The ultrarunning scene was hopping in New England to close out September. A trio of events took place in Massachusetts – the MetroWest Backyard Ultra, and a pair of new events, the Race for the Refuge and the BURCS Notchview Invitational. We’ll have those covered in separate recaps, but there was plenty of additional action in the region, including the classic Vermont 50, and the Farm to Farm Ultra in Maine. We have both of those covered, as well as ultra results in Georgia and Colorado, in this week’s roundup.

Vermont 50

Sean MacDonald has enjoyed some early success in his ultrarunning career, finishing second at the Catamount 50K and fourth at the Vermont 100K in 2024. He finally garnered his big breakthrough a few weeks ago when he won the 50K at the TARC Fall Classic. He added a second win to his resume at the 32nd running of the Vermont 50 on Sunday, Sept. 28, in West Windsor, Vt. MacDonald, 28, of Brighton, Mass., took on the event’s 50K race which was mostly on dirt roads, gravel roads, and dirt trails with 8,900 feet of climbing. He dominated from the start and rolled to victory by well over an hour in 7:19:34. Andrew MacGibbon, 29, of Hartland, Vt., was a distant second in 8:38:42. MacGibbon had to fend off a strong challenge from 33-year-old Alexander Boynton of Keene, N.H., who was third in 8:41:44. Alex Sardanis, 30, of New York, N.Y., was fourth in 8:47:05. Matthew Zanchi, 36, of Warner, N.H., was the fifth-place male and sixth overall finisher in 8:51:07.

Top female Emily Dooley, 32, of Philadelphia, Pa., nearly clipped Sardanis, but ultimately finished fifth overall in 8:47:20. She was joined on the female podium by Bess Ritter, 38, of Sharon, Vt., and Heidi Caldwell, 33, of Lyme, N.H., who finished in 9:13:54 and 9:23:21, respectively. Vermont residents Ashley Hensel-Browning, 39, of Perkinsville, and Dylan Broderick, 34, of Middlesex, were fourth and fifth in 9:37:36 and 9:42:54, respectively.

The top 20 overall finishers completed the race in less than 10 hours, while a total of 77 runners finished within the 12-hour time limit.

An additional 139 runners finished the 50K race and its 5,600 feet of climbing within 10 1/2 hours. Nobody was faster than Ben Quatromoni. The 37-year-old from Newport, R.I., has won or finished on the podium of nearly every ultramarathon he has raced since his debut at the Midstate Massive Ultra-Trail 50-miler in 2020, which he won. Most recently, Quatromoni won the Jigger Johnson 50-miler in New Hampshire in August. He added another victory to his resume by winning the Vermont 50K in 4:29:28, his first time racing on the course. Darius Parker, 21, of Hinesburg, Vt., was second in 4:45:47, followed by first-place female Sandy Spitler, 37, of Newport, R.I., who was third overall in 4:47:33. Multi-time Vermont 50 champion Brian Rusiecki rounded out the male podium. The 46-year-old from South Deerfield, Mass., was the fourth and final sub-5-hour finisher in 4:59:17.

Joining Spitler on the female 50K podium were Mackenzie Hall, 26, of Manchester, N.H., who was sixth overall in 5:05:41, and Sophia Etienne, 31, of Waitsfield, Vt., who was eighth overall in 5:37:27.

Farm to Farm Ultra

Brian Axelrod ran away from the field and ran away with a victory at the Farm to Farm Ultra on Sunday, Sept. 28, in Freeport, Maine. The event offered 50-mile and 50K races on its traditional course, consisting of out-and-backs on roads and a little bit of trail between Wolfe’s Neck Farm in Freeport and Crystal Spring Farm in nearby Brunswick.

Axelrod, 36, and of Chelsea, Mass., and his fellow 50-mile races had to complete three out-and-backs. Sixteen runners started the race and 11 ultimately finished within 11 hours. Axelrod finished with plenty of time to spare, winning in 7:08:06. Patrick Clark, 21, of Monona, Wisc., was a distant second in 8:20:17, followed by Tom Simones, 41, of Vassalboro, Maine, in 8:32:07. Karen Deyesso, 47, of Scarborough, Maine, was the top female finisher in 10:00:32, followed by Morgan Ward, 37, of Guilford, Maine, in 10:29:54.

An additional 20 runners attempted the 50K, which consisted of two out-and-backs of the course, and 17 finished within eight hours. Sapan Bhatt, 36, of Waterville, Maine, rolled to victory in a course-record time of 3:32:48. He was followed by Daniel Barry, 30, of Dover, Mass., in 4:06:00, and Amit Oza, 42, of Cape Elizabeth, Maine, in 4:11:25. Kimberly Fischer, 38, of Portland, Maine, was the first-place female in 5:10:22, followed by Kristyn Kleman, 35, of Bristol, Maine, in 5:16:29, and Bethany Charles, 36, of Penobscot, Maine, in 6:03:52.

Yeti 100-Mile Endurance Run

Six New England residents earned finishers’ belt buckles for their efforts at the 11th annual Yeti 100-Mile Endurance Runs on Sept. 26-27 in Abingdon, Va. They took on a course that consisted of out-and-backs on a flat, nontechnical rail trail.

Sarah Lathum was the lone New Englander to make it her first 100-miler. The 42-year-old from Newbury, Mass., placed 117th overall in 27:41:57. Meanwhile, 39-year-old Erika Hamel of Nashua, N.H., earned her third straight finish on the course–and fastest yet–in 26:14:58. Other New Englanders among the finishers were Dan Knauss, 39, of Stockbridge, Mass. (80th, 24:31:18); Daniel Whitmoyer, 40, of Sunapee, N.H. (86th, 25:06:30); Rob Gallagher, 44, of Scituate, Mass. (126th, 28:20:05); and Ali Lopez, 63, of Shelburne, Vt. (130th, 28:30:33).

April Bailey, 48, of Cary, N.C., earned the overall win in 15:42:00. Her time was the second-fastest ever on the course by a female, and just 19 minutes shy of the record. Top male Wayne Capacillo, 35, of Frederick, Md., finished second overall in 16:44:24. Of the 230 runners who started the race, 160 finished within the 30-hour time limit.

Crested Butte Ultra

The last time Lynnsey Martin raced an ultra, she posted a big number. Specifically, she put up 89.3 miles in the 24-hour race at the Notchview Ultra in July, finishing first in the female field. Martin returned to an ultra starting line at the eighth edition of the Crested Butte Ultra and had another big performance on Saturday, Sept. 27, in Crested Butte, Colo.

The event, which takes place on singletrack trails in the Gunnison National Forest, offered 50-mile and 55K distances. Martin opted for the 50-miler, and the 27-year-old from Cambridge, Mass., finished 31st overall – 11th in the female field – in 11:34:55.

Martin was one of 61 finishers within 15 hours. Sydney Welch, 28, of Arvada, Colo., was the overall winner and set a new female course record in 9:01:49. Top male Brennan Fife, 28, of Denver, Colo., was second overall in 9:07:33.

Another 187 runners finished the event’s 55K race within 11 hours. Three New England residents were among the finishers. Trey Johnson, 24, of Meredith, N.H., placed 100th in 7:51:20 for his first ultra. Bailey Thran, 26, of Boston, Mass., was 116th in 8:07:46 for her first ultra. Additionally, 29-year-old Jimmy Sullivan of Stowe, Vt., was 121st in 8:11:06. Sam Baker, 27, of Boulder, Colo., and Ana McCabe, 24, of Janesville, Minn., were the top male and female finishers in 4:48:25 and 5:11:16, respectively.

*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.