The storm was a comin’, that much was certain as runners arrived at Pittsfield State Forest for the 11th running of the Berkshire Ultra Running Community for Service’s Vegan Power 50K, as well as its 25K and 5-mile trail races, on Saturday, June 22, at Pittsfield State Forest in Pittsfield, Mass.

Thunderstorms were already dumping rain in New York, and the forecast called for it to get loud and wet in Pittsfield at some point. The question was how many runners would finish before it began to pour. All of the 5-milers and most of the 25K runners beat the rain, but most of the 50K runners found themselves drenched before reaching the finish line. Still, a few of the ultrarunners managed to avoid the rain, but they had to storm the course to do so.

Wouter Hoogkamer, 42, of Pelham, Mass., and Katie Claiborne, 33, of Brooklyn, N.Y., finished the 50K soaked with sweat, but not rain. The men’s and women’s champions went 1-2 overall, with Hoogkamer leaving the field behind early and Claiborne asserting control during the second half of the race.

Twenty-seven runners toed the starting line for the 50K race on a sticky morning with the temperature in the low 70s and the humidity above 90%. A 5-mile loop course of rolling singletrack trails awaited them, and six loops and around 3,100 feet of climbing would earn them a finish. The finish was far from guaranteed between the distance they needed to cover and the heavy storm that was guaranteed to turn conditions sloppy and slick.

Hoogkamer sprinted off the starting line and immediately left the field behind him. He had a 10-minute lead on the rest of the field after the first loop and never looked back. Claiborne had some early competition from Emily St. Germain. St. Germain was the first woman through loop one, 62 seconds ahead of Claiborne. A loop later, they finished a few strides apart with St. Germain clinging to a slight lead. By the halfway point, Claiborne had moved to the front, but her advantage was a mere 40 seconds. She steadily pulled away during the final three loops, adding a few minutes to her lead with each trip through the course.

Fresh off his sizzling 100K performance at the Chesterfield Gorge Ultra three weeks earlier, Hoogkamer added another dominating victory to his resume as he won in 4:26:57, beating the rain by nearly 90 minutes. Claiborne was the second runner to cross the line and the first-place female in 5:29:15, also escaping the storm by about 20 minutes. The third runner to finish – men’s runner-up Jeffrey Uzzel, 38, of Easthampton, Mass. – was the final sub-6-hour finisher, but he didn’t escape the rain. The thunderstorm reached Pittsfield State Forest and began dumping when Uzzel was about a half-mile from the finish so he completed the race soaked in rain but with a spot on the men’s podium in 5:56:49. Brendan Morrison, 34, of Marlborough, Mass., followed four minutes later in 6:00:45, also drenched but with the final place on the men’s podium.

St. Germain, 40, of Boston, Mass., finished shortly after, fifth overall in 6:06:25 and the women’s runner-up despite the torrential downpour that fell during her final miles. Juliene Smith, 42, of Peekskill, N.Y., rounded out the women’s podium in 7:23:05. Michael Nock, 35, of Virginia Beach, Va., was the top nonbinary finisher in 6:53:10. Fourteen runners ultimately finished the race within the 8-hour time limit.

In the 25K, a pair of BURCS newcomers led the way as the women’s and men’s champions. Taking advantage of the drier conditions in the morning, Jenny Fouche, 40, of Altamont, N.Y., and Len Schmidt, 57, of Norwood, Mass., gained a comfortable cushion on the remainder of the field by the time only a few miles remained. The duo went on to finish 1-2 overall, with Fouche leading the way in 2:43:14 as the women’s champion and Schmidt following in 2:51:10 to lead the men’s field. Barbara Cutler, 49, of Troy, N.Y. (3:25:05) and Jane Rumrill, 40, of Salem, Mass. (3:28:05) joined Fouche on the women’s podium, with Jamie Cwiak, 27, of Newington, Conn., a very close fourth in 3:28:30. Derek Bruening, 47, of Troy, N.Y., 3:05:54) and Tobias Ecsedy, 30, of Acton, Mass. (3:05:58) were the second and third men to finish. The 25K was Vegan Power’s second-biggest race with 23 starters and 22 finishers.

Another 13 runners competed in the 5-mile race. Michael Sullivan, 41, of Holyoke, Mass., cruised to the overall win and topped the men’s field in 53:16, followed by 50-year-old Kevin Longo of Granby, Mass. (55:32), and Joseph Coleman, 52, of Great Barrington, Mass. (55:48). The event’s youngest competitor – 11-year-old Micah Silverman of Westford, Mass. – joined them in breaking the 1-hour mark as he finished fourth in 56:41. A close race unfolded among the top four women with 42-year-old Sarah Brandt of Salem, Mass., earning the victory in 1:00:58, followed by Jessica Silverman, 39, of Westford, Mass. (1:02:40); Gwendolyn Adam, 53, of Williamstown, Mass. (1:03:16); and Ashley Luz, 32, of Latham, N.Y. (1:04:45).