June opened with International Trails Day, and ultrarunners from New England celebrated by racing locally – at the Chesterfield Gorge Ultra in Massachusetts (separate recap article), the Last Human Standing event in Rhode Island (results unavailable at time of publication), and the seventh edition of the Connecticut Ultra Traverse, where Justin Kousky delivered his latest course-record performance. Additionally, some runners stayed in the Northeast to race the Cayuga Trails 50, while others ventured to Virginia for the Old Dominion 100 and Dam Yeti 50, Pennsylvania for the grueling Worlds End 100K and 50K, down to South Carolina for the Hell Hole Hundred, and out West to Alaska. We have it all covered in this jam-packed edition of the roundup.

Connecticut Ultra Traverse

Justin Kousky continued his crusade on course record-boards throughout New England when he took on the 112-mile race at the seventh annual Connecticut Ultra Traverse on May 31-June 1. The largely self-sufficient race had runners travel point-to-point across Connecticut, starting in Southwick, Mass., and following the New England Trail’s blue blazes south to Long Island Sound in Guilford, Conn. In addition to the CUT 112, runners had another option – the CUT 50 – that took them on the final 50 miles of the course.

Kousky joined 20 other runners at the starting line. Of that group, 10 ultimately finished. As he has done on so many courses throughout the region, Kousky pushed hard and pulled away from the pack early. Ultimately, the 43-year-old from Westport, Conn., finished in 21:53:34 and crushed the course record by nearly 4 hours. Runner-up Matthew Pfahl, 37, of Madison, Conn., followed nearly 10 hours later in 31:31:30, with third-place finisher David Baker, 38, of West Hartford, Conn., completing the course in 34:25:38.

Thirteen runners completed the CUT 50K within 17 hours, led by Lee Davis, 42, of Hamden, Conn., who earned the victory by more than an hour in 10:01:37. Alex Brown, 27, of Vernon, Conn., as second in 11:11:17, and first-place female Emma Dixon, 28, of Dorchester, Mass., was third overall in 12:49:05. Jameson Liro, 39, of Enfield, Conn., joined Davis and Brown on the men’s podium in 13:20:54, while Dixon was joined on the women’s podium by Amy Hanlon, 49, of Danbury, Conn. (13:38:24), and Nicole Cari, 45, of Middletown, Conn. (15:13:52).

Cayuga Trails 50

The 12th annual Cayuga Trails 50 proved once again to be a popular draw as hundreds of runners gathered for the 50-mile and 50K ultras on Saturday, June 1, to take on the singletrack trails of Ithaca, N.Y. Eleven runners from the region were among the 127 finishers of the 50-miler within the 15-hour time limit, though a pair of New Yorkers dominated the race. Parker Weeks, 31, of Canandaigua, N.Y., was the fastest male by 65 minutes, winning in 7:36:47, while Jessie George, 32, of Fairport, N.Y., was the speediest woman by a 13-minute margin in 9:03:24. 

The top New Englander in the 50-miler placed on the podium. Gail Dale, 44, of Oakdale, Conn., placed 12th overall and third in the women’s field in 9:41:35. The performance capped a successful first 50-mile race for Dale. She only trailed George and 23-year-old Isabelle Danforth of Virginia Beach, Va., who was the women’s runner-up in 9:16:29. Max Kiel, 25, of Portland, Maine, also had a big day as he placed 25th overall in 10:34:06. Kiel previously finished 11th overall at the event’s 50K race in 2011. Clay Skipper, 34, of Wilton, Conn., was 42nd in 11:54:14, and Dahn Nguyen, 40, of Holbrook, Mass., was 45th in 12:13:12. Other New Englanders who finished the 50-miler included Christopher Lay, 43, of Somerville, Mass. (83rd; 13:39:45); Heidi Mendoza, 49, of Watertown, Mass. (89th; 13:53:08); Tyson Reid, 35, of Simsbury, Conn. (91st; 13:56:27); Melissa Arnold, 42, of Framingham, Mass. (94th; 13:59:03); Sarah Shaver, 31, of Warren, R.I. (107th; 14:14:24); Brandee Nelson, 48, of Great Barrington, Mass. (116th; 14:40:09); and Edward Smith, 54, of Milton, Mass. (117th; 14:41:32).

Another 187 runners finished the 50K race within 11 hours, with 40-year-old Greg Close of Brooklyn, N.Y., leading the men by a 26-minute margin in 4:54:22, and 22-year-old Valeria Garcia-Martinez of McAllen, Texas, leading the women in 6:05:34. Several New Englanders were among the finishers, including four who placed in the overall top 50. Mark Zarnowski, 39, of Concord, N.H., placed 19th in 6:17:09; Tricia Dowcett, 53, of Cheshire, Conn., was 35th overall and ninth in the women’s field in 6:57:38; Bill Weber, 44, of Keene, N.H., placed 37th in 7:02:43; and Kerrie-Ann Briguglio, 53, of Townsend, Mass., placed 45th overall and 14th in the women’s field – less than 8 minutes from the top 10 – in 7:09:38.

Worlds End Ultramarathon

Burly and brutal, the Worlds End 100K has challenged runners with 63.8 miles of rocky, rugged singletrack and doubletrack trails through Worlds End State Park in Forksville, Pa., since 2015. The event once again threw all it had to offer at runners – including rock scrambles, steep ascents, climbs near waterfalls, and around 12,400 feet of gain – on Saturday, June 1, with 119 runners completing the course within the 19-hour time limit.

No records were set on the single-loop course this year, but the top men and women won comfortably, with 30-year-old Trevor Fye of Lewiston, Pa., leading the men by a 26-minute margin in 11:39:24 and 29-year-old Mackenzie Nolan of Columbia, Pa., pacing the women in 13:50:49. The top nine runners finished in less than 14 hours, including 40-year-old Daniel Bates of Newington, Conn., who was the top New England finisher. Bates placed ninth overall in 13:57:02.

Five more New Englanders beat the cutoff. Edward Shibley, 45, of West Springfield, Mass., placed 32nd in 16:02:29; Wayne Ball, 49, of Feeding Hills, Mass., was 44th in 16:32:05; Derek Breitenstine, 35, of Salem, Conn., finished 47th in 16:39:52; Sarah Muskin, 30, of South Burlington, Vt., was 64th in 17:36:07; and 16-year-old Tanner Silva of Attleboro, Mass. – the youngest finisher – beat the cutoff by about 15 minutes, placing 108th in 18:45:13.

The event also offered a 50K race, and 40-year-old Dean Banko of New Florence, Pa., ran away with the win over the men’s field by a 22-minute margin while 42-year-old Katie Bicksler of Boiling Springs, Pa., secured the win in the women’s field by holding off two tough competitors in the final miles as the top three finished less than 6 minutes apart. Bicksler earned the victory in 6:12:31, and runner-up Emily Fisk, 36, of Bridgeport, Pa., followed less than 4 minutes later in 6:16:10. Third-place Zoe Fortier, 40, of Elkridge, Md., followed 2 minutes back in 6:16:10. Five New Englanders were among the 141 finishers within 12 hours. Joshua Lautenschlager, 31, of Orange, Conn., was the top runner from the region, placing 33rd overall in 7:48:22. Carly Eisley, 44, of North Stonington, Conn., was a few minutes back in 36th place in 7:51:24. Dan Broom, 47, of Branford, Conn., was 52nd in 8:35:21; John Torrone, 47, of Westfield, Mass., was 53rd in 8:25:31; and Jesse Davis, 38, of Norwalk, Conn., finished 89th in 9:28:39.

Old Dominion 100

Old Dominion still keeps it old-school, handing out belt buckles only to sub-24-hour finishers at one of the United States’ original 100-mile ultramarathons. Two New England residents snagged the coveted buckles – and four finished within the 28-hour time limit – at the 46th running of the Old Dominion 100 on June 1-2 in Fort Valley, Va.

Runners took on a course with mixed terrain, from singletrack dirt to pavement, to gravel roads and logging roads, all while amassing 14,000 feet of climbing. Eighty-one runners finished the race, with 39-year-old John Kelly of Tennessee and 33-year-old Steph Hill of Virginia topping the men’s and women’s fields in 15:44:49 and 20:11:38, respectively. New Hampshire’s Peter Smith, 44, finished 30th overall in 22:58:26, and 49-year-old Massachusetts resident Robert Lynch was 35th in 23:15:10. The top 52 runners finished in less than 24 hours. Additional finishers included 30-year-old Sara Tannenbaum of New Hampshire (54th; 24:57:55) and 46-year-old Eli Burakian of Vermont (66th; 26:57:41).

Dam Yeti 50

A large crew of New Englanders headed south to take on 50 miles or 55K of running at the seventh annual Dam Yeti 50 on Saturday, June 1, in Abingdon, Va. The event featured a point-to-point course with good footing and generous cutoffs to allow runners to pursue a PR or first-time ultra finish before enjoying a beverage at the finish line at Sweetbay Brewing Co.

Runners had 14 hours to complete the 50-miler, and four New Englanders were among the 86 runners to accomplish that feat. Ultra veteran Jeffrey Ray, 40, of New London, N.H., was the top performer from the region. He finished 24th overall in 9:41:36 in a tune-up run before the Centurion Ultra Trail Event 33-hour race in June in Connecticut. Rachel Cook, 43, of Rochester, N.H., placed 63rd overall in 12:05:09 in a tune-up race as part of her build-up to the Rim-to-River 100 in October in West Virginia. Dave Dion, 46, of Florence, Mass., finished in 12:24:35 for his first ultramarathon, and 43-year-old Bonnie Foley of Princeton, Mass., completed the race in 13:00:05. It was Foley’s first 50-miler and second ultra; she made her ultra debut in the event’s 55K race in 2023.

David Compton, 41, of Madisonville, Tenn., and Shannon Howell, 45, of Simpsonville, S.C., finished 1-3 overall and were the men’s and women’s winners in 6:32:51 and 7:15:09, respectively.

Another 193 runners finished the 55K race within the 10-hour time limit, led by 41-year-old Lee Jarvis of London, UK, and Amy Watson, 48, of Abingdon, Va., in 3:54:58 and 4:17:21, respectively. Watson set a new women’s course record with her performance. Kimberly Boisvert, 52, of Boscawen, N.H., led six New Englanders in finishing, placing 75th overall in 7:18:11. She ran the race with Kelly Hacking, 53, of Canterbury, N.H., and Susan Klasen, 48, of Concord, N.H., who finished together one second later in 7:18:12. Other local finishers included Stephen Sarnelle, 38, of Stamford, Conn. (8:36:19); Benjamin Dio, 45, of Putnam, Conn. (9:22:16); and Julia Becker Collins, 42, of Marlborough, Mass. (9:29:55).

Hell Hole Hundred

Jennifer Hunter was the lone New England resident to take on an ultramarathon distance at the 11th annual Hell Hole Hundred ultras on June 1-2 in Bethera, S.C., but she represented the region in impressive fashion. The event offered 100-mile, 50-mile and 50K ultras, and Hunter finished as the first-place female in the 50-mile race. Hunter, 31, of Middletown, R.I., finished with a time of 10:35:06 that was 44 minutes faster than her closest female competitor, and it also placed her fifth overall. Andrew Burness, 44, of Summerville, S.C., led all runners in the field of 20 in 9:10:24.

Alaska Endurance Trail Run

Ed Clifford traveled a long way for his latest ultramarathon victory. The 58-year-old from Raymond, N.H., went cross-country to Fairbanks, Alaska, to take part in the eighth edition of the Alaska Endurance Trail Run on May 31-June 1.

A standout at time-based races and last person standing events, Clifford was the lone New Englander at the event, which offered 24-hour, 12-hour and 6-hour time-based ultras on Nordic ski trails at the University of Alaska at Fairbanks. He was also standing atop the podium by the time his 24-hour race was done. Clifford topped a field of 38 runners with 109.5 miles.

His closest competitor, Jake Olive of Hayfield, Minn., finished with 101.5 miles, and Paul Auxier of Palmer, Alaska, was third with 100.5 miles.

Clifford will stick around Alaska for a bit. His next race – the Denali 135-miler – takes place June 21 in Paxson, Alaska.

*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.