WEST CHESTERFIELD, Mass. – When it comes to celebrating National Trails Day, Amy Rusiecki does it up right. Good people, good scenery, good vibes and lots of miles on dirt.

Rusiecki and her crew of volunteers at Beast Coast Trail Running played host to their latest National Trails Day party at the Chesterfield Gorge Ultra on June 1-2 at the Chesterfield Gorge Reservation.

The event has grown steadily since the inaugural year, and the sixth edition saw 260 runners gather to take on the 30-hour or 50K ultras starting on Saturday, or the 25K and 11K options on Sunday on a weekend where the heat was high, the humidity low, and the miles hard-earned.

All of the ultra distances used the same out-and-back course spanning 7.75-miles each way from the start/finish at the gorge’s entrance to the turnaround aid station known as the Boiler Room. In between aid outposts, runners spent five miles hugging the Westfield River on a rolling, dirt jeep road with occasional rocks and muddy spots. Following those 5 miles protected by tree cover, runners spent the final 2.75 miles to the turnaround learning exactly why the Boiler Room gets its name. The sudden shift from shade to scorching sun made each trip through the course challenging for runners on a weekend where temperatures swung between the low 50s and mid-80s. The heat took its toll, with some runners forced to change their race plans and settle for less mileage, while others persevered with big-time performances.

Perhaps no runners felt the heat – and brought the heat – more than Wouter Hoogkamer and Lila Gaudrault. The duo were among the 25 runners who raced 100K on Saturday, and both delivered course record-smashing performances. Hoogkamer, 42, of Pelham, Mass., entered with his sights set on the 100K record, while Gaudrault, 21, of Cape Elizabeth, Maine, left her mileage destination up in the air until part way through the run. Both pushed hard, Hoogkamer with a crew of speedy pacers who helped keep him on track, while Gaudrault ran solo. Ultimately, Hoogkamer finished first overall and broke the men’s course record in 8:45:38. Gaudrault joined him at the finish line a little while later as the second overall finisher, first-place female and new record-holder in 9:22:00.

Jennifer Kenty, 42, of Medford, Mass., finished third overall, second female, in the 100K in 9:49:27 in her latest strong performance at the Chesterfield Gorge. Kenty set the women’s course record in the 100-miler (21:08:09) in 2021. Flora Berklein, 31, of Brookline, Mass., placed fourth overall and first in the nonbinary category in 10:10:08. Daniel Fladager, 34, of New York, N.Y. (11:16:00) and Robert Grosvenor, 38, of Boston, Mass. (11:35:28) joined Hoogkamer on the men’s podium while Carolyn Wisnowski, 38, of Shirley, Mass., joined Gaudrault and Kenty on the women’s podium.

The performances by both Hoogkamer and Gaudrault were impressive in their own right, but also noteworthy from a nationwide perspective. Hoogkamer’s time would be the 42nd-fastest 100K by a male runner in North America this year, according to UltraRunning Magazine’s data tracker. Meanwhile, Gaudrault’s time would be the 14th-fastest by a female in North America this year. One of the times faster than hers is also held by Gaudrault. Her 8:51:52 performance at the Trail Festival at Pineland Farms on May 25 is the fifth-best time on the continent this year, and her 74-mile effort in the 12-hour race at 3 Days at the Fair in mid-May also ranks fifth in the time-based category.

The 100-mile course records set by Kenty and Matt Geary (27:43:30 in 2023) survived, but a record number of runners completed the distance at this year’s event. Matt Desrosiers, 37, of West Springfield, Mass., finished first out of 12 in the 100-miler in 18:31:35. It was a strong performance for Desrosiers in his build-up to the Midstate Massive Ultra-Trail 100-miler in the fall. Thomas Standish, 18, of Acton, Mass., was the runner-up and youngest finisher in 19:22:22. It was the second 100-mile finish for Standish. He made his 100-mile debut at Midstate Massive in 2023, and he will return to the race later this year after running the Jigger Johnson 100 in July. Joseph Bradshaw, 26, of New Bedford, Mass., ws third in 21:07:23. Tom Wolejko, 42, of Lunenburg, Mass., followed in 21:37:28. In the women’s field, 56-year-old Katy Kelly of Dorchester, Mass., earned the victory in 21:54:23. It was her second win at the distance; she was the top female at the Viaduct Trail 100 in 2023. She was followed by 41-year-old Amanda Chilson of North Adams, Mass., in 24:28:47. Phoebe Seltzer, 28, of North Conway, N.H., rounded out the podium in 29:32:19.

Danforth Sullivan and Allie Bartak earned the men’s and women’s victories among the 49 finishers of the 50-mile race. Sullivan, 40, of Sudbury, Mass., was 10 minutes off the course record with his win in 7:31:17. Matt Czaplinski, 58, of Northampton, Mass., followed soon after as the runner-up in 7:43:55. Trevor Stern, 35, of Avon, Conn., rounded out the podium in 8:13:10. Bartak, 36, of Sunapee, N.H., led the female field by 13 minutes in 9:40:27, with 52-year-old Julia Plourde of Bartlett, N.H., second in 9:53:49. Margaret Gladski, 43, of Southampton, Mass., was a distant third in 10:38:12.

The 50K had the largest field of ultramarathon finishers with 82 runners completing the distance. Morgan Windram-Geddes, 42, of Glendale, Mass., finished fourth overall and was the first-place female in 4:22:11. Her time eclipsed the previous women’s course record of 4:24:00 set by Alia Rawji in 2023. Lauren Finelli, 47, of Portsmouth, N.H., was second in 4:56:42, followed by Kristen Reyzer, 46, of Easthampton, Mass., in 5:04:29. Xiali He, 49, of Weston, Mass., was a close fourth in 5:05:06. In the men’s field, 45-year-old Brian Rusiecki set an age-group record while leading the way in 4:06:55. Eric Rice, 40, of Worthington, Mass., was second in 4:16:22, and 35-year-old Nicholas Davis of Cos Cob, Conn., was just behind in 4:17:24.

Sunday proved to be another scorcher at the gorge, at least in areas not protected from the sun. Seventy-eight runners toed the starting line for the 25K race that took them on one full out-and-back through the course while another 14 took on the inaugural 11K offering. Brian Krussel, 34, of Northampton, Mass., led all runners and was the fastest male by more than 2 minutes, winning in 1:42:16. Steve Schmeiser, 43, of South Hadley, Mass., followed in 1:44:38, with 39-year-old James Coletta of Wilbraham, Mass., close behind in 1:45:02. Elizabeth Atwater, 44, of Sudbury, Mass., led the female field by a comfortable margin, winning in 2:00:17. Christa Syfu, 44, of Easthampton, Mass., was the runner-up in 2:16:00, and Kate Hennighausen, 52, of Concord, Mass., was third in 2:21:05. Jes Mending, 40, of South Acworth, N.H., topped the nonbinary field in 2:53:44.

In the 11K race, 35-year-old Chris Freeman of Northampton, Mass., and 36-year-old Anna Klimmek of Worthington, Mass., finished 1-2 overall and were the male and female winners in 46:31 and 50:05, respectively, while 40-year-old Reyn Whitman of Florence, Mass., was the fastest finisher in the nonbinary field in 1:23:18.