Broken Arrow 11K M70-79: Beebe Leads a Field of Nine Up the Mountain

• James Beebe, 79, wins in 1:48:16 — the fastest of nine finishers in the M70-79 field, averaging 15:50/mi across a course that tops out above 7,500 feet.
• Dennis Clancy closes the gap on the final segment — Clancy's Snow King→Finish split was the 149th-fastest among women in the field, compared to Beebe's 131st, trimming the deficit but not enough: Beebe wins by 4:04.
• Gary Clark holds third with a 1:57:41, posting the 171st-fastest split among women on the Olympic Valley East→Snow King leg — the strongest individual segment rank of the podium trio on that stretch.
• A 2-hour spread separates 1st from 9th — Robert Chacon (3:48:31) and Karl Rodriguez Sr (3:48:05) finish within 26 seconds of each other at the back of the field, with Rodriguez edging ahead by the narrowest margin of the day.

James Beebe, at 79 the oldest entrant in this field, did not merely survive the Broken Arrow 11K — he won it. Running at 15:50/mi across roughly 6.8 miles of Sierra Nevada terrain between 6,200 and 7,500 feet, Beebe steadily climbed the men's standings on the final segment, moving from 164th to 152nd among men as others faded on the back half. At an elevation where thinner air can punish anyone who hasn't acclimatized, that kind of late-race momentum is worth noting.

Dennis Clancy (77, Avery, CA) was the closest challenger, finishing in 1:52:20 — a 4:04 gap that looks comfortable but tells a more competitive story in the splits. Clancy's final Snow King→Finish leg was comparatively stronger than Beebe's on that same stretch, suggesting he was closing. Gary Clark (76, San Diego) rounded out the podium in 1:57:41, while Stephen Baughman (71, Mather, CA) came home fourth in 2:06:31, the last finisher under the two-hour-ten mark.

The back half of the field spread wide. Chris Jensen (76) crossed in 2:23:10, Dave Tennant (72) in 2:33:08, and Jeff Rusow (71) in 2:43:40 — each finishing within a reasonable window. Then came a striking gap: Karl Rodriguez Sr and Robert Chacon both needed over three hours and forty-eight minutes, finishing just 26 seconds apart after what must have been a long, grinding final stretch at altitude. In a nine-person field, every finisher earns their place — and at this elevation, finishing is the first victory.