In Part I of this week’s roundup, we caught up with New Englanders at five ultramarathons in the West. Here in Part II, we close out our coverage of the Sept. 19-21 weekend by returning to the East Coast, starting in New Hampshire where a number of New Englanders ventured to the White Mountains for a challenging day on the Kilkenny Ridge. Additionally, we catch up with results from the Wild Goose Trail Festival in New Jersey, and the Georgia Jewel.

Kilkenny Ridge Race

The White Mountains were calling, and several dozen runners from New England and beyond accepted the challenge to take on the seventh edition of the Kilkenny Ridge Race on Sept. 20-21 in Stark, N.H. The event took runners on an adventure along the Kilkenny Ridge Trail that runs between Stark and Jefferson, summiting 4,000-foot peaks Mount Cabot and Mount Waumbek along the way. Ultrarunners opted for a full out-and-back run with 15,000 feet of climbing, while others took on a one-way run with 7,500 feet of gain.

Thirty-four runners attempted the out-and-back run, and 28 finished within 24 hours. Sam Locke, 30, of Goffstown, N.H., led all runners in 13:01:33, winning with a 10-minute cushion on runner-up Nicolas Rostwrowski, 27, of Montreal, Quebec, who followed in 13:11:08. Max Perozek, 25, of Cambridge, Mass., was a distant third in 13:34:46. Top female Heidi Allan, 25, of Phoenix, Ariz., was fifth overall in 13:57:54. She was joined on the podium by Allison Sullivan, 39, of Bartlett, N.H. (17:03:20) and Elizabeth Faye, 42, of Randolph, Mass. (17:54:37).

An additional 46 runners completed the event’s 25-mile, one-way journey. Shane Skiff, 22, of Williston, Vt., led all runners in 4:56:48, fending off a fierce challenge from 26-year-old Brian Brennan of Stoneham, Mass., who was second in 4:57:06. Peter Bonito, 40, of Westmoreland, N.H., was third in 5:09:39. Emily Fisk, 37, of Bridgeport, Pa., was the first-place female in 6:42:41, followed by Caitlin Murphy, 26, of Lebanon, N.H. (6:56:04), and Aneta Stoker, 32, of New York, N.Y. (7:26:57).

Wild Goose Trail Festival

A pair of New England ultrarunners earned victories at the fourth annual Wild Goose Trail Festival on Sept. 20-21 in Hewitt, N.J. The event offered several ultra options, including 36-hour, 100-mile, 100K, 50-mile and 50K offerings on the trails of Wawayanda State Park using three separate trail loops on a mix of terrain.

Regional winners hailed from Connecticut and New Hampshire at the 100K and 50K distances. Both Rebecca Doring and Tyler Sheedy brought home victories in their respective races.

In the 100K, Doring finished fifth overall, but the 36-year-old from Cornwall Bridge, Conn., was the first-place female in 13:08:28. Tsutomo Bessho, 47, of Glen Ridge, N.J., led the male field in 10:48:29. Other New Englanders among the 49 100K finishers were 31-year-old Ryan Quick of Griswold, Conn., who placed sixth in 13:39:08; 28-year-old Shaina Perry of Worcester, Mass., who was the third-place female finisher and eighth overall in 14:09:05; and 40-year-old Daniel Hrobak of Merrimack, N.H., who finished in 25:59:14.

Meanwhile, Sheedy didn’t just top the male field in the 50K race, he won the whole thing. The 21-year-old from Dover, N.H., dominated the race and won in 3:41:27. Top female Jeanne Mack, 35, of Brooklyn, N.Y., was fourth in 4:19:03. They led a field of 66 finishers, which included seven more New Englanders. James Hoffman, 31, and Lauren Hoffman, 27, both of Newton, Mass., ran together and finished 14th and 15th overall in 5:39:54 and 5:40:10, respectively. Scott Samuel, 51, of Watertown, Mass., was 20th in 6:13:41. Lukasz Czyz, 42, of Stamford, Conn., followed 10 minutes later in 6:23:23, placing 28th. Additional finishers were Cristen Meehl, 35, of Norwalk, Conn. (49th, 7:28:58); Jacqueline Czyz, 36, of Stamford, Conn. (50th, 7:29:04); and Cherie Bilbie, 50, of Ellington, Conn. (59th, 8:14:27).

No New Englanders were among the 32 finishers of the event’s 100-mile race, though a few completed the 50-miler and the 36-hour runs.

Two New Englanders were among the 53 finishers of the 50-mile race, with 46-year-old Matt Sicotte of Georgia, Vt., placing 11th overall in 10:47:34 and Kim Luciano, 59, of Colebrook, Conn., finishing 47th in 16:33:55. Benjamin Copp, 33, of Fair Lawn, N.J., and Stephanie Lewis, 35, of Milton, Del., were the top male and female finishers in 8:07:44 and 10:10:23, respectively.

Additionally, 30 runners took part in the event’s 36-hour race with five achieving the 100-mile mark. Two New Englanders were among the field, with Jeffrey Ray, 41, of New London, N.H., and Lee Zarger, 71, of New Milford, Conn., completing 37 miles apiece.

The Georgia Jewel

Keith Hoffman completed the Georgia Jewel 50-miler in both 2020 and 2021. This year, he returned and tackled its main event: the 100-miler. Hoffman, 34, of Newtown, Conn., took part in the 15th annual event on Sept. 19-20 in Dalton, Ga. He and his fellow runners took on an out-and-back course on the Pinhoti Trail’s runnable singletrack dirt. Of the 49 runners who finished within 39 hours, Hoffman placed 17th overall in 29:30:15. It was his third 100-mile finish of the year, having previously completed the Hellbender 100 in North Carolina in May, followed by the Angeles Crest 100 in California in August. Hoffman was the lone New Englander among the 100-miler finishers at Georgia Jewel. Male and female champions Blake Hughes, 41, of Summerville, Ga., and Holly Adams, 47, of Marietta, Ga., were the lone sub-24-hour finishers. They placed 1-2 overall, with Hughes finishing in 22:27:57 and Adams in 23:39:32.

While no New Englanders earned places on the podium in the 100-miler, one did in the event’s 35-mile race. Brian Connelly, 37, of Boston, Mass., was among the fastest of the 79 finishers. He placed second in the male field and fifth overall in 7:14:07. Taylor Hitt, 29, of Cumming, Ga., led all runners and clocked the second-fastest time by a male in course history, winning in 5:32:21. Top female Deanna Doane, 27, of Jacksonville Beach, Fla., placed second overall and set a new female course record with her 5:40:04 performance.

No New Englanders were among the 71 finishers of the event’s 50-mile race.

*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.