M65-69 at CIM 2022: Doyle edges Lapado in a 31-second thriller at the top

• Chris Doyle (1st, 3:26:18) won M65-69 with a 7:52/mi average, steadily climbing through the men's field across every checkpoint on the way to the tape.
• 31 seconds separated the top three — Doyle (3:26:18), Gary Lapado (3:26:49), and David Painter (3:27:42) — across 26.2 miles in the rain.
• Steve Yee (4th, 3:33:28) was the only Sacramento local in the top five, running 8:09/mi on his home course.
• 72 men finished in M65-69, with the top 20 all breaking 4:00 on a cool, wet December morning.

The headline story in M65-69 was a slow-burn duel that didn't fully resolve until the final miles. Chris Doyle of Irvine entered the race sitting well back in the men's field but was relentless in his forward movement — his position among the men improved at every single checkpoint, from deep in the pack through to the finish. That sustained momentum was the signature of his victory. He crossed in 3:26:18 at 7:52/mi, taking the M65-69 title by 31 seconds.

Gary Lapado of Gresham, OR ran the opposite kind of race. He was positioned better early — higher in the men's field through the first half — but gradually ceded ground as the miles accumulated, finishing 2nd in 3:26:49. His 35K–40K split was the stronger of his late-race segments, and he held on for a hard-earned runner-up. David Painter of Houston ran a similarly measured 3:27:42 to claim 3rd, his best stretch coming through the 30K–35K segment before fading slightly in the closing kilometers.

Behind the podium, Steve Yee (4th, 3:33:28) and Heinz Raeber (5th, 3:36:21) were never really in contention for the top three but ran solid, consistent efforts. The gap from 5th to 6th — Vennie Tam's 3:42:55 — opened up considerably, and from there the field spread across the remainder of the 72-finisher group, with Mauricio Blandino rounding out the top 20 in 3:56:32. On a wet Sacramento morning with light rain and 56°F temperatures, 72 men 65–69 got it done.