M70-74: Gene Dykes Runs 3:23:58 to Claim the Age Group

• Gene Dykes, 70, wins in 3:23:58 — a 7:47/mi average that left the rest of the M70-74 field more than eight minutes back.
• Malcolm Oliver takes 2nd in 3:32:17, with Chris Wolfe 3rd in 3:36:34 — the top three all finished within 12:36 of each other.
• A tight 7th–8th battle: Jimmy McCullough (4:19:50) and Anthony Johnson (4:20:13) were separated by just 23 seconds after 26.2 miles.
• 36 men finished in the M70-74 age group, ranging from Dykes's 3:23:58 down through the back of the field.

Gene Dykes made the M70-74 race look like his personal time trial. Running 7:47 per mile across the full 26.2, the 70-year-old from Bala Cynwyd, PA, steadily climbed through the men's field as the race wore on — his checkpoint progression showed a consistent forward march from the early miles all the way to the finish, where he posted one of the stronger closing splits in the group. Eight-plus minutes of clear air separated him from anyone else in his age group by the time he crossed the line.

Malcolm Oliver of Morristown, TN, was the runner-up in 3:32:17, holding a steady rhythm at 8:06/mi to keep second place secure. Chris Wolfe of Ann Arbor, MI, rounded out the podium in 3:36:34 — though his checkpoint data tells a slightly different story: Wolfe was actually moving through the men's field efficiently in the first half, but gave back some of those gains in the closing miles, eventually settling into 3rd at 8:16/mi. Victor Petrovic of Calgary rounded out the top four in 3:39:58, never quite threatening the podium but running a composed 8:23/mi to finish clear of 5th.

Ralph Babel of Sparks, NV, wrapped up the top five in 3:49:07, a full 9:09 behind Dykes. Then came a notable gap before Steve Boyadjian's 4:12:18 in 6th. The race for 7th was the day's closest sub-battle: Jimmy McCullough of Mount Shasta, CA, finished 7th in 4:19:50, with Anthony Johnson of Lincoln, CA, right behind in 4:20:13 — 23 seconds the margin after nearly four and a half hours of racing.