In this week’s roundup we take a look back a few weeks to April 3 when Padraig Mullins of Norton, Mass., represented his local ultrarunning community and his native Ireland proudly with a personal-best day at the Sri Chinmoy 100K in the United Kingdom. Additionally, we highlight the always-tough Traprock 50K in Connecticut, ultrarunning debuts at the Orcas Island 50-miler in Washington and Desert Rats 50K in Colorado, as well as a local runner’s return to the Rattler Trail Race in Colorado Springs.

April is off to a strong start for New England ultrarunners. The impressive month includes multiple victories and podium finishes for runners from the region during the April 8-10 weekend, as well as hard-earned finishes at some tough races around the country. Quincy resident Brain Malger and North Haven’s Jamie Miller made sure the men’s and women’s victories at the Squatchapple 50-miler in New Jersey were earned by runners from the region. Meanwhile, Lexington’s Seth Cutler put an exclamation point on his ultra debut with a runner-up finish at the Eagleton Trail Challenge in Pennsylvania. Additionally, several runners from the region took on various distances at the Zion Ultras, including Lakeville’s Shaun Daylor who pushed hard on the fully exposed course and raced to a seventh-place overall finish in the 100-miler. Those performances and more are highlighted in this edition of the roundup.

Lance Doherty returned to the Umstead 100-miler for the second straight year, and for the second straight year the resident of Somerville, Mass., earned a spot on the podium in North Carolina. Meanwhile, in the Pacific Northwest, former Boston resident Joe McConaughy hammered a top-three finish at the Gorge Waterfalls 100K. Also in the West, Cambridge resident Richard Mountfield was victorious after 50 miles in Nevada. Those performances and more are included in this edition of the roundup.