While most New Englanders were making final preparations for a record-setting snowstorm to engulf the region, a handful of ultrarunners escaped to other parts of the country to pursue big mileage. They ventured to nearby New York, as well as to West Virginia, Georgia, Florida and Nevada to take on point-to-point and multi-loop courses at a variety of venues. No New Englander had a better weekend than Maine resident Stephen Kerr who earned the overall win at the Swamp 50K in Florida. He was joined in the top five by Connecticut’s Howie Breinan, giving New England a strong presence at the front of the field. Their efforts lead off this edition of the roundup.

Swamp 50K

Stephen Kerr kicked off his 2026 ultrarunning season with a victory at the 11th annual Swamp 50K on Saturday, Feb. 21, in Palm Coast, Fla. Kerr, 34, of Portland, Maine, won handily as he hammered out five 10K loops on singletrack trails with around 2,300 feet of climbing.

Twenty-one runners finished the race, and Kerr was by far the fastest in 4:59:26. First-place female Savannah Crowley, 41, of St. Augustine, Fla., was Kerr’s closest competitor, placing second overall in 6:12:24. Kerr led a field of four New Englanders who were among the finishers. Howie Breinan, 57, of Manchester, Conn., was fifth overall and the fourth-place male in 6:34:10. Michael Conway, 54, and Angela Degrassi, 44, both of Meriden, Conn., ran together and finished 15th and 16th overall in 8:45:28 and 8:45:32, respectively.

Fire and Ice Winter Run

Twenty-one runners gathered for the inaugural Fire and Ice Winter Run on Saturday,  Feb. 21, in New Lisbon, N.Y. They had the opportunity to take on up to five 10K loops on the singletrack and doubletrack trails of Gilbert Lake State Park. Of those who started, seven completed all five loops for 50K finishes, led by 38-year-old Kevin Dames of Cortland, N.Y., who was the fastest in 6:52:00. Top female Disco Meisch, 43, of Brooklyn, N.Y., was third overall in 8:09:00. One New Englander was among the ultramarathon finishers with 42-year-old Aaron Thompson of Concord, N.H., placing fourth overall in 8:30:00.

Fire and Ice was Thompson’s second 50K finish in two weeks. He completed the Angela Ivory Memorial Runs 50K on Feb. 14, in Delaware. He will go for a third 50K in three weeks when he runs the Taco Bell 50K Knoxville on Feb. 28 in Tennessee.

Cabin Fever 50K

Nigel Bates has a big goal on his calendar for the 2026 ultramarathon season: running the Barkley Fall Classic 50K in September. In preparation for that, he opened his season with a strong showing at the fifth annual Cabin Fever 50K on Saturday, Feb. 21, at New River Gorge National Park in West Virginia.

Bates and his fellow runners took on a point-to-point course across the park, beginning in downtown Fayetteville and finishing at Hawks Nest State Park, overcoming high ridgeline singletrack and passing waterfalls along the way while running on part of the Rim to River 100-mile course. More than 300 runners started the race, and 280 finished within 10 hours. Bates was among the fastest performers as the 31-year-old from Waterbury, Vt., placed 14th overall in 4:36:18. He was the lone New Englander in the field.

The top three men all broke the course record, led by 29-year-old Dan Green, 29, of Huntington, W.V., in 3:31:53. He was followed by 21-year-old Luke Tighe of Pulaski, N.Y., in 3:36:37, and 29-year-old Aaron Slabach of Blacksburg, Va., in 3:38:30.

Additionally, top female Sydney Smith, 25, of Huntington, W.V., clocked the second-fastest time ever by a female while placing ninth overall in 4:30:53, trailing only Hollyann Swann’s record-setting 4:17:54 in 2022.

FarmDaze 24

Four New Englanders earned ultramarathon finishes at the 10th annual FarmDaze 24 on Feb. 21-22 in Brooklet, Ga. The event offered 24-, 12- and 6-hour ultras on an approximately 1.7-mile loop course through a family farm.

Seventy-nine runners competed in the 24-hour race, and the top two – the male and female champions – each surpassed the 100-mile mark. Harrison Moore, 30, of Hilton Head, S.C., was the overall champion with 101.87 miles, followed by first-place female Andrea Mehner, 44, of Santiago, Chile, with 100.2 miles. Grady O’Connor, 29, of Waltham, Vt., was the top New England finisher, placing 15th overall with 53.44 miles in his ultramarathon debut. Caitlin Rossi, 42, of Torrington, Conn., was 18th overall and the seventh-place female finisher with 50.13 miles, and 63-year-old Robert Tagliaferi of New Haven, Conn., was 44th with 33.42 miles. Both Rossi and Tagliaferi used the race as part of their build-up to the Leona Divide 100 in April in California.

Another 32 runners competed in the 12-hour race, including 49-year-old Jenn Taylor of Salem, Mass., who finished fifth in the female field and 17th overall with 31.7 miles. Leon Nevins, 35, of Beaufort, S.C., led all runners with 56.78 miles, and Lori Gibson, 40, of Statesboro, Ga., topped the female field with 50.1 miles.

Jackpot Ultra Running Festival

The biggest news at the Jackpot Ultra Running Festival was the female 100-mile world record set by Ashley Paulson in the USATF 100-Mile Championship race at the 13th annual event on Feb. 20-22 in Henderson, Nev., but there were local feats to celebrate, too. The event offered multiple 100-mile races, on a regular course, a short course, and a USATF 100-Mile Championship race, as well as time-based 48-, 24-, 12- and 6-hour ultras. Two New England residents were among those who competed, one in the 100-mile short course race and another in the 48-hour.

Ed Peters took part in the 100-mile short course race, and the 74-year-old from Norwalk, Conn., was one of 60 runners who finished. Peters placed 57th in 42:27:31, a four-hour improvement from 2025. It was Peters’ sixth time completing 100 miles or more at one of the Jackpot races.

Additionally, 33-year-old Allie Smith of Gloucester, Mass., was one of 75 runners who took part in the 48-hour race. She completed 50.807 miles within the time limit, earning her farthest finish ever as an ultrarunner. Smith’s previous longest run came at the 2025 Ghost Train Trail Race when she completed 45 miles in the 30-hour event.

*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.