M35-39: Brendan Gregg Runs Among the Fastest Men in Napa

• Gregg wins in 2:17:40 (5:15/mi) — a time that would have contended for the outright men's title in most recent editions of this race.
• Stephen Desvernine (2:26:07) takes 2nd, climbing from 4th among men at the halfway point to 3rd by the finish — a 27-minute gap back to 3rd-place Brian Macpherson (2:44:11).
• Chris Concannon's late surge stands out: he entered the final 10K ranked 35th among men and finished 26th, posting the 22nd-fastest men's split from 20M to the finish at 2:53:58.
• A deep, competitive field: 12 finishers in M35-39 broke 3:00, and 20 cracked 3:16 — all of this on a cool, humid morning along the Silverado Trail from Calistoga to Napa.

Brendan Gregg, 35, from Sacramento, owned this race from start to finish — almost. He opened as the top men's runner, slipped briefly to 3rd among men through the early miles, then surged back to 2nd by the halfway mark and held it the rest of the way. His 2:17:40 at 5:15 per mile was no mere age-group performance; it placed him near the very front of the men's field and comes within 71 seconds of the current men's course record of 2:15:48. For context, that time would have won the race outright in five of the prior editions listed here. He also posted the 2nd-fastest men's split from 13.1M to 20M — the stretch where many marathons are decided — confirming this wasn't just a brave early pace but a sustained, controlled effort.

Stephen Desvernine, 39, from Seattle, was a model of consistency: 4th among men at the half, 4th at 20 miles, 3rd at the line — a steady, earned climb to 2nd in M35-39 in 2:26:07 (5:34/mi). He too posted a top-three men's split from 13.1M to 20M, meaning both of the top two finishers here were running that critical middle stretch faster than nearly every other man on the course.

Brian Macpherson (2:44:11, 6:16/mi) and Eric Wyler (2:44:46, 6:17/mi) ran a compelling race within a race for 3rd and 4th. Macpherson climbed from 12th among men at halfway to 9th by the finish; Wyler moved from 14th to 11th. Their finishing times are close, but Macpherson's 8th-fastest men's split from 13.1M to 20M versus Wyler's 10th-fastest on the second half tells the story — Macpherson made his move earlier, Wyler pressed late, and 35 seconds separated them at the line.