Boilermaker 5K Boys (14 & Under): The Roths Rule, and a 10-Year-Old Leads the Way

• D. Roth, age 10, wins in 18:51 at a 6:04/mi pace — topping a 262-runner field that included plenty of 14-year-olds.
• Joey Roth, 2nd in 18:51 — same displayed time, different place, meaning the two New Hartford runners finished separated by the slimmest of margins.
• Ibrahim Mohamed Arabi takes 3rd in 19:36, running a 6:19/mi pace to finish 45 seconds clear of 4th.
• X. Converse, age 9, finishes 8th in 21:54 — the youngest finisher in the top 20, running 7:03/mi to outpace several 14-year-olds.

The headline story in the Boys 14-and-under field writes itself: a 10-year-old from New Hartford won the whole thing. D. Roth crossed in 18:51 at 6:04/mi — a pace that would make plenty of adult runners take notice — and did so in humid, 64°F conditions that made every second earned. Right behind him, Joey Roth (also 13, also from New Hartford) matched that 18:51 on the clock but couldn't quite close the gap, finishing 2nd by the thinnest of margins timing can measure. Whether they trained together or just share a last name, the Roths turned this into a New Hartford showcase at the very front.

Ibrahim Mohamed Arabi of Utica claimed 3rd in 19:36, running a composed 6:19/mi to finish a comfortable 45 seconds ahead of 4th-place Matthew Walden (20:00, 6:26/mi). Walden and Brandon Jarosz of Marcy were locked in a tight battle for 4th and 5th — just two seconds separated them at 20:00 and 20:02. Kevin Wu, also from New Hartford, rounded out the top six in 20:44.

Down the leaderboard, the age story only gets better. X. Converse of Abington, MA — just 9 years old — ran 21:54 to finish 8th, outrunning a pack of 14-year-olds in the process. Three runners bunched at 22:13 (Cole Lasher and Ben Shepard) and another three at 22:49 (Joseph Carlesimo, Mathew White, and B. Welchons) showed just how competitive the middle of this 262-runner field was. In a race full of young athletes, the youngest at the front made the loudest statement.