The Wapack Trail has been known to dish out plenty of punishment to the healthiest of hikers and trail runners during the best of conditions. For those who are either injured or on the mend, it’s an intimidating place to be, especially on a rainy day.
For Rob Breckenridge and Jeff Johanson, the Wapack Trail was a place to face their fears and put their mended bodies to the test when they took part in the 18th edition of the Trail Animals Running Club’s Wapack and Back Trail Races on Saturday, May 9, in Ashburnham, Mass.
The eighth edition of Beast Coast Trail Running’s Chesterfield Gorge Ultra took place May 30-31, 2026, at the Chesterfield Gorge Reservation in West Chesterfield, Mass. Runners took on a 7.75-mile out-and-back course on jeep roads and doubletrack trail, racing for up to 30 hours for 100-mile, 100K, 50-mile, and 50K ultramarathon finishes, as well as 33K and 11K sub-ultra distances. Runners encountered rain early in the race before warmer temperatures and sunny skies arrived.
When Jeff Uzzel ran the inaugural Tails & Trails State Forest Run 50K in 2025, he dominated from the start and won by more than an hour. The defending champion returned for the second annual event on Saturday, May 16, in Pittsfield, Mass., and found himself under pressure throughout before finishing in a familiar position.
The Berkshire Ultra Running Community for Service (BURCS) played host to the second annual Tails & Trails State Forest Run on Saturday, May 16, 2026, at Pittsfield State Forest in Pittsfield, Mass. The event offered 50K, 25K and 5-mile trail races on rolling singletrack trails. Proceeds from the event benefitted three area nonprofit animal rescue organizations.
The fourth annual Free Spirit 50K took place on Saturday, May 16, 2026, in Leyden, Mass. The course consisted of dirt country roads in Massachusetts and Vermont with around 4,200 feet of climbing.
A few scattered showers weren’t enough to dampen the day or deter runners at the Watuppa Trail Races. Instead, a spirited day of running played out at the 12th annual event on the trails of Watuppa Reservation on Saturday, May 9, in Fall River, Mass. Around 150 runners gathered at the starting line on an overcast morning to take on one, three or five loops of a 10K course on a mix of terrain that varied from pavement to utility line grassy trails, to dirt roads and rooty singletrack. The loop provides ample opportunity to go fast, and plenty of runners took advantage.
The 18th edition of the Trail Animals Running Club’s Wapack and Back Trail Races took place Saturday, May 9, 2026, in Ashburnham, Mass. Runners took on a 43-mile out-and-back of the Wapack Trail, a 50-mile race that included the 43-mile out-and-back plus an additional 7 miles, or a 21.5-mile one-way journey through the course. Since its founding in 2007 by Bogie Dumitrescu, the event has been held annually with the exception of 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It rained steadily for much of the race for the second straight year.
The 12th running of the Watuppa Trail Races took place Saturday, May 9, 2026, at Watuppa Reservation in Fall River, Mass. Runners took on a 10K loop course for 50K, 30K and 10K distances.
The TARC Spring Classic holds a special place in the history of the Trail Animals Running Club as it was the first new event created specifically for the TARC Trail Series. The event has played host to some of the largest gatherings of Trail Animals in the club’s history – as well as some of the wettest gatherings of Trail Animals.
