenly, DRB didn’t seem quite so intimidating.

While chatting about race schedules with DRB veteran Laura Ricci during the G.A.C. Fat Ass 50K in January, the pair agreed to run the DRB 50-miler together. Hoffman was seeking a spring 50-miler, and Ricci was eager to experience DRB in a new way following her 50K wins in 2021 and 2022.

“I wanted to come back to DRB but not focus on speed,” Ricci said. “I approached DRB as a race the first two times I ran it, and had some times I’m really proud of, including an outright win in 2022. But I kind of felt like I was missing the best part of it. From hearing the stories of other runners and working the aid station in 2023, I saw the best part was when people group up to navigate the course together and just enjoy the adventure. This year I thought the better challenge would be adding distance instead of trying for a better time. Plus there were some features in the last 19 miles which sounded kind of fun!”

Ricci had spent countless days and hours mastering the first 31 miles of the DRB course prior to her victories. She began exploring the 19 additional miles in January. Much of it was flooded due to a series of heavy rains, the remnants of which would remain three months later on race day.

While Ricci focused on mastering the new miles, Hoffman had a full course to learn.

“For DRB training, I ended up previewing the full course in sections over five different long runs,” he said. “It was surprising how long it took me to do each section, and that’s when I started really understanding how challenging this race would be. Knowing this only propelled me to bump up training and preparation even more.”

Hoffman and Ricci teamed up for a final preview run together on the last part of the course shortly before race day.

“With DRB, it helps a lot to see the course in advance, and ideally a few times – not only do you have to know the right turns, you have to know every wrong turn that you’re liable to take when you’re tired,” Ricci said. “Having the recon really helped Adam and I have a frame of reference — you’d talk about what landmarks were ahead and try to use it as a boost, like ‘Yay, it’s the water crossing!’ ‘We’re already at the cliff!’ ‘Heck yeah, it’s the abandoned building!’”

When Hoffman and Ricci arrived at Houghton’s Pond for the 6 a.m. start of the 28th annual “Don’t Run Boston” 50K and 15th annual 50-miler on Sunday, April 14, they were well prepared for a successful day on the tricky, technical course.

It was 44 degrees and breezy as they gathered alongside the other 50-mile runners and early starters for the 50K. A second wave of 50K runners would begin two hours later. The sun was still rising as they made the ceremonial loop around Houghton’s Pond and entered the woods. During the next 7 hours and 40 minutes, Ricci and Hoffman ran a flawless first 50K. They nailed every unmarked turn – the one just past the pile of brush 3.6 miles in; the 0.3-mile switchback coming off of Buck Hill that so many runners miss if they don’t bother looking at the course map; the turn near Hawk Hill by a depleting crop of birch trees; and all of the tricky turns between miles 22 and 26 where runners hit the same intersections multiple times in opposite directions. They continued onward in the afternoon as the temperature climbed into the upper 50s, the wind picked up, and the sun disappeared behind clouds before rain eventually rolled in. All the while, Ricci and Hoffman worked together, spotting landmarks, making all the correct turns as fatigue set in. The homework they put in prior to the race paid dividends.

“It turned out to be critical when we were in the later miles and the accumulation of the day started to add up,” Ricci said.

A course feature that Ricci first encountered on her reconnaissance run in January–and that she and Hoffman navigated during a training day together a few weeks prior–remained on race day as one of the last major obstacles before finishing: a water crossing at mile 45.

“That trail at Mile 45 is basically underwater all the time,” Ricci said. “It was actually better during the race than earlier in the year!

“On race day it felt kind of nice, although there was a ton of sediment floating around in that water. When I took off my socks after the race you wouldn’t believe all of the crud that fell out. That was for sure the wettest part of the course, and in true DRB fashion it was followed by the sketchiest descent on the Skyline trail where you’re basically rock climbing. I guess on the bright side it was raining by that point, so it didn’t really matter whether or not we had wet shoes.”

About an hour after clearing the water crossing, Ricci and Hoffman emerged from the woods for the final time at Houghton’s Pond and crossed the finish line together in 13:03. They were two of a DRB record nine 50-mile finishers. Two other 50-mile finishers — DRB first-timers Kyle Marshall and Justin Martino-Harms — also ran the full 50 miles together and finished in 12:37. Several runners in the 50K race also took a teamwork approach and completed the full distance in small groups.

“DRB is a tough race that beats you up and can feel unrelenting,” Hoffman said. “Running with a buddy is huge for something like this because it offsets the mental struggle, helps get you out of your own head and have another’s ear for encouragement.”

For Ricci, the teamwork and shared experience with Hoffman was equally rewarding.

“It was great to run an event like DRB with him because we’ve crossed paths in training and volunteering at races over the past year,” she said. “I knew he had put in an amazing, gritty effort at Ghost Train getting his first 100-miler right on the heels of a big injury, and we were both on the Frozen Yeti course a lot over the winter but never crossed paths. One time I did an entire course recon in the snow and the only other set of footprints out there were Adam’s. It was cool to see the determination in action and to have it result in a 50-mile finish I think we are both proud of.”

While the tradition of studying the course, paying attention to the actual map, and engaging in some race-day teamwork continues for many runners and serves as proof that the old-school spirit of DRB remains, a trend has emerged in recent years where some newcomers aren’t embracing that ethos. Rather than following the color-coded route on the official map and backtracking when necessary to course-correct, some are relying on the GPX file to do the work for them, telling them where to go and outsourcing accountability and responsibility to their watches. In 2022, at least one newcomer relying on a GPX file was kept on course by a veteran when the GPX file nearly guided him off-course multiple times. In 2023 and 2024, several runners at the starting line acknowledged that they hadn’t been on the course but had the GPX file on their watches. In 2023, that resulted in many runners missing turns and going way off-course. In 2024, the trend continued with some GPX-guided runners cutting the 0.3-mile switchback off of Buck Hill, skipping multiple miles of the Skyline Trail, lopping off around 2 miles of the course between miles 22 and 26, or missing entire sections of the route and continuing onward to the finish line, as evidenced by GPS data, on-course observations, and post-race social media posting.

Runners who’ve studied the course, trained on it and completed the race in prior years won both the 50-mile and 50K races. Jacob Varekamp earned his second victory in two tries at 50 miles, covering the course and its 8,500 feet of climbing in 10:14. He previously tied for the 50-mile win at DRB in 2022 (9:54), and won the 50K race in 2021. He will look to build upon his strong run at DRB by running the Cascade Crest 100-miler in Washington in July. First-place female and overall runner-up Denise Klatt earned her first 50-mile finish at DRB after taking top honors in the 50K in 2023. Klatt will aim to build upon her success at DRB when she runs the Hardrock 100 in Colorado in July.

Joining Varekamp and Klatt among the 50-miler finishers were Marshall and Martino-Harms who finished together in 12:37; Marcy Beard in 12:49; Jonathan Lagoa and Lisa Rising who finished together in 12:58; followed by Hoffman and Ricci in 13:03. Beard’s 50-mile finish was her fourth, moving her into a tie for third-most 50-mile finishes in event history. Rising became a two-time 50-mile finisher.

Meanwhile, Wilson Ray and Lexi Jackson finished 1-2 overall and were the men’s and women’s winners in the 50K race on a course with 5,700 feet of climbing. Both runners have trained extensively on the course in recent years and have prior finishes, including a 2023 victory for Ray in 5:38. His winning time this year of 5:24 was a 14-minute improvement and was the 14th-fastest in course history. Jackson broke the women’s course record with her time of 5:48, eclipsing the prior record of 5:53 set by Elise DeRoo in 2017. DeRoo set both the women’s 50K and 50-mile records that year (her 50-mile time of 9:52 remains the women’s record and fifth-fastest time ever by any runner on the course).

Beyond the frontrunners, the remainder of the 50K field was relatively balanced, with many runners sticking together in small packs or finishing within minutes of each other. DRB newcomer John Beard finished third overall in 6:23, followed two minutes later by another first-timer, David Benjamin, in 5:25. Varekamp rounded out the overall top five in 6:29, on his way to winning the 50-miler. Brendan Wheeler followed in 6:35, with James Flannery and Ethan Sokol a few minutes later as they crossed the finish line together in 6:43. Patrick Couchot was ninth overall in 6:57, followed by the trio of Jason Kaplan, Toby Seidel, and Adam Sureau in 6:58. Joining Jackson among the top female finishers in the 50K were Elizabeth Faye in 7:18, and Klatt in 7:22 on her way to winning the 50-miler.

A total of 44 runners were included on the preliminary list of finishers in the 50K this year. The final of those finishers — DRB creator Howie Breinan — completed the course in reverse. It’s just the second backwards finish in DRB history and first since Chris Martin ran the 50-miler in reverse in 2016.

Trail Animals Amass Large Donation for Blue Hills Trailside Museum: Starting with the inaugural DRB in 1997, the annual event has collected donations for the Blue Hills Trailside Museum in lieu of charging an entry fee. After amassing a large $692 donation at the 2023 event, the 2024 DRB surpassed that tally with $938 collected on race day alone. That number does not include online donations runners may have made or dropped off personally at the museum, nor does it include donations from runners who did not start. (If a runner withdraws from DRB within a few weeks of the race, they are required to make a donation to be allowed into a future DRB. There were several withdrawals from the event during the two weeks leading up to race day).

Veterans and Newcomers: Of the 44 runners listed in the preliminary results for the 50K or 50-mile races at DRB this year, 25 were first-timers and 19 were veterans. Breinan—the event’s creator—became the first person to finish DRB 20 times. Rich Collins earned his 13th finish, the fourth-most in DRB history. Dietmar Bago finished for the 11th time and TARC founder Chris Haley earned his 10th finish. Additionally, Chris Wristen finished for the sixth time, Alexandra Brinkert and Marcy Beard became five-time finishers, Bob Warren finished for the fourth time, and Jacob Varekamp, Laura Ricci, Julia Magnusson, Emily Andrews and Lisa Rising all became three-time finishers. Wilson Ray and Lexi Jackson earned their second finishes, as did Jason Kaplan, Elizabeth Faye, Denise Klatt and Jodie Davis.

Doubles and Triples: A pair of runners — DRB newcomer Emma Dixon and second-timer Jason Kaplan — both completed the Traprock-DRB double. Kaplan completed the Traprock 50K in 6:38:11 and DRB 50K in 6:58. Dixon finished Traprock in 7:40:52 and DRB in 9:40. Ken Berenski completed a rare triple, finishing the Carmel Marathon, DRB 50K and the Boston Marathon over the course of three days. Chris Bessin notched an unofficial triple, finishing Traprock, logging a marathon at DRB by finishing all but the final segment of the 50K course, and then completing the Boston Marathon.