M75-79: Ashwood Takes the Win in Napa's Eldest Men's 5K Field

• Paul Ashwood, 75, of Novato, won the M75-79 race in 38:17 (12:19/mi).
• Pat Muleady, 77, of Napa, finished 2nd in 49:17 (15:52/mi).
• The two-man M75-79 field separated by 11 minutes flat on a cool, breezy Napa morning.

Two men, two towns, and a shared willingness to toe the line on a 48°F morning with a 12 mph wind cutting through Napa Valley — that's the M75-79 story at the 2025 Napa Valley Marathon 5K.

Paul Ashwood, 75, from Novato, led the way from start to finish, crossing in 38:17 at a 12:19/mi pace. That's a controlled, purposeful effort for a man in his mid-seventies, and it earned him the win in this field. Pat Muleady, the elder of the two at 77 and racing on his home turf in Napa, came home in 49:17 — a 15:52/mi pace — to claim 2nd. The 11-minute gap between them reflects a genuine difference in pace on the day, with Ashwood running considerably quicker across every mile of the course.

What deserves recognition here isn't the margin — it's the presence. Racing a 5K at 75 and 77 years old, in cold and wind, takes a particular kind of commitment. Ashwood takes the M75-79 title, and Muleady earns his place on the results sheet. Both men finished. Both men showed up. In a field of two, that's the whole story — and it's a good one.