M50-54: Martin Steer Runs Away With It in San Francisco

• Martin Steer, 50, wins in 25:48 (8:18/mi) — a 1:16 margin over runner-up Matthew Walsh's 27:04.
• Walsh edges Tzau for 2nd: Matthew Walsh (27:04) holds off David Tzau (28:07) by 1:03, with Andreas Hübscher (28:21) just 14 seconds further back.
• Tight cluster at 15th–17th: Ismael Martinez (36:46), Baek Soo Kwak (36:48), and Aldwin Carino (36:50) finish within four seconds across three places.
• 34 finishers toe the line in the M50-54 race on a cool, breezy San Francisco morning — 56°F with 14 mph winds and near-total humidity.

Martin Steer of Saffron Walden made this one look straightforward. His 25:48 — an 8:18/mi clip — was simply in a different gear from the rest of the M50-54 field. The 1:16 gap he put into second-place Matthew Walsh wasn't a photo-finish drama; it was a controlled, confident performance that left little doubt about who owned this race from the front.

Walsh, 52, of Corte Madera, had his own battle to manage. He crossed in 27:04 to hold off David Tzau (28:07, 9:03/mi) and Andreas Hübscher (28:21, 9:07/mi) — those two running nearly shoulder-to-shoulder for 3rd and 4th. Chakravarthy Garimella rounded out the top five in 30:37, with a noticeable 2:14 gap back to Alejandro Alcantara in 6th (31:51).

The mid-pack delivered its own entertainment. Isusko LLodio (14th, 36:42), Ismael Martinez (15th, 36:46), Baek Soo Kwak (16th, 36:48), and Aldwin Carino (17th, 36:50) were separated by just eight seconds across four finishers — a genuine scramble for position that the clock resolved only narrowly. Todd Kimball (19th, 37:30) and Flash Welch (20th, 38:15) closed out the listed field, with 14 more M50-54 finishers completing the 34-man field behind them on a morning when San Francisco's signature chill kept conditions honest for everyone.