All posts by Chris Wristen

Founder and Editor of MassUltra.com
BURCS

Fresh Faces, Fast Times at Vegan Power 50K

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Course record-holders Jason Mintz of Syracuse, N.Y., and Laura Kline of New Paltz, N.Y., were absent from this year’s Vegan Power 50K with Mintz racing the Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run and Kline serving as his pacer. Additionally, 2016 women’s champion Samantha LeBlanc of Woburn, Mass., took part in the relay portion of Vegan Power. That left the door open for new faces to contend for first-place finishes.

New champions emerged, and it was a tale of two races at the fourth annual Vegan Power 50K as the men’s field featured a runaway winner and the women’s field produced a close battle for the podium positions on Saturday, June 17, at Pittsfield State Forest in Pittsfield, Mass. Continue reading Fresh Faces, Fast Times at Vegan Power 50K →

Cape Cod

New Solo, Relay 50-Miler Coming to Cape Cod

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A new solo ultramarathon and team relay is coming to Massachusetts this fall. The Fall 50 will make its Bay State debut on Saturday, September 30, on Cape Cod.

Runners have the option of running 50 miles solo or forming teams of between two and five runners to cover the distance from Wellfleet to Barnstable. Continue reading New Solo, Relay 50-Miler Coming to Cape Cod →

Roundup

MassUltra Roundup: Catamount, Bay of Fundy, and Bryce

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Massachusetts ultrarunners didn’t have to venture far from home to race on June 24-25 – well … other than the lucky few who got to run Western States (that’ll be included in another article) – because the Catamount Ultra 50K in Vermont and the inaugural 50K at the Bay of Fundy Marathon in Maine took place last weekend. Massachusetts residents won both of those races. Additionally, we tracked down results from the Bryce 50K on June 17 in Utah to round out this week’s roundup. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Catamount, Bay of Fundy, and Bryce →

Features

Massachusetts Trio Set to Take on Western States

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As folks in Massachusetts are sipping their coffee on Saturday morning and finishing breakfast before heading out for a weekend long run, there’s a good chance some will be logged onto UltraLive.net and looking intently for the first few nuggets of information about the Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run.

The 44th running of the Western States 100 begins at 5 a.m. PST (8 a.m. EDT) Saturday, June 24, and runners have 30 hours to complete the 100.2-mile journey from Squaw Valley to Auburn, Calif., in ultrarunning’s original 100-mile trail footrace. Runners will climb more than 18,000 feet and descend more than 23,000 feet during the course of the race.

Three Massachusetts residents will be among the 369 runners to toe the starting line in what is expected to be a highly competitive year overall, and arguably the deepest women’s field in the history of the race. Continue reading Massachusetts Trio Set to Take on Western States →

Roundup

MassUltra Roundup: Manitou’s Revenge, Bighorn, the Broken Arrow Skyrace, Drummer Hill, and Infinitus

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Ben Nephew and Kehr Davis threw down strong performances en route to victories at Manitou’s Revenge in New York; Joseph D’Alessio, Christopher Agbay and Dane LeBlanc overcame freezing rain and massive quantities of mud to complete the Bighorn 100 in Wyoming; Michael Barrett conquered the grueling Broken Arrow Skyrace in California; and we tracked down older results from Drummer Hill in New Hampshire and Infinitus in Vermont in this week’s roundup. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Manitou’s Revenge, Bighorn, the Broken Arrow Skyrace, Drummer Hill, and Infinitus →

TNFEC

New England Tough: Burly Course Tests Runners at TNFEC-MA

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PRINCETON, Mass. – It took a decade for The North Face Endurance Challenge to venture into New England. When it finally did, runners were treated to a whopper of a course as the region’s diverse and difficult terrain lived up to its reputation. Continue reading New England Tough: Burly Course Tests Runners at TNFEC-MA →

Roundup

MassUltra Roundup: Cayuga Trails and Worlds End

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Massachusetts ultrarunners made their presence felt at the USATF 50-Mile Championships at Cayuga Trails in New York as two men and three women finished in the top 10 in their respective divisions. Meanwhile, Tess Harvey tackled a rugged 50K in Pennsylvania at Worlds End State Park.

There were at least 30 ultramarathons around the United States on June 3-4, but it was a light weekend of racing for runners from the Bay State with two in-state races on the horizon. The inaugural North Face Endurance Challenge 50-miler and 50K races take place Saturday, June 10, at Wachusett Mountain, followed by the Berkshire Ultrarunning Community for Service’s annual Vegan Power 50K on June 17 in Pittsfield. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Cayuga Trails and Worlds End →

Roundup

MassUltra Roundup: Pineland Farms, Manchester 2 Monadnock, and the Keys Ultras

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In what was a light weekend for ultras throughout the United States, a large crop of runners headed to Maine May 27-28 for the annual trail running festival at Pineland Farms. Massachusetts runners brought home victories there. In addition, we catch up with two races from the prior weekend – Manchester 2 Monadnock and the Keys Ultras – in this week’s roundup. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Pineland Farms, Manchester 2 Monadnock, and the Keys Ultras →