Rocket City 10K — M40-44: Marin Runs Away in the Cold

• Kristopher Marin (43, Centerville OH) won the M40-44 group in 38:59 (6:16/mi) — 1:15 clear of 2nd place, a dominant margin in a 28-man field.
• Kendall Dock (41) went 40:14 (6:28/mi) — a 2:14 improvement over his 42:28 here in 2024, moving from 7th among men to 2nd in M40-44.
• The top six finished within 4:03 of each other, with Theo Goins (40) rounding out that front pack in 43:02 (6:56/mi) in 6th.
• A wide gap opened after 6th: Anonymous Participant (7th, 47:25) crossed more than four minutes behind Goins, separating the front pack from the rest of the field.

Twenty-nine degrees, a 16 mph wind, and clear skies greeted the M40-44 men on the streets of Huntsville — and Kristopher Marin treated it like a training day. The 43-year-old from Centerville, Ohio, clocked 38:59 at a 6:16-per-mile clip, pulling away from the field by a margin of 1 minute and 15 seconds. It was the kind of performance that makes a cold morning feel like a statement — and it came from a man who had already raced this weekend, finishing 6th among men in the 5K. Backing up a strong 5K with a winning 10K effort is a genuine double worth noting.

Kendall Dock (41, New Market, AL) was the clearest improver on the day. He stood on this same start line in 2024 and finished in 42:28; on Saturday he crossed in 40:14 — a 2:14 swing — to claim 2nd in M40-44. Tomasz Dering (44, Huntsville) ran 41:46 (6:43/mi) for 3rd, with Lee Luna (43) and Jermaine Wade (42) close behind at 42:08 and 42:25 respectively. That trio of 3rd through 5th was separated by just 39 seconds across 6.2 miles in the cold. Theo Goins (40, Madison) closed out the front pack in 6th at 43:02.

After Goins, the field spread out considerably. Diego Garcia (8th, 51:16), Masaru Sugasawa (9th, 52:04), and Keith Mack (10th, 52:35) led the middle tier, followed by a steady stream of finishers through Jason Dulon's 1:12:58 in 20th. With 8 additional finishers beyond those listed, the M40-44 group brought 28 men across the line — a solid turnout for a frigid December morning in Huntsville.