M65-69 at Chicago 13.1: Pereyra Runs Away from the Field
- Jorge Pereyra won M65-69 in 1:26:21 (6:35/mi) — nearly 20 minutes clear of 2nd place.
- Rainer Schochat edged Steve Lambert by 3:53 for the runner-up spot, with Lambert clocking 1:49:54.
- Rich Zappen and Jerome Giacchino staged a tight battle for 4th, separated by just 10 seconds (1:53:53 vs. 1:54:03).
- Rich Zappen was the strongest finisher in the back half, posting the fastest 15K-to-finish split among the top five.
Jorge Pereyra simply ran a different race than everyone else in the M65-69 group. His 6:35/mi pace through a warm, windy Chicago morning — 79°F and 20 mph gusts — produced a 1:26:21 that stood nearly 20 minutes ahead of 2nd place. That kind of margin doesn't happen by accident; it happens when one runner is operating at a level the rest of the field can't touch. Pereyra's place in the broader men's field fluctuated between 121st and 139th across checkpoints, a reflection of the wind and heat taking their toll on the race as a whole.
Behind him, Rainer Schochat (1:46:01, 8:05/mi) and Steve Lambert (1:49:54, 8:23/mi) ran their own contained battle for the podium. Schochat held the edge throughout, and Lambert's late fade — his men's-field position slipping noticeably in the final stretch — sealed the 3:53 gap between them at the line.
The most gripping subplot of the day was the fight for 4th. Rich Zappen and Jerome Giacchino were essentially racing each other across 13.1 miles, and Zappen got it done by 10 seconds. What makes Zappen's finish notable is how he got there — his 15K-to-finish split was the strongest of any top-five runner in the group, meaning he was accelerating while others were managing the heat. Giacchino, by contrast, showed his best work early (5K–8K) and gradually ceded ground over the final miles.
Thirty-six men finished in M65-69 on a day that demanded respect from everyone on the course. The conditions — late-spring Chicago heat, stiff wind, low humidity — made every minute earned feel like two. Pereyra earned his in a hurry.
AI recap · generated from official results