M65-69: Harper Dominates, a Wide-Open Chase Behind

• Michael Harper (Roseville, CA) won the M65-69 age group in 2:50:10 at an 8:30/mi average — nearly 29 minutes clear of 2nd place.
• Mansour Monem (Auburn, CA) finished 2nd in 3:18:57, holding off George Carter (Rocklin, CA) by nearly 14 minutes in 3rd at 3:32:27.
• The spread from 1st to 7th across seven finishers spanned 1:41:01 — a field of widely varied paces ranging from 8:30 to 13:37/mi.
• Brian Bronson (4th, 3:52:14) and Jeff Olson (5th, 4:10:49) were separated by nearly 19 minutes, with Milt Gee (6th, 4:21:39) and Robert Bardini (7th, 4:32:11) rounding out the group within about 10 minutes of each other.

Michael Harper turned this M65-69 race into a one-man show. Running 8:30/mi across 20 miles on a warm November morning — 74°F with humidity nudging 60% — the 67-year-old from Roseville crossed in 2:50:10 and was never seriously threatened. His gender place tracking tells the story: he moved from 134th to 111th among all men as the race wore on, steadily picking off runners across the field. At that pace and in those conditions, it was an authoritative performance.

Behind Harper, the real race was for the podium. Mansour Monem (age 66, Auburn) ran a disciplined 9:57/mi to claim 2nd in 3:18:57, his gender place actually improving from 217th to 201st over the course — a sign he was running people down in the back half. George Carter (age 67, Rocklin) finished 3rd in 3:32:27 at 10:37/mi, also gaining ground late, moving from 249th to 231st among men. Nearly 14 minutes separated 2nd from 3rd, so while Monem was never truly in danger, Carter was moving in the right direction.

From 4th onward, the gaps widened considerably. Bronson (3:52:14, 11:37/mi) finished nearly 20 minutes behind Carter, with Olson (4:10:49, 12:32/mi), Gee (4:21:39, 13:05/mi), and Bardini (4:32:11, 13:37/mi) each separated by roughly 10–11 minutes. Seven men from across the Sacramento region — Roseville to Stockton — all took on 20 miles of Folsom parkway in the November heat, and every one of them finished.