New Hampshire and Maine were where the action was as the New England ultrarunning season rolled into August. Both states offered tough ultra challenges during the Aug. 2-4 weekend, with dozens of runners taking on one hard day of racing – or opting for all three – at the Ragged 75 Stage Race and 50K in New Hampshire. In Maine, Blue Hill took center stage with its second annual trail festival. Additionally, a few runners from the region headed to New Jersey and Louisiana to race. We have them all in this edition of the roundup.

Ragged 75 Stage Race

The first time Oliver Mednick took on the Ragged 75 Stage Race, he had a fantastic weekend of racing with three straight second-place finishes and a second overall placing in the Stage Race. That performance was in 2021 when Mednick was still new to ultramarathon racing.

After a few years away from the event, Mednick returned to the seventh annual Ragged 75 Stage Race on Aug. 2-4 in Danbury, N.H., and the seasoned veteran let his experience shine. Mednick, 33, of South Acworth, N.H., finished first on each day of the Stage Race and secured the overall victory.

The event took runners on a three-day, point-to-point journey that covered around 75 miles with more than 15,000 feet of climbing along the Sunapee Ragged Kearsarge Greenway. Day One included 22 miles of running and trips to the summits of Mt. Ragged and Mt. Kearsarge. Day Two was 25 miles with a trip to the Mt. Sunapee summit. Day Three was a “heavy” 50K, measuring around 33 miles.

Twenty-six runners took on the Stage Race, with Mednick finishing first overall each day and winning the Stage Race with a three-day time of 14:45:13. Seth Bixler, 31, of Alexandria, Va., was the Stage Race runner-up in 17:35:49, following a fourth-place overall finish on Day One, a runner-up finish on Day Two and an 11th-place overall finish on Day Three. Notably, the 50K had a significantly larger field as it also was opened to non-Stage Race runners. Joe Miller, 46, of Grafton, Mass., rounded out the men’s podium in the Stage Race in 17:39:34. Miller was the runner-up on Day One, third on Day Two, and 14th on Day Three. 

In the women’s Stage Race, Taylor Miller built herself a comfortable cushion on the first day when she finished third overall and outdistanced the closest woman by 46 minutes. Miller, 34, of Gilford, N.H., was the top female finisher during the first and second stages, and third in the final stage but the fastest among the female Stage Race runners, earning first-place female honors in 17:57:38 while also placing fourth overall. Emily Fisk, 36, of Bridgeport, Pa., was the runner-up in 19:02:04, followed by 29-year-old Emma Dixon of Dorchester, Mass., in 19:41:19. Twenty-two runners ultimately completed the Stage Race.

The final day’s race was open to non-Stage Race runners, and many of those runners packed the podium after covering 33 miles and 6,300 feet of climbing. Kayla Brewer, 30, of Haines, Alaska, led the women’s field and was second overall in 6:36:24. Erin James Shaffer, 32, of Intervale, N.H. (6:55:48) and Clara Miller, 26, of Boulder, Colo. (7:20:50) joined her on the women’s podium. Mednick led the men in 5:58:30, while non-Stage Race runners Alexander Shaffer, 37, of Intervale, N.H. (6:55:46) and Malcolm Courchesne, 17, of East Kingston, N.H. (7:20:11) completed the men’s podium. Seventy-six runners completed the 50K.

Blue Hill Mountain Trail Festival 50K

A year ago, Isaac Vaccaro used his knowledge of the local trails to his advantage and won the inaugural Blue Hill Mountain Trail Festival 50K. On Saturday, Aug. 3, Vaccaro returned to defend his title at the second annual event in Blue Hill, Maine. The event offered a 50K ultramarathon, as well as 25K, 10K and 5K races.

Vaccaro and his fellow ultramarathon racers faced a tough course. They had to complete seven full figure-eight loops of the 4.5-mile course, amassing nearly 950 feet of gain per loop for just shy of 7,000 feet of climbing in total. Fourteen runners ultimately finished, and Vaccaro, 25, of Blue Hill, Maine, was victorious again. After winning in a course-record time of 5:37:17 in 2023, Vaccaro finished this time in 5:54:11. Wendell Simonson, 45, of Boulder, Colo, was second in 6:23:27. Simonson finished third the year before. Eric Bednorz, 47, of Swanville, Maine, was third in 6:44:59. Kevin Gricks, 41, of Bar Harbor, Maine, was the fourth-place male and fifth overall finisher in 6:58:43.

A trio of Maine residents swept the women’s podium with 23-year-old Fionna Kennedy of Bar Harbor earning the win in 6:50:20 while also finishing fourth overall. Kathryn Snyder, 26, of Bar Harbor finished second in 7:02:09, and 32-year-old Tara Allen of Mount Desert edged 26-year-old Bar Harbor resident Brynn Reese for third with Allen finishing in 7:24:14 and Reese following 20 seconds later.

MCW Westfield Ultra

A year ago, Ryan Hanna made his 100-milde debut at the MCW Westfield Ultra 24-hour race and earned the overall win with 107.2 miles. Hanna completed his second 100-miler in July 2024 when he finished the 100.7-mile race at the Notchview Ultra in Windsor, Mass.

Three weeks after Notchview, Hanna returned to the MCW Westfield Ultra for another crack at the event. Though he didn’t defend his title on tired legs, the 25-year-old from West Hatfield, Mass., still put up some big mileage. In the field of 34 runners, Hanna tied for 11th overall with 73.6 miles

Joe Crescenzo, 37, of Point Pleasant, N.J., was the lone runner to hit the 100-mile mark and earned the overall win. Kieran Williams, 27, of Iselin, N.J., was a distant second with 92.8 miles. Colleen Drahos, 40, of Randolph, N.J., was fifth overall and the first-place female with 86.4 miles.

A Louisiana Summer Night 10-hour

A large crowd of Louisiana residents gathered for the third annual A Louisiana Summer Night 10-hour ultra on Aug. 3-4 in Lafayette, La. Squeezed alongside the 103 locals were five out-of-state runners. Just one of those five hailed from New England: Sean Miller.

Miller, 25, of Melrose, Mass., chose the event for his ultramarathon debut. He and his fellow runners took on a 3.8-mile loop course that consisted of a blend of singletrack dirt, gravel roads, and wooden boardwalks. As the race’s name implied, they ran through the night. The race began at 8 p.m., and runners traveled the loop as many times as they could until sunrise.

Miller had a strong night of running and tied for sixth overall with a 41.8-mile effort. John Hitter, 46, of Lafayette, La., and Christopher Ange, 29, of Sulphur, La., tied for the win with 53.2 miles apiece. Hannah Huppi, 35, of New Orleans, La., topped the women’s field with 45.6 miles and tied for third overall.

*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.