Ultramarathon action was intense in the Northeast during the Sept. 13-15 weekend, but a handful of New Englanders also headed West to tackle tough ultras. A few stopped in the Midwest to take on the Cowboy 200, highlighted by Cole Crosby’s course record-setting performance, while others ventured further West to Montana for the rugged Rut 50K. We have both events covered in Part II of this week’s roundup.

Cowboy 200

Injury and illness have plagued much of Cole Crosby’s 2024 ultramarathon racing season, but he shook off those frustrations with a remarkable redemption run at the third annual Cowboy 200 and 100-mile ultras on Sept. 13-14 in Norfolk, Neb.

The Cowboy 200 takes place on the Cowboy Trail, offering runners a point-to-point challenge on a flat, crushed limestone rails-to-trails path from Norfolk to Valentine, Neb., passing over more than 200 bridges along the way before finishing at Bolo Beer Company. Seventy-eight runners started the race, and 45 ultimately finished within the 84-hour time limit. Crosby, 35, of Cranston, R.I., did so faster than anyone in event history. The top three men all finished in less than 50 hours and all broke the previous course record, but Crosby became the owner of the new course standard with his dominant 41:47:19 performance. Hans Van Zanten, 50, of Kansas City, Mo., was second in 45:54:16, and Todd Nott, 60, of Plattsmouth, Neb., was third in 47:11:06. Shannon Ellis, 48, of Ann Arbor, Mich., finished ninth overall and was the first-place female in 59:18:34.

All three New Englanders who started the race ultimately finished. In addition to Crosby, 60-year-old Gregory Lowe of Newbury, Mass., placed 25th in 73:26:47, while 64-year-old Nick Stoneman of Arrowsic, Maine, was 41st in 82:51:17.

The event also included a 100-mile race on the second half of the 200-mile course with a 32-hour time limit. No New Englanders were among the 43 runners who took on the 100-miler. Of those who started, just 23 finished, led by 28-year-old Austin Bade of Roca, Neb., who won in 18:48:46 and missed the course record by just seven seconds. Haley Mattison, 35, of Norfolk, Neb., finished fourth overall and was the first-place female in 23:16:01.

The Rut Mountain Runs

The Rut 50K is one of the toughest mountain races in the West, with altitude, 10,000 feet of climbing, and technical trails. Hundreds of runners were up to the challenge on Sunday, Sept. 15, in Big Sky, Mont., and 14 New England residents were among the 554 finishers within the 13-hour time limit.

Defending champion Michelino Sunseri, 32, of Driggs, Idaho, maintained his crown with a victory in 5:01:15. Klaire Rhodes, 26, of Anchorage, Alaska, topped the women’s field and placed 10th overall in 5:45:29 for a new women’s course record.

Christopher Connell, 29, of Cambridge, Mass., led the New England contingent with a 112th place overall finish in 7:55:07. Joining him in the top half of the field were Brett Stanton, 27, of Portsmouth, R.I. (238th, 9:06:53) and Ingrid Klinkenberg, 27, of Burlington, Vt. (272nd, 9:19:27).

Additional New Englanders who finished included Rachel Brown, 31, of Portland, Maine (311th, 9:53:23); Joe Miles, 61, of Manchester Center, Vt. (315th, 9:39:17); Chris Chapruet, 32, of Saugus, Mass. (333rd, 9:45:05); Charles Morenus, 31, of Essex Junction, Vt. (335th, 9:46:34); Gregory Goldstein, 37, of Needham, Mass. (341st, 9:48:47); David Hollenbaugh, 55, of Boston, Mass. (419th, 10:29:05); Paul Viscontini, 41, of Stamford, Conn. (432nd, 10:41:52); David Stoffregen, 56, of Salem, Mass. (436th, 10:42:55); Molly Mahoney, 32, of Somerville, Mass. (450th, 10:53:26); and Zachary Wakefield, 25, of Brighton, Mass. (468th, 11:04:36).

*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.