The holidays are nearly upon us, and the ultrarunning calendar was accommodating with a pretty light load of races across North America during the Dec. 20-22 weekend. One New England resident took time to take on a course out West. Maggie Swanson made her ultrarunning debut, and she gets this edition of the roundup all to herself.

Woodside Ramble 50K

Maggie Swanson has spent plenty of time on West Coast trails during the past two years. After graduating from Middlebury College in Vermont in 2023, she headed cross-country and trekked the 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail. In June 2024, Swanson made her trail-running debut with a top-10 finish in the female field at the Headwaters Trail Run 50K in Mt. Shasta, Calif. The 24-year-old from Milton, Mass., then made her ultrarunning debut at the Woodside Ramble 50K on Saturday, Dec. 21, in Redwood City, Calif.

The 12th running of the event used a modified course due to fire damage in the area, so runners took on a multi-loop course in Huddart County Park that included around 5,850 feet of climbing. Swanson was up for the challenge. She finished 48th overall and eighth in the female field in 6:48:11.

Of the 86 runners who started the race, 75 finished within the 8-hour time limit. They were led by 30-year-old Adam Roder of Mill Valley, Calif., who led all runners in 4:23:08. He was followed by male runner-up Marcos Santibanes, 29, of Bakersfield, Calif., in 4:43:39. An unidentified runner from Mill Valley, Calif., topped the female field and finished sixth overall in 4:52:12. The top seven overall finishers completed the race in less than 5 hours.

*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.