The Bear 100 Mile, the Berlin Marathon, and the Birkie Trail Run Festival are all here.
So too are races from Athens, Greece, to Zeanuri, Spain.
Gorbeia Suzien Skyrace – Zeanuri, Spain
The Skyrunner World Series comes at you fast, this was the year’s 15th world series race. A field of 600 runners from 30 countries challenged the muddy 32-kilometer course and its 2,400 meters of climbing in Gorbeia National Park.
Júlia Font (Spain) overtook longtime leader Daniela Oemus (Germany) in the final kilometer. The pair were only seven seconds apart with Font in front and a 3:45 finish time for each. Onditz Iturbe (Spain) was third in 3:49.
Júlia Font, the 2024 Gorbeia Suzien Skyrace women’s winner. Photo: Skyrunner World Series
Men’s winner Luca Del Pero (Italy) was just over a minute faster than Manuel Merillas (Spain) at 3:00 and 3:01, respectively. Lorenzo Rota (Italy) took the final podium spot in 3:03.
Full results (when available).
Luca Del Pero, the 2024 Gorbeia Suzien Skyrace men’s winner. Photo: Skyrunner World Series
Spartathlon – Athens, Greece
Widely regarded as one of the world’s premier road ultramarathons, the historic run went 153 miles from Athens to Sparta. This year was the race’s 42nd edition and there were 400 runners from 55 different countries.
Noora Honkala (Finland) won the women’s race in 24:25. She was second a year ago in 23:23. Honkala now has the second- and fourth-fastest times in the race’s history. Carmen Maria Perez (Spain) was second in 25:34 and Line Caliskaner (Norway) was third in 26:24. Defending champion and course record holder Camille Herron (U.S.) did not finish.
It was four in a row in the men’s race. Fotis Zisimopoulos (Greece) won for the fourth year in a row and was over three hours better than everyone else. Zisimopoulos ran 20:18. He missed his own course record, but that’s the race’s second-fastest run ever. Fernando Martínez Román (Uruguay), last year’s third placer, was second in 23:38 and Robin Florian (France) was third in 23:51.
The Bear 100 Mile – Logan, Utah
The point-to-point course climbed 22,816 feet from northern Utah to southern Idaho.
Careth Arnold won the women’s race in 20:25, which surpassed Kaytlyn Gerbin’s 2018 course record of 20:45:48. Arnold finished third overall too. Kathryn Graham and Rebekah Rose were second and third in 23:14 and 24:20.
Careth Arnold after winning the 2024 Bear 100 Mile in a new course record. Photo: Bethany Draper
Just three weeks ago Jose Cruz was second at the Wasatch Front 100 Mile. He doubled back and won here in 19:55. Cruz finished just ahead of second-place Henry Harris and his 20:18 run. Third-place Kris Brown reached the Bear Lake finish line in 21:26.
Jose Cruz, the 2024 Bear 100 Mile men’s winner. Photo: Bethany Draper
Additional Races and Runs
Berlin Marathon – Berlin, Germany
Checking in on trail runners and ultrarunners, third at the 2023 World Mountain Running Championships Up and Down race, Filimon Abraham (Germany) ripped through halfway in 1:02:24 and finished in 2:08:52. That placed him 26th overall. Full results.
Dick Collins Firetrails 50 Mile and Golden Hills Marathon – Castro Valley, California
Amanda O’Brien and James Scanlan won the longtime 50 miler in 8:32 and 7:34, and Amanda Young and Tommy Evans led the marathon in 5:39 and 3:54. Full results.
Flagstaff Sky Peaks – Flagstaff, Arizona
First in the 50-mile race and its traverse of the San Francisco Peaks were Claire Rogan and Joseph Lewis in 9:48 and 8:58. The 50k winners Erin Moyer and Eric Wise finished in 5:10 and 6:01, with Moyer the race’s overall winner. Full results.
Mt. Taylor 50k – Grants, New Mexico
Johanna Hamblett and Joshua Reddish championed the race in 5:40 and 5:04, respectively. Full results.
Bear Chase – Lakewood, Colorado
Susan Hahn was first woman in the 50 miler at Bear Creek Lake State Park in 8:49, and men’s winner Kosuke Amano finished in 7:57. Dayna McLaughlin and Brian Runyon were fastest in the 50k in 4:53 and 4:09. Full results.
Crested Butte Ultra – Crested Butte, Colorado
Both Emily Demarco and Brian Martin scored a new course record at the 50-mile race. The two winners clocked 9:53 and 8:28. In the 55k, it was Caitlin Standifer and Robbie Mason on top in 5:11 and 5:05. Full results.
West Line Winder 50k – Buena Vista, Colorado
Just 53 seconds separated women’s first and second. Whitney Barrett beat Natalie Kalin to the line in 4:51. Kalin was second in 4:52, and third-place Blake Wageman finished under five hours too in 4:59. Barrett won last year’s race as well. The men’s race was nearly as close. Justin Grunewald put two minutes on 2022 winner Ryan Smith in the final five miles to win in 3:54. Smith’s 3:56 was two minutes better than he ran in 2022, and Paul Terranova was third in 4:18. Full results.
Sawatch Ascent 50k – Nathrop, Colorado
The Sunday race was part of a potential doubleheader with the very nearby West Line Winder 50k on Saturday. The women’s podium ran with Lindsay Anderson, Ash Warner, and Brianne Steed knocking out the course’s 7,000 feet of gain in 6:07, 6:29, and 6:46. Kieran Nay rolled the men’s race in 4:58. Ryan Smith was second for the second straight day in 5:26, and Reid Burrows (Canada) was third in 5:48. Full results.
Birkie Trail Run Festival – Cable, Wisconsin
The event’s marathon race was this year’s USATF Trail Marathon National Championships. The fields look pretty small though. There were just 16 women’s finishers and only 22 men’s finishers. At the top, Anna Dalton ran away with the women’s crown in 3:24. Gracia Sich and Katia Wanish were second and third in 3:38 and 3:51. Brian Whitfield led the men in 2:59. Pro miler-turned-trail-runner Ben Blankenship was second in 3:03, and Jack Spaulding took third in 3:14. Full results.
Cat’s Tail Trail Marathon – Shandaken, New York
Runners enjoyed near perfect weather for the race’s tenth edition on a rugged course in the Catskill Mountains. Amy Demarco won for the second year in a row with a 5:35 finish, and Andrew Hutchinson set a course record of 4:09 in his marathon debut. Full results (when available).
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