Boilermaker 5K F75-79: Jean Miller Runs Away With It

• Jean Miller wins in 34:59 (11:16/mi), finishing over 3 minutes clear of the field.
• Marlene Davis takes 2nd in 38:00, edging Marguerite Fulton-Newton (3rd, 39:01) by just over a minute.
• Places 4 through 7 were separated by only 2:07 — from Donna Clifford-Merriam's 44:26 to Cari Dominguez's 46:33.
• All seven women finished on a 84°F afternoon in Utica — a genuine feat at any age.

Jean Miller made this one look decisive from the outset. Her 34:59 and 11:16/mi pace were in a different gear than everyone else in the F75-79 field, and the 3-minute-plus gap she put between herself and 2nd place tells the whole story. On a warm July afternoon with temperatures sitting at 84°F, that kind of sustained pace is no small thing.

Behind Miller, Marlene Davis and Marguerite Fulton-Newton ran a proper race within the race. Davis crossed in 38:00 at 12:14/mi, with Fulton-Newton just 61 seconds back at 39:01 and 12:33/mi. The gap was real — Davis ran the faster pace — but Fulton-Newton kept the pressure on throughout, making 2nd place something Davis had to earn.

The back half of the field produced its own compelling cluster. Donna Clifford-Merriam (4th, 44:26) and Gail Sullivan (5th, 44:42) were separated by just 16 seconds, with Mary Nichols (6th, 45:59) and Cari Dominguez (7th, 46:33) rounding out a group that finished within a little over two minutes of each other. Seven finishers, seven women aged 75 or 76, racing a 5K in summer heat — that's the story worth telling.