American River 50 Ten-Miler F40-49: Tommasini takes the title in a warm-weather battle

• Jennifer Tommasini (El Dorado Hills, CA, age 49) won the F40-49 group in 1:53:58 (11:24/mi), posting the 5th-fastest women's split on the Rattlesnake Bar→Last Gasp segment.
• Michelle Huffman charged from 17th among women at Rattlesnake Bar all the way to 5th by Last Gasp — the 4th-fastest women's split on that stretch — finishing just 1:18 back in 1:55:16.
• Cathleen Mills rounded out the podium in 2:01:37, holding 8th among women at the finish with the 8th-fastest women's split on the Last Gasp→Finish segment.
• The F40-49 field spanned nearly two full hours from first to last, with Tommasini's 1:53:58 to Rebecca Kent's 3:48:55 (22:54/mi) in 11th.

On a warm, clear day in Auburn — 73°F with dry air — eleven women in the F40-49 age group tackled the American River 50 Ten-Miler, and it was Jennifer Tommasini of El Dorado Hills who crossed first in 1:53:58. Sitting 3rd among women out of the opening stretch, she settled to 4th by Rattlesnake Bar and held that position through the finish, running a consistent 11:24/mi across the course.

The most dramatic move in the group belonged to Michelle Huffman. Starting the race deep — 17th among women — she unleashed the 4th-fastest women's split on the Rattlesnake Bar→Last Gasp segment, vaulting all the way to 5th among women and 2nd in the F40-49 group, where she stayed. Her 1:55:16 finish was just 1:18 behind Tommasini — a close gap earned by genuine speed on that middle stretch, not by starting near the front.

Cathleen Mills, also from El Dorado Hills and age 49 like Tommasini, completed an all-El Dorado Hills top-two podium story by finishing third in 2:01:37. She ran a steady race, placing 7th among women early before settling to 8th by the finish, and her 8th-fastest women's split on the Last Gasp→Finish segment showed she had something left in the legs when it counted. Julienne Ohara-Hsu (4th, 2:16:31) and Alena Storlie (5th, 2:17:36) — separated by just 65 seconds — both made significant moves forward in the women's field across the second half, with Ohara-Hsu climbing from 42nd among women at the start to 21st by the finish.