When Amy Rusiecki organized the inaugural Mt. Tom Trail Race 25K and team relay in 2021, the Beast Coast Trail Running race director crafted a course that lulled runners in with a smooth, speedy road section warm-up before smacking them with a strong dose of rugged New England singletrack – much of it hidden under a blanket of leaves. The result was some blood and brutality, outshined by a whole lot of fun.
So much fun was had that Rusiecki doubled down on the event for 2022 and added a 50K ultramarathon to the lineup.
BROOKLINE, N.H. – From the first hour to the final minutes, the Ghost Train Rail Trail Race featured a masterful mix of spooky Halloween ambiance and robust ultrarunning spirit at the 13th annual event on Oct. 15-16 on the Milford and Brookline Rail Trail.
It has been a wild month for major local ultras with the Midstate Massive Ultra-Trail and Ghost Train Rail Trail Race taking top billing for largest events. Those events on back-to-back weekends were followed by an Oct. 22-23 weekend that featured two more Massachusetts ultras – the Womp Romp 50K and Mt. Tom Trail Race 50K. Still, there were a handful of events in New England and beyond that attracted runners from the region during the second-to-last weekend of October. Included among them were the inaugural running of the Rhode Island Trail Classic, as well as the return of Maine’s Farm to Farm Ultra – which saw 20-year-old Lila Gaudrault deliver a stunning 50-mile debut performance that ranks among the best performances in North America this year. Read all about it in this edition of the roundup.
The second annual Womp Romp 10-miler and inaugural 50K took place Saturday, Oct. 22, at Wompatuck State Park in Hingham, Mass. The event took place on a 10-mile loop course with a mix of single- and double-track trails, rail trail and paved path that runners completed one or three times. Proceeds from the event benefited Friends of the Wompatuck.
Beast Coast Trail Running’s second annual Mt. Tom Trail Race also played host to its first ultramarathon offering in 2022. Race Director Amy Rusiecki’s event offered 50K, 25K and 25K relay options on the trails of Mt. Tom Reservation while starting and finishing at New City Brewery in Easthampton, Mass. All photos in this gallery are courtesy of Jonathan Loyche and represent a small sample of his images from the race. Click here to view a full gallery of his photos.
Beast Coast Trail Running’s second annual Mt. Tom Trail Race also played host to its first ultramarathon offering in 2022. Race Director Amy Rusiecki’s event offered 50K, 25K and 25K relay options on the trails of Mt. Tom Reservation while starting and finishing at New City Brewery in Easthampton, Mass.
The Oct. 15-16 weekend was all about Ghost Train in New England. Hundreds of runners flocked to Brookline, N.H., to race the 13th annual event. Still, there were a few folks who opted for other events. Some raced in Connecticut for 24-hours at the Centurion Ultra, while others ran 100 miles in Pennsylvania at Oil Creek State Park. Additionally, two Massachusetts women became first-time ultramarathon finishers in Oregon – while a familiar face took home the victory. We have it all covered in this edition of the roundup.
The 13th running of the Ghost Train Rail Trail Race took place Oct. 15-16 on the Milford and Brookline Rail Trail in Brookline, N.H. Runners took on the 7.5-mile long (15-mile round-trip) trail for up to 30 hours or opted for the 15-mile option. Runners completed ultra distances of 105, 100, 90, 75, 60, 45 or 30 miles.
NEW IPSWICH, N.H. – Corin Kwasnik and Dan Grip hadn’t met prior to the Midstate Massive Ultra-Trail 100-miler, nor had they shared a race course, but they weren’t exactly strangers. In fact, they’d done battle before.
The 13th edition of the Ghost Train Rail Trail Race took place Oct. 15-16, 2022, on the Milford and Brookline Rail Trail in Brookline, N.H. The following are just a sample of photos taken by MassUltra Editor Chris Wristen. A full gallery of more than 350 photos can be viewed on the MassUltra Facebook page at this link.
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