The July 25-27 weekend was jam-packed with ultramarathon races in the Northeast, and we have them covered here in Part II of this week’s roundup. A handful of New Englanders raced the Squatchy Surprise in New Jersey, and many more took on the Moosalamoo 36-miler and Magnificent Bastards Last Person Standing race in Vermont. But we begin in Rhode Island where the inaugural Ocean State Ultra crowned its first champion.

Ocean State Ultra

Rhode Island kicked off its second trail 100-mile opportunity with the running of the inaugural Ocean State Ultra on July 26-27 in West Greenwich. The new event–brought to fruition by race director and ultrarunner Darlene Gaudet–offered a 100-mile race as well as 12-hour and 6-hour time-based events. The three offerings all took place on a 10-mile loop course at the Big River Management Area with a mix of trail, desert sand and pavement and around 400 feet of elevation gain per loop.

Twenty-one runners attempted the 100-mile distance, and six ultimately finished. Jen Higgins led all runners. Higgins entered with multiple strong ultra showings to her credit; she won the Cross-Connecticut Run for Mental Health Awareness 56-miler and Tesla Hertz 100K in 2024. Higgins, 45, of Old Saybrook, Conn., dominated the race and won handily in 21:50:00, setting both the initial course record and female course record. Veteran ultrarunner Jason Summerfield, 42, of Dover, N.H., was second overall and the top male finisher in 23:30:00. It was Summerfield’s 10th time finishing a 100-mile race. Louis Ferreras, 35, of Warwick, R.I., was third overall and the second-place male in 24:34:00. It was Ferreras’ first 100-mile finish.

The final three 100-mile finishers were veterans of the distance, and each recently completed a run of 100 miles or longer. Billy Richards, 43, of Bay Shore, N.Y., was fourth overall in 26:39:00. He completed the C&O Canal 100 in April. In fifth place was 61-year-old Dipak Bhattacharyya of Fairfax, Va., in 30:27:00. A veteran of many 100-milers, Bhattacharyya finished the Infinitus 100 in May and the Last Annual Heart of the South Road Race 400-miler in Georgia in June. Rounding out the finishers was female runner-up Jacky Lee, 52, of Brooklyn, N.Y., in 32:34:00. Lee was just five weeks removed from finishing the TGNY Running Exposition 100-miler.

A dozen runners raced the 12-hour event, with 35-year-old David Whitman of Burlington, Vt., leading all runners with 55 miles in 11:17:00. Top female Deirdre Keane, 36, of New York, N.Y., was second overall with 50 miles. Gregory Dorchies, 35, of Jericho, Vt., was third overall and the male runner-up with 40 miles, followed by fourth-place finisher and female runner-up Annette Florczak, 51, of Roslindale, Mass., who completed 30 miles in 7:21:36. Gabrielle Lindstrom, 26, of Holbrook, N.Y., and Carolyn Shreck, 53, of Hampton, N.H., followed with 30 miles apiece in 7:38:00 and 8:16:24, respectively.

Of the 26 runners who took part in the 6-hour race, 12 completed 30 miles or more. Nicholas Belanger, 33, of Providence, R.I., and Walker O’Dell each finished 35 miles with Belanger doing so in 5:10 and Walker in 5:14:00. Antonio Galvao, 36, of Pawtucket, R.I., was third with 30 miles in 4:37:48. Top female finishers Caitlin Barotz, 23, of New York, N.Y., and Tricia Roland, 45, of Irmo, S.C., each finished 30 miles, Barotz in 5:10:00 and Roland in 5:52:26. Avery Gaffney, 49, of Milton, Mass., was the third-place female with 25 miles in 5:48:00.

Moosalamoo Ultra

The Moosalamoo Ultra 36-miler throws all the best that Vermont has to offer at runners – long climbs, technical footing, flowing singletrack, stinging nettles, and mountain views. The event was back for its 14th edition on Saturday, July 26, in Goshen, Vt., and runners once again took on the challenging course and its 5,000+ feet of climbing in the Green Mountain National Forest.

Forty-six runners finished within 12 hours, led by a former runner-up who earned his place atop the podium. A Goshen local, 25-year-old Pavel Zhelnin, fended off 25-year-old Tyler McLaughlin of Portsmouth, N.H., in a race that came down to the wire. After placing second in 2022 in 6:13:11, Zhelnin crossed the finish line less than two minutes ahead of McLaughlin and won this year’s race in 5:33:46. McLaughlin was second in 5:35:33. Sam Wallis, 33, of Essex Junction, Vt., was a close third in 5:41:22. Two-time champion David Herr, 60, of Canaan, Vt., earned his fifth top-five finish in five tries, placing fourth in 6:15:49. Herr won the 2014 and 2015 editions of the race. Sean McGurn, 25, of Burlington, Vt., rounded out the top five in 6:19:41.

In the female field, 31-year-old Alison Hall of South Burlington, Vt., earned the victory by a 6-minute margin, finishing in 6:55:48. Alia Johnson, 30, of Bristol, Vt., was second in 7:01:49, while 40-year-old April Jelinek of Old Greenwich, Conn., was a distant third in 7:30:11. Rounding out the top five were Sydney Howland, 36, of Boston, Mass., and Marie-Claude Laforce, 41, of Ville De Terrebonne, Quebec, who finished in 8:06:50 and 8:21:59, respectively.

Magnificent Bastards Challenge

A new champion was crowned at the third annual Magnificent Bastards Challenge on Saturday, July 26, in Corinth, Vt. The Last Person Standing event again offered its unique format that gave runners 20 minutes to complete a 1-mile loop and 300 feet of climbing, and then return to the starting line to begin the next loop or face elimination.

A year after winning with a course-record 49 loops/miles, 41-year-old Kevin Ellis of Richmond, N.H., finished second with 46 loops/miles – the third-best tally in event history. Keith Nadeau, 36, of Rutland, Vt., was this year’s champion with 47 loops/miles. Top female Jodie Davis, 33, of Boston, Mass., finished third overall with 38 loops/miles, more than doubling her closest competitor in the female category. Other top performers included Harper Niven, 26, of Salem, N.H., and Griffin Weston, 25, of Burlington, Vt., who completed 35 and 31 loops/miles, respectively.

Additionally, 21 athletes took part in the Last Rucker Standing event, which gave runners 30 minutes to complete the 1-mile loop and 300 feet of climbing. Male ruckers had to carry a 35-pound pack and female ruckers had to carry a 25-pound pack. Two ruckers eclipsed the marathon distance, with 38-year-old Cam St-Pierre of Bromont, Quebec, leading the way with 30 loops/miles, and top female Marissa Theofanides, 40, of Nyack, N.Y., finishing second with 29 loops/miles.

Squatchy Surprise

An ultramarathon full of unpredictability tempted several runners to compete for 12 or 6 hours on the trails of South Mountain Reservation on Saturday, July 26, in Millburn, N.J. The Squatchy Surprise time-based ultras brought a bit of mystery to the trails, offering four different trail loops. Which loop each runner took depended on which color golf ball they drew. Upon completing each loop, they would draw again and run the loop that corresponded with the right colored golf ball.

71 runners took part in the 12-hour race, and 45 of them completed 30 miles or more. Tom Phillips, 35, of Neptune, N.J., led all runners with 65.0 miles within the time limit, followed by 39-year-old Joseph Volpe of Lakehurst, N.J., with 58.5 miles. Tracy Baker, 54, of Highland, N.Y., was the top female with 40.75 miles.

Tia Trudeau was the top New England resident in the field. The 25-year-old from Enfield, Conn., tied for second in the female field with 37.0 miles. Kim Luciano, 59, of Colebrook, Conn., also earned an ultramarathon finish with 30.25 miles.

Another 65 runners took part in the 6-hour race, with five surpassing the 30-mile mark. Mina Ebrahem, 36, of Abu Korkas, Egypt, led all runners with 33.0 miles. Top female Natasha Goss, 29, of Brooklyn, N.Y., was fifth overall with 30.5 miles.

*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.