It started with a YouTube video. Surely you know the one. Kilian’s Quest – Slow Motion. Four minutes and 51 seconds of spine-tingling, eye-widening, downhill-running magic.
For a relatively new trail-runner and novice ultrarunner, it was a tantalizing video that led me to dream about dancing my way down mountain slopes and seek out the best spot to run hill repeats on my local trails.
Continue reading From the Editor’s Desk: Looking for Light During Dark TimesIn what has been an annual tradition for years, the 2025 Massachusetts ultrarunning season will kick off with the the G.A.C. Fat Ass 50K. Gil’s Athletic Club will play host to the event for the 25th time at 8 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 4, at Bradley Palmer State Park in Topsfield.
Continue reading G.A.C. Fat Ass 50K to Kick Off 2025 Ultra SeasonThe bright sun and clear, blue skies may have given the appearance of warmth as runners arrived for Seth’s Fat Ass 50K, but they knew better. They could see their breaths, after all, and the cold cut right through their tights, warm jackets and gloves.
Continue reading Runners Conquer the Cold, Close the Year Strong at Seth’s Fat Ass 50KThe 14th annual running of Seth’s Fat Ass 50K took place on Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024, in Springfield, Mass. Runners once again took on a 5K paved loop course in Forest Park that had to be completed 10 times within 7 hours.
Continue reading Results: Seth’s Fat Ass 50KRunning loops of the Skyline Trail at the Middlesex Fells Reservation in Stoneham, Mass., is a New England trail-running tradition that outdates the creation of the Trail Animals Running Club’s TARC Trail Series.
Continue reading Grip Dominant, Needham Smashes Record at TARC Winter ClassicThe 14th season of the TARC Trail Series came to a close with the annual TARC Winter Classic on Saturday, Dec. 7, at the Middlesex Fells Reservation in Stoneham, Mass. It was the 15th running of the event overall, 13th edition under the TARC umbrella, and second year with the new Winter Classic format with 32-mile and 8-mile distances on the Skyline Trail. Check out a full photo gallery from the race courtesy of Chris Arson Photography.
Continue reading Results: TARC Winter ClassicWINCHESTER, Mass. – Months of drought have ravaged Massachusetts from the Berkshires to the bay. Hundreds of wildfires have scorched fields and forests, and many bodies of water have shrunk or disappeared in the dry conditions. If there is a positive to be found in the dearth of rain, it may be that runners at the Trail Animals Running Club’s TARCkey Trot 6-Hour Ultra benefitted from near-perfect trail conditions.
Continue reading Runners Capitalize on Drought Conditions with Big Performances at TARCkey TrotThe Trail Animals Running Club played host to the eighth edition of the TARCkey Trot 6-Hour Ultra on Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024, at Wright-Locke Farm in Winchester, Mass. Runners had six hours to complete as many loops as they wanted on a 3.5-mile course that started and finished on the farm after traveling on the winding, technical trails of neighboring Whipple Hill.
Continue reading Results: TARCkey Trot 6-Hour UltraThe Trail Animals Running Club played host to the eighth edition of the TARCkey Trot 6-Hour Ultra on Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024, at Wright-Locke Farm in Winchester, Mass. Runners took on a 3.5-mile loop course that started and ended on the farm and wound through the technical singletrack trails of neighboring Whipple Hill. The following are a small sample of photos taken by MassUltra Editor Chris Wristen. A full photo gallery can be viewed on the MassUltra Facebook page.
Continue reading Photos: TARCkey Trot 6-Hour UltraAs the sun set over the Kenty Farm and headlamps clicked on to help fend off the darkness, 23 runners stood in the starting corral at the Race for DFL.
Continue reading Elliott Outlasts Pacheco for DFL Victory
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