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The second weekend of January featured 20 North American ultramarathons on the UltraRunning Magazine race calendar. This week’s Ultra Weekend Recap highlights race results from Texas, Arizona and California. Congratulations to everyone who raced this weekend, and be sure to check out all the results as they continue to roll in on our results page.
Bandera
We lead things off in Texas Hill Country at the 24th annual Bandera 100k and 50k races. A total of 342 runners lined up for Saturday’s 100k race, with 264 completing two laps of the rugged 50k course in under 25 hours to earn an official finish. In the women’s race, Anneke Durkan led the way, winning in 11:08:14 and earning a top-10 overall finish. Elyse Habenicht finished runner-up in 11:38:41 and Mallory Meredith came in third (11:48:51). Jared Rothlauf claimed top honors in the men’s race, pulling away from the field to win by more than an hour in 8:54:58. Meng Zhao was the second male finisher in 9:59:57. Ethan Schipp snagged third (10:03:02).
In Sunday’s competitive 50k race, Olympic Marathon bronze medalist Molly Seidel put on a spectacular performance in her ultramarathon debut, winning outright in 4:09:00 and shattering the women’s course record. It will be exciting to see what Seidel does next month at the Black Canyon 100K, where she’ll face an elite field competing for Golden Tickets into the 2026 Western States Endurance Run.
Top 50K finishers:
Men
- Benjamin Melisi (4:15:49)
- Collin Bohne (4:38:59)
- Landon King (4:45:05)
Women
- Molly Seidel (4:09:00) *New Course Record*
- Courtney Rouse (4:36:12)
- Mira Rai (4:46:20)
Full results here.
Avalon Benefit 50
Our second stop takes us to beautiful Catalina Island off the coast of Southern California for the 43rd running of the Avalon Benefit 50 (50-mile and 50-kilometer ultramarathons). 338 runners completed Saturday’s 50-miler, paced by men’s winner Michael Ruf who earned the win in 6:22:00. Sheldon Watanabe made a late charge to snag second place in 6:31:36. Robert Webber finished just back in third (6:31:53). Catherine LeClair cruised to victory in the women’s race, winning in 7:38:21. Anne Maxwell was the second woman across the line in 8:20:47. Iris Martinez rounded out the female podium in third (8:27:52).
Top 50K finishers:
Women
- Stefanie Kuhfusz (4:38:18)
- Melina Devoney (4:45:34)
- Gabriella Escobar (4:55:10)
Men
- Cody Poskin (3:36:20) *New Course Record*
- Ishan Patnaik (4:12:57)
- Eric Wostenberg (4:13:04)
Full results here.
San Tan Scramble
56 runners finished the 16th running of the San Tan Scramble 50K in the foothills of Arizona’s San Tan and Goldmine mountain ranges. Top honors in the women’s event went to Taylor Kaser in a time of 5:13:35. Kaser placed sixth overall. Janna Ellsworth finished second female and ninth overall in 5:44:25. Candace Engelhardt took third (6:04:36). In the men’s race, John Raneri clocked the second fastest course time ever to secure the win in 3:40:09. Wouter Zwart ran to a second place finish in 4:08:46. Kevin Bott completed the men’s podium in third (4:33:56).
Full results here.
No Hands Trail Run
We wrap things up in sunny Auburn, California, at the No Hands Trail Run where Saturday’s 50k race produced 75 finishers. In the men’s race, David Pillard claimed the win in 4:58:05. Miles Brazil finished just behind in a time of 5:09:19. Nate Seltenrich was third (5:12:05). The top female 50k performance went to Lena Wirth who secured the women’s win in 6:27:33. Kirstin Traff was the second woman across the line in 6:37:03. Jill Davis finished third female (6:50:06).
Full results here.
Other results include: Frozen Gnome (Crystal Lake, IL), No Hands Trail Run (Auburn, CA), Frosty Cox 6 Hour Trail Race (Concord, NC), San Diego 50 and Trail Runs (San Diego, CA) and Frozen: H3 (Bethera, SC).