M25-29: Charlie Lawrence Runs Away from the Field in 2:22:30

• Lawrence dominates: 2:22:30 at 5:26/mi — nearly 6 minutes clear of runner-up Michael Vernau (2:28:19, 5:39/mi).
• Jack Rager's late charge: Starting 13th among men, Rager climbed steadily to finish 3rd in 2:31:58, posting the fastest split of anyone in the field on the final 1.57-mile stretch to the finish.
• Connor Montgomery improves: Back for a second crack at San Francisco after finishing 6th here in 2023 (2:38:22), Montgomery shaved over a minute off that mark to claim 5th in 2:37:12.
• 910 finishers made this one of the deepest fields in the race.

Charlie Lawrence came to San Francisco and made it look straightforward on a cool, humid July morning. The Boulder, CO runner was already 3rd among men at the first checkpoint, then seized the lead by mile 6.52 and never relinquished it — running the fastest split in the field on that early 1.81-to-6.52-mile stretch before cruising home in 2:22:30 at 5:26/mi. His margin of victory — 5 minutes and 49 seconds over Michael Vernau — was emphatic in a 910-man field.

Vernau, a San Francisco local running 5:39/mi, was locked into 2nd from that same early segment onward and finished a clear runner-up in 2:28:19, posting the second-fastest split in the field on that opening stretch. Behind him, the race for the final podium spot was a different story entirely. Jack Rager began the day 13th among men and spent the entire race climbing — 10th, 9th, 7th, 6th, 4th — before locking in 3rd at the finish in 2:31:58. The San Francisco resident saved his best for last, running the fastest closing split of anyone in the field from mile 24.69 to the finish line.

Garrett Gardner (4th, 2:36:15) and Connor Montgomery (5th, 2:37:12) rounded out the top five, separated by just 57 seconds. Montgomery's return to San Francisco was a successful one — he'd finished 6th here in 2023 in 2:38:22, and this year he moved up a spot and went over a minute faster. Behind them, Sheel Patel (6th, 2:40:09), Austin Stoner (7th, 2:41:01), and James Wang (8th, 2:41:04) were tightly bunched, with just three seconds separating 7th from 8th.