The inaugural Kilkenny Ridge 50-miler lived up to its reputation on Sept. 8 … and into the early hours of Sept. 9 … as the newest ultra in New Hampshire enticed runners from the Bay State to head north for a burly challenge in the White Mountains. That race, which was won by former Boston resident Rob Rives and current Cambridge resident Lisa Rising, highlights this week’s roundup. Additionally, Salem’s William Jackson notched his fourth straight Hardrock qualifier by finishing the Wasatch Front 100 in Utah, and Revere resident Michael Condella finished the Pine Creek Challenge 100 for the fourth year in a row. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Kilkenny Ridge, Wasatch Front, and Pine Creek Challenge
All posts by Chris Wristen
Results: The Village Ultra
The second annual Village Ultra took place Sept. 1-2 in New Salem, Mass., and offered runners both 24-hour and 12-hour options for logging miles. The combined results are provided below. Continue reading Results: The Village Ultra
McConaughy Earns Top-50 Finish at CCC to Lead MA Contingent at UTMB
Joe McConaughy has earned plenty of recognition for his solo endurance exploits in recent years, most notably for setting the unsupported fastest known time (FKT) on the Appalachian Trail in 2017 and then establishing a new FKT on Ireland’s Wicklow Round in May 2018.
McConaughy has done his fair share of racing, too. The 27-year-old Boston resident has top-10 finishes to his credit at the 2016 Bear Mountain 50-miler, the 2017 Gorge Waterfalls 100K and Lake Sonoma 50-miler, as well as wins at the TARC To Hale and Back 6-Hour Ultra in 2016 and 2018 and a win at the Stone Cat 50-miler in 2016. He added to his resume a seventh-place finish at the Ragged 50K on Aug. 12 in New Hampshire, which served as a final tune-up for his first major international race. Continue reading McConaughy Earns Top-50 Finish at CCC to Lead MA Contingent at UTMB
MassUltra Roundup: The Rut, Jay Peak, and the SLO Ultra
While the eyes of the ultrarunning world were on the World Summit of Trail-Running – more commonly known as the UTMB – last week in Europe, there were still a few ultramarathons back in the United States. Runners from Massachusetts took part in a few of them, hitting the road to neighboring Vermont and flying to the West Coast to tackle tough trails in California and Montana. The UTMB recap is separate, so a trio of out-of-state US races are featured in this week’s roundup. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: The Rut, Jay Peak, and the SLO Ultra
MassUltra Roundup: Killington, Tunxis, Lost Cat, Tamalpa Headlands, Green Lakes, and Great Cranberry
August closed out with plenty of out-of-state races as runners from the Bay State traveled to nearby Vermont, Connecticut and New York, while some flew as far away as California to take on the trails. South Deerfield’s Brian Rusiecki and Great Barrington’s Kehr Davis highlighted the weekend with their podium finishes at the Under Armour Killington 50K in Vermont, while Matthew Perkins of Cambridge hammered his way to a runner-up finish at the Tunxis Trail 60K.
Additionally, we tracked down the results of Maine’s Great Cranberry 100 from Aug. 17-18 where Billerica’s Bryan O’Keefe was among the half-dozen finishers. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Killington, Tunxis, Lost Cat, Tamalpa Headlands, Green Lakes, and Great Cranberry
The Village Ultra Returns with Longer Hours
The Village Ultra is returning for a second year, but this time it will have a slightly different format. Continue reading The Village Ultra Returns with Longer Hours
MassUltra Roundup: Twisted Branch, Castle Peak, and Waldo
August 18 was all about the 100Ks. After a few busy weekends of in-state races, ultrarunners from Massachusetts headed beyond the state borders to tackle a trio of 100K races – two out west and one in neighboring New York. Additionally, numerous runners hit the road for Rhode Island for the Anchor Down Ultras. Results from Anchor Down are still being updated, so we’ll include them next week. That means this week’s roundup is all about the 100Ks. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Twisted Branch, Castle Peak, and Waldo
Rain Slows, Doesn’t Stop Runners at TARC Summer Classic
Fresh off of enduring weeks of temperatures in the 90s, runners in the 40-mile and 50K races at the TARC Summer Classic enjoyed reprieve from the heat at the eighth annual event on Saturday, Aug. 11, at Noon Hill Reservation in Medfield, Mass.
In place of the heat were temperatures in the upper 60s to mid-70s and a cool, steady rainfall that compounded with the humidity to turn the trails into a wet sauna. Continue reading Rain Slows, Doesn’t Stop Runners at TARC Summer Classic
Soutiea Builds on Big Year with Another Record-Setting Effort at Soggy Sweltering Summer
As its name implies, the Sweltering Summer Ultra aims to test not only runners’ endurance, but also their tolerance for New England’s typical mid-summer scorching heat.
The event, which was put on for the sixth year on a row by the Berkshire Ultra Running Community for Service (BURCS) on Saturday, Aug. 11, challenged runners to circle a .355-mile dirt and cinder loop as many times as possible during an 8-hour period at Clapp Park in Pittsfield, Mass.
While the course and the objective were the same as in years past, one thing was different – rather than sweltering heat, this year runners instead endured soaking rain for much of the day. That created challenging conditions on a course that’s designed for sure-footed running and speed. For Greg Soutiea, that simply made for an intriguing plot twist at a race where he has set a high standard for performance. Continue reading Soutiea Builds on Big Year with Another Record-Setting Effort at Soggy Sweltering Summer
MassUltra Roundup: Ragged 75 Stage Race and 50K
Two in-state ultramarathons kept many of the Massachusetts ultrarunning community busy during the Aug. 11-12 weekend, but a few made a short drive to neighboring New Hampshire to take part in the Ragged 75 Stage Race and 50K in Danbury, N.H. The 50K race served as the USATF 50K Trail National Championship. Both the 50K and the Stage Race share this week’s roundup. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Ragged 75 Stage Race and 50K
MassUltra 