Rocket City Marathon 5K — F50-54: Gosline Takes It at 9:50 Pace

• Carla Gosline won the F50-54 age group in 30:32, averaging 9:50/mi — more than a minute and seventeen seconds clear of 2nd place.
• Wendy Huskey and Neelam Singh ran the closest battle on the podium, separated by just 55 seconds for 2nd and 3rd.
• Rita Volpi, making the trip from Columbus, OH, finished 4th in 33:02 — only 18 seconds behind Singh.
• A notable mid-pack gap: 8th-place Khanh Bailey finished in 36:38, then nearly six minutes passed before the next cluster arrived around the 43-minute mark.

Carla Gosline, 54, from Arab, AL, ran a commanding race from wire to wire, crossing in 30:32 at a 9:50/mi clip. That margin of 1:17 over Wendy Huskey wasn't close — in a 5K, it's a decisive gap that speaks to a well-executed effort on a mild December morning in Huntsville.

Behind Gosline, the real drama unfolded in the chase pack. Huskey (50, Madison) held off Neelam Singh (51, Owens Cross Roads) by 55 seconds, while Rita Volpi of Columbus, OH closed to within 18 seconds of Singh for 4th in 33:02. Four women separated by just over two and a half minutes — the tightest racing of the day in the F50-54 group.

Loretta Moses and Julie Croushorn ran nearly identical races for 5th and 6th, finishing in 34:54 and 34:55 respectively — a one-second gap after 3.1 miles of racing. Stephanie Burkins (35:28) and Khanh Bailey (36:38) rounded out a tight top eight, all finishing within six minutes of each other. Then the field spread out considerably, with nine runners clustered between 42:56 and 51:11 before the final six finishers completed the 26-strong F50-54 field.

All 26 women who toed the line in this age group finished the race — a full slate on a cool, breezy Alabama December day that offered solid running conditions throughout.