Boilermaker 15K M75-79: Doug Wood Runs Away With It

• Doug Wood, 76, wins in 1:18:44 — an 8:27/mi pace that put nearly seven minutes between him and runner-up Philip Mulry (1:25:30).
• Paul Boor, 79, finishes 7th in 1:53:23 — the oldest man in the top 10, and among the most impressive performances in the M75-79 field.
• Tight battle for 4th and 5th: Leo Berman (1:39:01) held off Fred Miller (1:39:24) by just 23 seconds across 15 kilometers.
• 32 finishers completed the M75-79 race, with 20 listed individually and 12 more crossing the line behind them.

Doug Wood of Canastota, NY made the M75-79 race his own from the opening miles. Running at 8:27/mi, the 76-year-old was already moving through the broader men's field — his split from 5K to 10K ranked among the fastest in the women's field at that stage, a reflection of just how much pace he was carrying. He crossed in 1:18:44, a margin of 6:46 over second place. That's not a close race; that's a statement.

Philip Mulry of Chapel Hill, NC claimed 2nd in 1:25:30 (9:10/mi), but his race told a different story in the middle miles. Where Wood was climbing through the broader field between 5K and 10K, Mulry was drifting back — his position among men slipped from 2,180th to 2,322nd over that same stretch. He held on for the silver, but the gap to Wood was established well before the finish. William Pritchard of Albany, NY rounded out the podium in 1:34:53, running 10:11/mi and finishing a full 9:23 behind the winner.

The most competitive racing in the field happened just outside the podium. Leo Berman of Syracuse and Fred Miller of Liverpool, NY were locked in a duel through the back half — and it was Miller who made the move late. His split from 10K to the finish ranked 3,325th among women in the field, while Berman's ranked 3,609th, meaning Miller ran that closing stretch noticeably faster. He closed the gap but couldn't quite complete the pass, finishing 4th (1:39:01) and 5th (1:39:24) respectively — 23 seconds the final verdict.

Paul Boor of Galveston, TX deserves a separate mention: at 79, the oldest man to finish in the top 10, he crossed in 1:53:23 (12:10/mi) to take 7th. Behind him, a dozen more M75-79 competitors spread across a wide range of times, from John Capobianco's 1:56:16 in 8th to Randy Tuttle and Jeffrey Zammiello both finishing in 2:14:39 in 18th and 19th. Thirty-two men showed up and got it done on a humid July morning in Utica.