The Trail Animals Running Club’s 13th annual Wapack and Back trail races took place on Saturday, May 11, 2019, in Ashburnham, Mass. Runners took on 50-mile, 43-mile and 21.5-mile distances on the Wapack Trail.
Continue reading Results: TARC Wapack and Back
From Patrick Caron’s 50-mile win on his birthday at The North Face Endurance Challenge’s event at Bear Mountain in New York, to Shannon Plesh’s first-place finish in the women’s field at the White Lake Ultras in New Hampshire, to Sarah Aponte’s winning effort at Strolling Jim in Tennessee, it was a weekend of big performances by Massachusetts ultrarunners at out-of-state races. This week’s roundup includes races in New York, New Hampshire, Tennessee, Connecticut, Oregon and Virginia. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Bear Mountain, White Lake, Strolling Jim, Spring Fling, McDonald Forest, Grayson Highlands, and Chompawamsic Challenge
April was a jam-packed month for trail ultramarathons in Massachusetts, and with the month coming to a close several runners fit out-of-state ultras into their schedules. Most made the easy drive to neighboring Connecticut for the 45th annual Jack Bristol Lake Waramaug Ultras, where Boston’s Joe McConaughy threw down a sizzling 50-mile performance to bring home the win. A few others traveled to Sterling, Va., for The North Face Endurance Challenge’s Washington, D.C., event, including Falmouth’s Jimmy Stavlo who won the 50-miler and Boston’s Palo Cvik who took fifth in the 50K. Other runners scattered to Florida, New Mexico, California, Oregon and Pennsylvania for ultras, and we have them all covered in this week’s roundup. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Jack Bristol, TNFEC-DC, The Dunes, Cedro Peak, Canyons, Tillamook, and Ironmasters Challenge
Decked out from head to toe in wind- and waterproof rain gear, including a bright yellow Mountain Hardwear jacket, black pants and thick, warm gloves, Henry Ward looked like he was on an early-spring expedition in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. In place of sturdy hiking boots, however, were running sneakers. Rather than mountains, his path was black pavement that glistened from hours of heavy rain.
Ward was somewhere near Chestnut Hill, around mile 22 of the Boston Marathon. It was April 16, 2018, and the Waltham, Mass., native and current resident of Tempe, Ariz., was making his Boston Marathon debut. Heartbreak Hill was behind him; the famous Citgo sign, downtown Boston and the finish line four miles ahead. Continue reading For Waltham Native Ward, Boston Quad is a Celebration of Good Health, Great Friends
WESTON, Mass. – Of course it rained. It was always going to happen. This is the Spring Classic, after all.
The Trail Animals Running Club’s Spring Classic has established its share of traditions through the years – the yeti howl at the start; the wooden “trophies” foraged from the course; the MarketBasket sushi tray for volunteers – but perhaps the most predictable feature of the early-season event is rain. Nearly every Spring Classic has experienced at least a bit of the wet stuff, usually during pre-race set-up or at some point in the first loop or two of the race. Continue reading Burke, Damon Splash, Dash to Victories in Spring Classic 50K
While most New England ultrarunners who toed a starting line on April 20-21 did so in Weston, Mass., at the ninth annual TARC Spring Classic, a handful ventured beyond the region to race. Kara Olivito built on her recent victory at the Cape Cod Trail Race 50K by traveling to Georgia for the Double Top 100K. Additionally, Boston’s Liz McHutcheon raced in northern California on the Mendocino Coast, and a former Woburn resident – Scott Traer – brought home a victory in Washington at the Yakima Skyline Rim 50K. We’ve got those covered.
Additionally, lost in the shuffle of double-digit out-of-state ultras last week, we missed the Breakneck Point heavy-marathon in New York, so we’ve rolled that into this week’s roundup as several Massachusetts residents were among the top performers on a day where multiple runners broke the course record. It’s lighter reading than last week, but dig in because there’s still plenty to read in this week’s roundup. Continue reading MassUltra Roundup: Double Top, Mendocino Coast, Yakima Skyline, and Breakneck Point
Two years ago, with Josh Katzman running by his side, Matt Picard made a memorable Don’t Run Boston debut. The duo stuck together throughout the day, finished together, and set a course record for the 50K race at the Trail Animals Running Club’s original event.
After a year away, Picard returned to the race on Sunday, April 14, at the Blue Hills Reservation in Milton, Mass. This time, the 34-year-old resident of Jamaica Plain, Mass., spent most of the day running solo, but he enjoyed a similar outcome. He didn’t move quite as quickly as when Katzman was pushing him (4:45), but Picard earned his second victory at the event with a winning time of 5:04. Picard’s 2019 effort ranked as the sixth-fastest in the 23-year history of the DRB 50K. Continue reading Speed, Doubling and Durability on Display at ‘Don’t Run Boston’
