The Nov. 14-16 weekend saw a months-long flurry of trail ultramarathons in New England come to a close with the Trail Animals Running Club’s TARCkey Trot 6-Hour Ultra in Massachusetts. We’ll have that covered in a separate recap, but here in the roundup we’ll catch up on how runners from New England did at ultras beyond the region. We begin in Virginia, where several runners took on a time-based race and Maine’s Shannon Johnson earned a place on the podium for a 100-mile performance. Then we head to North Carolina and Utah to close out the report.

Seven Trails Endurance Run

Eight New Englanders threw down ultramarathon mileage at the fourth annual Seven Trails Endurance Run 30-hour ultra on Nov. 15-16 in Damascus, Va. Runners took on a 7.7-mile out-and-back course and received credit for each out-and-back completed.

140 runners took part, and the top 17 all completed 100 miles or more and 121 logged ultramarathon mileage. Shannon Johnson was among those who achieved 100 miles. Johnson, 43, of Windham, Maine, was one of five women who completed 100.1 miles, tying for the new female course record. Dan Dingess, 49, of McDonough, Ga., was the only runner who went farther. He completed 107.8 miles for the overall win.

Dana Lesniak, 49, of Lisbon Falls, Maine, and Scott Frasca, 64, of Sidney, Maine, were among the runners who tied for 30th place with 61.6 miles. Deborah Giroux, 60, of Falmouth, Maine, finished 53.9 miles and tied for 43rd. Jeffrey Ray, 42, of New London, N.H., completed 46.2 miles and tied for 65th place, while 62-year-old Lynn Frasca of Sidney, Maine, finished 38.5 miles for 78th place. Additionally, 62-year-old Reto Meier of Watertown, Conn., and 58-year-old Greg Wolodkin of Sutton, Mass., each completed 30.8 miles and tied for 93rd place.

Looking Glass 100K

Nathan Rutenbeck ran his first ultramarathon in 2020 when he completed the Antelope Canyon 50-miler in Arizona. More than five years later, Rutenteck returned to an ultra starting line when he completed the 50K at the Megunticook Trail Festival in Maine. He built upon that effort two months later when, on Saturday, Nov. 15, he completed his longest ultra to date at the Looking Glass 100K in Pisgah, N.C.

The third annual event took Rutenbeck and his fellow runners on a tour of the Pisgah Forest on a mix of smooth, rolling singletrack dirt, technical singletrack trails, doubletrack trails, gravel and pavement., with several climbs thrown in that added up to 10,600 feet of vertical gain. Of the 178 runners who started the race, 140 ultimately finished within the 20-hour time limit. Rutenbeck, 44, of Brooklin, Maine, was the lone New Englander among the finishers, placing 92nd in 16:23:09. Cameron Brown, 29, of Yanceyville, N.C., and Niki Cochran, 40, of Takoma Park, Md., finished 1-4 overall and set new male and female course records in 9:31:55 and 10:47:56, respectively.

Dead Horse Ultra

Several New England residents squeezed in a final ultramarathon before the Thanksgiving holiday when they headed west to take part in the 11th running of the Dead Horse Ultra 50-mile and 50K races on Saturday, Nov. 15, in Moab, Utah.

Three New Englanders were among the 206 finishers of the 50-miler. Chris Carmody, 43, of Rowley, Mass., finished 53rd overall in 9:28:56; Matthew Howard, 36, of Dorchester, Mass., finished 122nd in 10:53:59 in his ultra debut; and Matthew Della Bitta, 58, of New Canaan, Conn., was 175th in 12:01:18. Gabe Joyes, 40, of Lander, Wyo., led all runners in 6:38:59 while 24-year-old Maddison Armonda of Salt Lake City, Utah, was the top female and 14th overall in 7:59:10.

Another 573 runners completed the 50K race, including 16 New Englanders. Garrett Higgins, 25, of Saco, Maine, led the way for the New England contingent by placing 41st in 4:47:33. Benjamin Draper, 37, of Bridgewater, Mass., was another top performer, finishing 85th in 5:07:46. Yong Yuan, 59, of Woodbridge, Conn., placed 117th in 5:22:47; Eleanor Demmons, 29, of Rockport, Maine, was 166th in 5:39:09; and Ellen Jopling, 31, of Melrose, Mass., squeezed into the top 200, placing 193rd in 5:49:57. Molly Kempel, 40, of Needham, Mass., finished 333rd in 6:38:16. Meg Clews, 56, of Peaks Island, Maine, was 436th in 7:25:44. Claire Perry, 28, and Julia Stevenson, 27, both of New Haven, Conn., ran together and tied for 442nd in 7:30:05. Just behind them, the trio of Caroline Borden, 27, Elana Straus, 29, and Sean Mullane, 29, also all from New Haven, Conn., tied for 444th in 7:30:06. Shortly after the New Haven crew completed the race, Anne Moller, 50, of Brookline, Mass., finished 472nd in 7:41:58. Brittany Wiley, 33, of Shelburne, Vt., finished 516th in 8:13:42 Micaela Moore, 27, and Jennifer Nappilanutter, 50, both of Lunenburg, Mass., tied for 530th in 8:22:14. Additionally, Caroline Hoffman, 34, of East Greenwich, R.I., finished 551st in 8:43:39.

Anders Hekkli, 22, of Gunnison, Colo., and Carth Arnold, 35, of Paonia, Colo., were the top male and female finishers in 3:07:21 and 3:56:14, respectively.

Hallucination

Chelsea Peterson had a big weekend at the 10th running of the Hallucination Ultra on Nov. 14-16 in Johns Island, S.C. The time-based event offered 34-hour, 24-hour, 12-hour and 6-hour races on a 2.6-mile cross country-style loop course, and runners received credit for completed loops within their chosen time limit.

Peterson opted for the 34-hour race, and the 36-year-old from Portland, Maine, was among the top performers. She pushed hard throughout and was one of six runners who surpassed the 100-mile mark. Peterson completed 101.4 miles in 33:59:14, placing fourth overall and third place in the female field. It was Peterson’s second time completing 100 miles and the first time she has gone the distance since finishing the 2019 Vermont 100.

Jared Matsunaga, 51, of Rowland Heights, Calif., led all runners with 104 miles in 30:11:34, topping the male field. Female champion Amy Lambert, 61, of Kalamazoo, Mich., was second overall with 101.4 miles in 28:56:31, followed by 47-year-old Kristin Wallace of Columbia, S.C., whose 101.4-mile effort was completed in 29:45:00. Additionally, 26-year-old Caley Lippincott of Yarmouth, Maine, finished 28.6 miles and finished 35th in the 38-runner field.

Peterson wasn’t the lone New Englander in the 34-hour race. Fellow Portland resident Erin Abraham, 41, placed seventh overall and fourth in the female field with 96.4 miles in 33:52:31.

New England was also well represented in the 12-hour race by 40-year-old Patrick Ronai of Revere, Mass., who had a big day that ended with a podium finish. Ronai completed 54.6 miles which was good for third place overall in the field of 20 runners and second in the male field. Top female Traci Finley, 48, of Mount Pleasant, S.C., earned the overall win with 65.0 miles, and male champion Ted Melchers, 40, of Charleston, S.C., was second with 62.4 miles.

No New England residents were among the 19-runner field in the 24-hour race or the 29-runner field in the 6-hour 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.