Jed Smith 50K — M1-29: Simkin Runs Away With It

• Jake Simkin (19, 4:31:24) won the M1-29 age group by a commanding 31:45 over runner-up Dominic Bruciati — running the 50K at an 8:44/mi clip through Sacramento's foggy, humid morning.
• Shane Siebenthall climbed from 25th to 18th among the men over the final stretch, posting the 10th-fastest split in the men's field on the Lap 5 to finish segment to lock up 3rd in 5:23:46.
• Ezekiel Konay (18) was the group's most volatile racer — surging to 8th among men after the Out & Back before fading to 23rd by the finish, crossing 4th in 5:46:30.
• Six finishers completed the M1-29 field, with Ethan Bolger rounding out the group in 6:21:07 — nearly 1:50 behind 5th-place Joseph Musk's 5:51:54.

Jake Simkin, just 19 years old out of El Dorado Hills, made this one look controlled from the start. He held 7th among the men through the bulk of the race before slipping to 10th and then 12th late — but none of that positional drift touched his age-group lead. His 4:31:24 finish at 8:44/mi was in a different gear from the rest of the M1-29 field, and no one came close to threatening it.

Dominic Bruciati (Folsom, 5:03:09) was the steadiest of the chasers, holding 13th among the men for most of the race and never straying far from his rhythm. His 9:45/mi average was notably slower than Simkin's pace, but he ran a clean, consistent race to claim 2nd by a comfortable 20:37 over Siebenthall. Speaking of Siebenthall — the San Jose runner was the group's best closer. He sat 25th among the men at multiple checkpoints before reeling people in on the final lap, ultimately finishing 18th among men with that strong 10th-fastest closing split in the field.

Konay's race told a different story. The 18-year-old from Rancho Cordova surged aggressively early — reaching 8th among the men after the Out & Back — but couldn't hold the effort, sliding back to 23rd by the tape. Joseph Musk (5:51:54) ran a steadier if quieter race in 5th, while Ethan Bolger, making the trip from Thousand Oaks, finished the 50K in 6:21:07 to close out the group.