Long before the first rumbles of thunder rattled through the valleys and well before more than four hours of torrential downpour soaked the dirt roads and trails and drenched runners to the core, a different storm of sorts rolled across the Vermont 100 course. Continue reading Reign Before the Rain: Rusiecki Victorious, Dissinger 9th at Vermont 100
All posts by Chris Wristen
MassUltra Roundup: Howard Takes on the Tahoe Rim Trail; Four Bay Staters Endure the Altitude of Silver Rush
Tahoe Rim Trail Endurance Races
Chalk up another successfully completed 100-mile trail race for Bill Howard.
Mountains, altitude, vertical – the Tahoe Rim Trail 100 had it all for Howard on Saturday and Sunday, July 16-17, in Carson City, Nev. The 67-year-old resident of Winchester, Mass., wasn’t deterred by the approximately 20,000 feet of vertical gain or the thin air offered by a course that resides entirely above 8,000 feet. Howard completed the course in 33:15:39 and placed 121st overall. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Howard Takes on the Tahoe Rim Trail; Four Bay Staters Endure the Altitude of Silver Rush
Agbay, List ‘Kiss the Rock’ Again
Finishing the Hardrock 100 once is difficult enough. Christopher Agbay and Jeff List have done it multiple times.
Agbay, of Jefferson, Mass., finished Hardrock for the second straight year late Saturday night, July 16. List, a resident of East Falmouth, Mass., finished in the early hours of Sunday morning, July 17, to notch an impressive sixth completion of what is considered to be the toughest 100-mile race in the United States. Continue reading Agbay, List ‘Kiss the Rock’ Again
Huge Weekend of 100-Milers Includes Massachusetts Ultrarunners
Fans of 100-mile trail races are in luck this weekend. A trio of triple-digit distance events is on tap: the Hardrock 100, Vermont 100, and Tahoe Rim Trail 100.
Massachusetts ultrarunners will be competing in all three. Continue reading Huge Weekend of 100-Milers Includes Massachusetts Ultrarunners
MassUltra Roundup: Speedgoat, Mt. Hood, Beaverhead, Golden Gate, and Finger Lakes 50s
Hornbaker Embraces the Full Speedgoat Experience
Since the inaugural event in 2008, Speedgoat has earned a reputation as being a notoriously difficult 50-kilometer trail race up and down the mountains near the Snowbird Ski Resort in Alta, Utah.
The race’s altitude (all above 7,600 feet), steep, rocky terrain and more than 11,800 feet of vertical gain has humbled world-class ultrarunners as well as middle- and back-of-the-packers.
For Charles Hornbaker of Brighton, Mass., that wasn’t enough of the Speedgoat experience. Two additional events – a Vertical Mile and the downhill-only Quadbanger – were added in 2015, so Hornbaker signed up to race all three this year. That made for a busy weekend with a race each day July 8-10. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Speedgoat, Mt. Hood, Beaverhead, Golden Gate, and Finger Lakes 50s
Keenan Takes Top Honors at BURCS’ Summer 6-Hour at Notchview Reservation
Year No. 2 of the Berkshire Ultra Running Community for Service’s BURCS Summer Fat Ass 6-Hour Run saw a massive surge in participation, as well as some stellar running performances on Saturday, July 9 at Notchview Reservation in Windsor, Mass.
Participation more than doubled in the event’s second year, surging from 13 participants in 2015 to 33 runners hailing from seven states in 2016. Of the more than three-dozen runners, 12 ran farther than a marathon. Continue reading Keenan Takes Top Honors at BURCS’ Summer 6-Hour at Notchview Reservation
Passing the Bar and Raising the Bar: Pietari’s Hectic Month Includes Harvard Law Degree, Top-10 Finish at Western States
May and June were shaping up to be hectic months in the Pietari home in Brighton, Mass.
Kyle Pietari, 29, was about to graduate from Harvard Law, studying for the Patent Bar Exam, training for the mid-August Leadville Trail 100, and preparing to move to Colorado with his wife, Stacy, and their two children.
It didn’t seem like life could get much busier – and then UltraRunning Magazine came calling. Continue reading Passing the Bar and Raising the Bar: Pietari’s Hectic Month Includes Harvard Law Degree, Top-10 Finish at Western States
Pietari 8th as Massachusetts Trio Completes Western States 100
The center of the ultrarunning universe was in Squaw Valley and Auburn, Calif., on June 25-26 as 353 runners tested their luck and endurance on the historic trails of the Western States 100.
That included a trio from Massachusetts: Kyle Pietari of Brighton; Amy Rusiecki of South Deerfield; and Peter Plourde of Westfield. Continue reading Pietari 8th as Massachusetts Trio Completes Western States 100
MassUltra Roundup: Bond Bolts to Record Run at Catamount
Rob Bond may be relatively new to ultrarunning, but the 27-year-old from Brighton, Mass., runs like a savvy veteran. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Bond Bolts to Record Run at Catamount
MassUltra Roundup: Manitou’s Revenge, Bryce Canyon and Rachel Carson Trail Challenge
Rusiecki Edged, Davis Victorious at Manitou
For the second time this year, less than three minutes separated Brian Rusiecki from victory at a trail ultra in New York. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Manitou’s Revenge, Bryce Canyon and Rachel Carson Trail Challenge
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