What’s Up in Ultra This Weekend — September 24

This week’s What’s Up In Ultra is our 50th consecutive column that highlights events on our  UltraRunning Calendar each week. We’re always looking to improve and would love to hear any feedback you have about the weekly column, so drop a comment below. Standouts on our calendar for the first official week of fall include a mountain 100-miler in the Wasatch Mountains, a point-to-point 50k in the Cascade mountains and a classic 50-miler in the Green Mountain State.

In Logan, Utah, starting on Friday, September 23 at 6 a.m., is The Bear 100-miler. The 24th edition of this race is a point-to-point course through the golden aspen and red maples of the Wasatch-Cache National Forest, across the Bear River Range of Idaho and finishing at Bear Lake on the Utah-Idaho border. Three-time winner Karl “Speedgoat” Meltzer of Sandy, Utah, is on the start list for the men, along with Christopher Hammes of Durango, Colorado, who was sixth at the Telluride Mountain Run 40-miler, Brandon Dase of Salem, Utah, who is a four-time, top 10 finisher of The Bear, Dominick Layfield of Los Angeles, California, who was fourth at this year’s Angeles Crest 100, and George Grygar of Salt Lake City, Utah, who took second at the Tushars Mountain Runs 100k in July. For the women, the legendary Pam Reed of Jackson, Wyoming, will look to add The Bear to her long list of accolades, along with Jessi Morton-Langehaug from Sandy, Utah, runner-up at the 2022 Bigfoot 200, Ashley Clinthorne of Lakewood, Colorado, who was fourth at the 2022 Tushars Mountain Runs 100k, Steamboat Springs, Colorado, resident Jenny Fox who was 20th at this year’s Western States 100, and Sydni Scrofani who hails from Bozeman, Montana, and snagged second at the Beaverhead Endurance Runs 100k in July. Read: Believing at the Bear 100 by UltraRunning Ambassador Alex Gold.

The Three Sisters Skyline 50k in Sisters, Oregon, on Saturday, September 24, offers classic Cascade mountain running to kick off the fall season in Central Oregon. Featuring a stunning course with spectacular views of the Three Sisters (North, Middle and South) as well as other snow-capped peaks in the Cascades, the race takes you along the edge of the Three Sisters Wilderness, running amongst Ponderosa Pines, remnants of a 2012 forest fire, lush alpine meadows and more. 

In Flagstaff, Arizona, we have the Flagstaff Sky Peaks Mountain Runs 50k/50m races on Saturday. These high-altitude, lollipop-shaped mountain races start and finish at the Flagstaff Hotshots Ranch and include a visit to the top of the Arizona Snowbowl with views of Humphreys Peak and Agassiz Peak. Both courses feature combinations of single-track trail running along the renowned Arizona Trail, steep terrain and ponderosa pine forests with views of the San Francisco Peaks. Follow live tracking here.

Brownsville, Vermont, plays host to the Vermont 50k/50m on Sunday, September 25. The 29th annual race is always held during the last weekend of September at the beautiful Mount Ascutney, the second-highest peak in Windsor County. This popular race in the Green Mountain State is already sold out with all benefits going to Vermont Adaptive Ski and Sports, an organization that empowers athletes of all kinds through inclusivity. Read: Tribute to the Vermont 50 by the Blue Collar Runners.

Also on our UltraRunning Calendar are Dances With Dirt – Hell 50k/50m in Pinckney, Michigan, the Mountain Lakes 100 in Olallie Lake, Oregon, the Grand Traverse 27-miler in Duluth, Minnesota, The Bear Chase 50k/50m/100k in Lakewood, Colorado, and the inaugural Mammoth Trail Fest 50k by Tim Tollefson in Mammoth Lakes, California, all on Saturday, September 24.

On Monday, September 26, keep your eyes peeled for our very first Ultra Weekend Recap, highlighting all these North American ultrarunning results and more. Subscribing to our newsletter is a guaranteed way to not miss this and more from us, delivered to your inbox every Thursday morning.