Rocket City Front Half: Franklin Dominates M45-49

• Brett Franklin won the M45-49 group in 1:33:47 (7:09/mi), finishing more than 5 minutes clear of second place.
• Keith Chapman took second in 1:38:54 (7:33/mi), running the 9th-fastest 10K→Finish split among the men.
• Chris Thompson was the strongest closer in the back half of the field, moving up six spots among the men on the 10K→Finish leg to finish 5th in 2:05:16.
• The M45-49 field spanned nearly 87 minutes from first to last — Brett Franklin's 7:09/mi to Anthony Joiner's 13:48/mi.

Brett Franklin made the M45-49 race look straightforward. The 46-year-old Huntsville local crossed in 1:33:47 at a 7:09-per-mile clip — a pace that held up well in the warm, humid December conditions (60°F and 85% humidity, unusual for a winter morning in Alabama). He also posted the 6th-fastest 10K→Finish split among the men, meaning he didn't just go out hard and hang on — he was still moving with authority in the closing miles.

Keith Chapman, the Franklin, Tennessee 49-year-old, was a clear and comfortable second at 1:38:54, more than 12 minutes ahead of third-place Penh Beidler (1:51:12). Chapman's 7:33/mi average and the 9th-fastest closing split among the men made him the class of the rest of the field. Beidler, also from Huntsville, and Montgomery's Eric Bogue (1:55:44) rounded out a fairly well-separated top four.

The most interesting late-race movement came from Chris Thompson, who gained six positions among the men on the 10K→Finish segment to finish 5th in 2:05:16 — the 43rd-fastest closing split in the men's field. John Slaughter (Atlanta) was 6th in 2:10:35, while Paul Curry and Anthony Joiner — both Huntsville locals — completed the eight-man group in 2:55:46 and 3:00:59 respectively, finishing within six minutes of each other at the back of the pack.