What’s Up in Ultra This Weekend – May 14

As summer inches closer, our UltraRunning Calendar continues to go deeper than ever before. We have 49 different races to choose from this coming weekend, May 14-15, scattered across the country. In this week’s What’s Up in Ultra, we’ve highlighted a handful that caught our eye.

The 38th edition of the Quicksilver 50k/100k race on Saturday, May 14 in San Jose, California, is a must-do for any Bay Area runner. The course features hilly, yet scenic single-track trails and fire roads that meander through peaceful oak forests and wide-open meadows. Runners will also traverse along ridges with spectacular views of the Santa Clara Valley and the Santa Cruz Mountains. This event has been going on for nearly four decades for a good reason. The 100k distance is a Western States Endurance Run qualifier if you finish in under 16 hours.

At the Sussex County Fairgrounds in Augusta, New Jersey, the 3 Days at the Fair offers six different race distances on a USATF-certified, one-mile loop course. The paved loop is fairly flat with approximately 5% crushed gravel. The 144-hour race began on Monday, May 9, and the remaining events all start on Thursday-Saturday, including 6/12/24/48/72-hour options.

The Cruel Jewel 100 in Blairsville, Georgia, is quite simply, extremely cruel. With the race distance actually 105.9 miles and boasting 33,000 feet of ascent and descent, you truly can’t find a more beastly course to test your mettle. Taking place deep in the beautiful Chattahoochee National Forest of the North Georgia Mountains, you’ll find a bit of everything at this event. Technical, single-track trails, ferns and old growth poplar trees, steep ascents, even steeper descents, a section of the course called the “Dragon’s Spine,” lush, green forests and so much more. The race begins at noon on Friday, May 13 in Vogel State Park, and is a Western States, Hardrock 100 and UTMB qualifier. There is also an accompanying 56-miler that starts on Saturday morning.

Bouncing back across to Smith Rock State Park in Terrebonne, Oregon, and only 45 minutes north of the UltraRunning Magazine headquarters in Bend, is the Smith Rock Ascent 50k on Saturday, May 14. A 641-acre park located in Central Oregon’s high desert, Smith Rock is considered to be the birthplace of North American sport climbing. The area has also become a year-round destination for ultrarunning enthusiasts. With drop-dead gorgeous views, it’s no wonder this race is sold out with more than 350 participants. 

In Stearns, Kentucky, the Yamacraw 50k is a rolling, point-to-point course treating ultrarunners to some of the most beautiful trails in the southeast. Passing by gorge overlooks, stunning natural arches and waterfalls in the Daniel Boone National Forest and Big South Fork National River & Recreation Areas, this is an ultramarathon to add to your hot list for 2023 as this year’s edition is also completely full.

Other races on our UltraRunning Calendar this weekend include the ​​Rock the Ridge 50-miler in New Paltz, New York, the Massanutten Mountain Trails 100 Mile Run in Fort Valley, Virginia, the Tiger Claw 50-miler in Issaquah, Washington, the Harriers Elk-Beaver 50k/50m/100k in Victoria, British Columbia, all beginning on Saturday, May 14, and a new race, the SAMO 100 in Malibu, California, starting at 5 a.m. on Friday, May 13. 

If you’re racing at one of these events or somewhere else on, or perhaps even off our calendar, leave a comment and link below so we can follow along. Any races not in our database can easily be added and we thank you in advance for helping out.