Broken Arrow 11K M40-49: Rubio Carrillo Runs Away With It

• Hector Rubio Carrillo (43, Pfronten, Germany) wins in 56:27 at an 8:16/mi average — more than half a minute clear of the field.
• Jamie Stone (40) finishes 2nd in 57:01, with Mikhail Shemyakin (42) taking 3rd in 58:31 — the top three separated by just over two minutes.
• Shemyakin owned the closing stretch, posting the 2nd-fastest Snow King→Finish split in the men's field, the strongest finishing kick among the top three.
• Dustin Needham (41) clocked 1:06:21 for 6th — notably slower than his 1:03:38 finish here in 2024, when he placed 7th among the men overall.

Hector Rubio Carrillo made the M40-49 race look straightforward from the gun. The 43-year-old from Pfronten, Germany crossed in 56:27 — the only finisher in this group to break 57 minutes on a course that climbs through Palisades Tahoe at elevations pushing toward 7,500 feet. At 87°F with thin air overhead, that 8:16/mi average represented a genuine statement of fitness. He moved from 9th to 10th in the men's field on the final Snow King–to-finish segment, holding his position while posting the 6th-fastest closing split among the men — a controlled, confident finish.

Jamie Stone (40, Mill Valley) ran him as close as anyone could, arriving in 57:01 for 2nd — a 34-second gap to the winner that was never quite closed. Stone actually gained a place on the final segment (12th to 11th among men), suggesting he was still pressing hard at the end. Right behind him, Mikhail Shemyakin (42, also Mill Valley) was the story of the closing miles: his Snow King→Finish split was the 2nd-fastest among all men in the race, a blistering finish that helped him climb from 17th to 14th in the men's field and lock up 3rd in 58:31.

Blue Benadum (45, Agoura Hills) held steady for 4th in 1:01:12, while Christopher Inouye (42, Truckee — a local) and Dustin Needham (41) traded blows for 5th and 6th, finishing in 1:06:09 and 1:06:21 respectively. Needham's 2024 appearance here ended in 1:03:38 among the men overall; this year's 1:06:21 marks a tougher day out. The rest of the field stretched across nearly 25 minutes, with 52 finishers total making their way through the heat and altitude of a demanding Tahoe morning.