After several jam-packed weekends of ultramarathon racing in March, April began with a quiet slate for New England runners on the national scene. That may be because several raced the Mt. Toby Ultra and Trail Race in Massachusetts, or because several other ultras are on the local slate in the weeks ahead. Still, runners spent the April 5-6 taking on ultramarathons in North Carolina, California and Georgia. We have them all covered, starting with Crystal Ross’s stellar performance in her return to the Umstead 100.

Umstead 100

The first time Crystal Ross ran the Umstead 100-mile Endurance Run was in March 2021. It was her 100-mile debut, and she finished 14th overall and fourth in the female field in 22:09:54. Fast forward four years, and Ross returned to Umstead for another crack at the course. She delivered a strong performance that was both strangely similar and wildly different at the 30th annual event on April 5-6 in Raleigh, N.C.

Ross, 44, of Carver, Mass., once again completed eight loops of the course through William B. Umstead State Park, easily beating the 30-hour time limit. Of the 291 runners who started the race, 128 successfully did so. Though she was mighty fast during her debut on the course, she was even faster this time around – about 2 1/2 hours faster. Ross turned in a personal-best 100-mile time of 19:35:18, but she tied her finishing places from four years earlier, once again finishing 14th overall and fourth place in the female field.

Ross was one of three New England residents among the 128 finishers; two Connecticut women joined her. Stephanie Tang, 42, beat the 24-hour mark and placed 31st overall in 22:27:28. Additionally, 42-year-old Lauren DeFrancesco battled and was the final runner to beat the cutoff, finishing in 29:51:47. Brian Zickefoose, 43, of North Carolina led all runners in 15:28:22 while 39-year-old Kate Pallardy of New Jersey was the top female and ninth overall finisher in 18:16:01.

Several other runners were credited with 50-mile finishes, including Connecticut residents Kim Kupfer, 44 (12:41:46), and Fred Murolo, 68 (18:36:05).

American River 50

Tim Kervin picked a West Coast classic for his first ultramarathon. Kervin, 20, of Newton, Mass., took on the American River 50-Mile Endurance Run on Saturday, April 5, in Folsom, Calif. The race challenged runners with a point-to-point course from Folsom Point to Auburn, Calif., that amassed 6,300 feet of climbing along the way. Of the 136 runners who started the race, 123 finished within 14 1/2 hours. Kervin placed 78th overall in 12:43:29.

Timothy Smith, 44, of Fairfax, Calif., and Jennifer Sunahara, 35, of Roseville, Calif., led the male and female fields in 7:20:47 and 8:58:49, respectively.

Bootlegger

No New Englanders were among the participants in the third annual Bootlegger 100-miler on April 5-6 in Flovilla, Georgia, though the region was represented by one runner in the event’s inaugural 40-mile distance offering.

Charles Broderick made the race his inaugural ultramarathon attempt, and the 28-year-old from Sherborn, Mass., had to complete the 20-mile loop course twice. He was part of a crowd of 41 runners who started the race, but just 30 ultimately finished within 13 hours. Broderick ran well throughout and finished in the middle of the field, placing 16th overall in 9:34:52. Xavier Villatoro, 28, of Atlanta, Ga., led all runners in 7:00:46, with 30-year-old Connor Skelton of Dunwoody, Ga., three minutes behind in 7:03:32, followed by top female Emily Ansick, 40, of Auburn, Ala., in 7:04:48.

*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.