A year ago, Jason Baker returned to his native Massachusetts and delivered a dandy of a homecoming performance at the Womp Romp 50K, setting a course record and becoming the first person to break the 4-hour mark. On Saturday, Oct. 25, Baker returned for another romp through Wompatuck State Park in Hingham, Mass., as the 27-year-old resident of Fort Collins, Colo., sought to defend his title.

Baker had plenty of company as he stood at the starting line on a chilly 39-degree morning, but the field of 110 starters quickly spread out once the race began. The temperature soon warmed to the mid-50s under partly cloudy skies, but Baker and a handful of other runners brought the heat as they ripped through the first of three loops of the course’s rolling hills and mostly wide trails, with a few miles of pavement sprinkled in.

Baker had to battle hard at the fifth annual event. Matthew Rogers, 36, of Pawtucket, R.I., set an aggressive pace in loop one and led Baker by 30 seconds. Jack Bailey, 46, of Medway, Mass., followed two minutes back, with 31-year-old Eli Converse of Cambridge, Mass., another minute off the pace in fourth. Rogers continued to lead at the end of loop two, though by less than a minute, while Bailey and Converse followed seven minutes behind.

After two laps of close racing, the wheels came off for Rogers during loop three while Baker stepped on the gas and pulled away. By the time he crossed the finish line in 3:54:49, Baker had a new course record to his name, eclipsing his previous mark of 3:58:54. Converse surged to second in 4:02:06 with the fourth-fastest time in course history. Bailey finished a strong third in 4:09:26 and earned the fifth-fastest time ever. Though Rogers slipped to fourth, his time of 4:18:08 was the eighth-fastest in course history. Tom White, 33, and Nicholas Menzies, 46, of Boston, Mass., followed in 4:18:08 and 4:18:53, respectively, for the ninth- and 10th-fastest times ever. Ryan Grimaldi, 39, of Milton, Mass., and Tim Finocchio, 47, of Holbrook, Mass., raced home moments later in 4:20:49 and 4:21:01, respectively, to round out a speedy top eight.

Baker wasn’t the only record-setter in the 50K. Hingham native Pria Parker also turned in a big performance as the 22-year-old finished 15th overall and set a nonbinary division course record in 4:41:05. It was Parker’s ultramarathon debut.

Though the female course record survived, the leaderboard received a jolt from Holly Proulx and Kelsey Gilbert. The duo raced close for the first loop before Proulx opened up a six-minute advantage during loop two. Proulx, 26, of Fort Collins, Colo., went on to win in 5:00:46 with the second-fastest time by a female in course history. Only Clorice Reinhardt’s 2023 winning time of 4:44:51 was better. Gilbert, 27, of Hanson, Mass., was second in 5:15:06 with the seventh-fastest time by a female in course history. Taylor Verville, 35, of Tiverton, R.I., completed the female podium in 5:30:36. She was followed closely by Danielle Mason, 53, and Briana McGowan, 38, both of Scituate, Mass., in 5:35:31 and 5:37:52, respectively.

Ninety-six runners finished the 50K within nine hours.

Howes, Riedy Repeat as 10-Mile Champions

Familiar faces stood atop the male and female podiums in the 10-mile race. Duncan Howes, 32, and Emily Riedy, 32, both of Boston, Mass., successfully defended their titles from 2024 while 111 runners finished the race within five hours. 

Howes was pushed hard from start to finish by Ryan Nolette, but Howes ultimately prevailed in 1:10:55, a nearly two-minute improvement on his 1:12:42 performance from a year ago. Howe’s effort earned him a new course record (winning times from 2021 were faster, but the event has used a different course since 2022). Nolette, 38, of Plymouth, Mass., was a close second in 1:11:25 with the second-fastest time in course history. Brian Connelly, 37, of Boston, Mass., was third in 1:16:54, followed by Adam Berger, 29, of Jamaica Plain, Mass., and Dave Kennedy, 51, of Marshfield, Mass., in 1:17:36 and 1:17:39, respectively.

Riedy also defended her title, though she didn’t quite match her course record time of 1:22:52 from a year ago. She was pushed by Erin O’Toole, but Riedy ultimately won in 1:23:44. O’Toole, 41, of Biddeford, Maine, followed less than a minute behind in 1:24:35. Diana Laenen, 25, of Quincy, Mass., completed the female podium in 1:27:56. Sophie Spaulding, 24, of Scituate, Mass., and Megan Allinson, 35, of Marshfield, Mass., were next to finish in 1:30:14 and 1:30:57.

Howes wasn’t the only runner to set a course record in the 10-miler. The nonbinary record was also broken by 39-year-old MJ Szulga of Northborough, Mass., who completed the race in 2:12:52.