Iron Face Challenge M40-49: Jason Wong runs away with it

• Jason Wong, 44, wins in 1:12:15 — a 14:27/mi average that left the field 12 minutes behind at the line.
• Ross Mckegney (1:24:27) and Elliot Koch (1:28:01) completed the podium, separated by 3 minutes 34 seconds.
• Dustin Rice and Dave Kirby finished 7th and 8th in 1:43:31 and 1:44:00 — just 29 seconds apart after five miles at elevation.
• Sean Galenzoga and Ryan Kaneshiro crossed 12th and 13th in an identical displayed time of 2:05:34, with timing decimals (.87 vs .98) confirming Galenzoga edged ahead by about a tenth of a second.

Fifteen men took on the Iron Face Challenge under brutal conditions — 91°F, clear skies, and a course that never drops below 6,200 feet. For anyone who lives and trains near sea level, that combination of heat and thin air is a genuine test of pacing judgment, and the spread of finish times across this field tells that story plainly.

Jason Wong made it look cleaner than anyone. His 1:12:15 and 14:27/mi average weren't just a win — they were a statement. Runner-up Ross Mckegney, at 48, crossed in 1:24:27 (16:53/mi), a full 12 minutes 12 seconds back, while 49-year-old Elliot Koch held on for third in 1:28:01. The top three were all separated by meaningful margins, but the real battle for the podium was between Mckegney and Koch — 3:34 ultimately the gap between 2nd and 3rd.

Behind them, Aaron Cobia (4th, 1:31:06) and Garrett Mccullough (5th, 1:34:12) kept things honest in the middle of the field, while the tightest racing of the day came between Rice and Kirby — 1:43:31 to 1:44:00, 29 seconds after five hard miles. Joshua Toub followed in 9th at 1:46:10, with Jason Sonterre (10th, 1:51:57) and Peter Veloo (11th, 1:54:26) rounding out the sub-two-hour finishers.

The final chapter belonged to Galenzoga and Kaneshiro, who were inseparable across the course — their 12th- and 13th-place finishes both reading 2:05:34 on the clock, with only timing decimals (0.87 vs. 0.98) splitting them at the line. Bob Czaplicki (14th, 2:21:06) and Thomas Wu (15th, 2:41:38) completed the field, Wu's 32:20/mi average a reminder of just how unforgiving Iron Face can be in the heat.