Winter has taken hold in New England, and while cold-weather fatass-style events have filled the Massachusetts ultra calendar early in the year a handful of runners from the region sought out warmer weather and drier trails during the Jan. 18-19 weekend at the 10th annual Coldwater Rumble Ultras in Goodyear, Ariz. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Coldwater Rumble
All posts by Chris Wristen
MassUltra Roundup: Bandera and Frozen Gnome
Two fatass-style ultramarathons occupy the January slate in Massachusetts, with the G.A.C. Fat Ass 50K having taken place Jan. 4 and the Cape Cod Frozen Fat Ass 50K coming up Jan. 18 in Barnstable. The weekend between them, Jan. 11-12, featured a slight slate of ultras nationally, but two Massachusetts residents collected hard-earned finishes at out-of-state races. In Texas, Boylston’s Neil Feldman battled to the finish line of the challenging Bandera 100K, while Boston’s Wilson Ray logged his first ultra finish at the Frozen Gnome 50K in Illinois. Both races are included in this week’s roundup. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Bandera and Frozen Gnome
Around 150 Runners Kick Off New Year at G.A.C. Fat Ass 50K
Runners endured the full spectrum of weather conditions during the first 20 years of the G.A.C. Fat Ass 50K, from bone-chilling temperatures far below freezing, to blizzard conditions, to rain, ice, sun and unseasonably warm temperatures.
The 21st annual event took place Saturday, Jan. 4, at Bradley Palmer State Park in Topsfield, Mass., and it featured a little bit of everything. Patches of snow and ice covered the 6.2-mile loop course, as did a fair amount of mud thanks to some thawing in the mid-40s temperatures and the rain that fell on and off during the race. The damp yet comfortable conditions were ideal for runners who sought several loops and didn’t mind having mud-coated calves and shoes. Continue reading Around 150 Runners Kick Off New Year at G.A.C. Fat Ass 50K
Results: G.A.C. Fat Ass 50K
The 21st annual G.A.C. Fat Ass 50K took place Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020, at Bradley Palmer State Park in Topsfield, Mass. Around 150 runners took part in the classic New England ultramarathon to kick off the new year, with 30 completing five loops of the course for a 50K finish and another dozen completing a marathon. Continue reading Results: G.A.C. Fat Ass 50K
MassUltra Roundup: Across the Years
More than 550 runners welcomed in the new year by logging mileage for days on end at the 36th annual Across the Years fixed-time ultras at Camelback Ranch in Phoenix, Ariz., and that group included eight runners from New England. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Across the Years
BURCS Series to Expand with Alford Springs 6-Hour Ultra
For the past few years, the Berkshire Ultra Running Community for Service (BURCS) has kicked off its annual ultramarathon race series in mid-June. This year, the series will begin a few weeks sooner thanks to the introduction of a new race – the Alford Springs 6-Hour Ultra. Continue reading BURCS Series to Expand with Alford Springs 6-Hour Ultra
MassUltra Roundup: Dreadmill Endurance Challenge
A trio of Massachusetts ultrarunners who broke through the 100-mile barrier for the first time in 2019 closed out the year by doing so again — only this time they passed on the trails and tackled the distance on the mind-numbing terrain of a treadmill. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Dreadmill Endurance Challenge
