M55-59 at Shamrock: Geiger runs away from the field in Virginia Beach heat

• Bob Geiger wins in 3:14:39 (7:25/mi), nearly six minutes clear of runner-up Kevin Chance — the largest gap on the podium.
• Chance and Serbee trade punches for 2nd: Kevin Chance (3:20:40) edges Dietmar Serbee (3:22:14) by 1:34.
• 4th and 5th separated by six seconds: Dan Kelleher (3:25:32) and Neal Leibowitz (3:25:38) ran nearly identical races to the line.
• 61 finishers completed the M55-59 race on a tough day — 71°F, 73% humidity, and a 17 mph wind off the Virginia Beach coast.

Bob Geiger made the M55-59 race his own. The 55-year-old from Homewood, IL ran 7:25 per mile and spent the back half of the race moving steadily through the men's field — climbing from around 167th among men at the 5K mark all the way to 106th by 40K before holding firm to the finish. His 3:14:39 was nearly six minutes faster than anyone else in the group, and on a humid, windy morning that kind of margin doesn't happen by accident.

Behind him, Kevin Chance and Dietmar Serbee ran their own compelling duel. Chance, also 55, made his biggest move between 35K and the finish, posting one of the stronger late-race splits in the group to lock up second in 3:20:40. Serbee, representing Hastings-on-Hudson, NY, was the more consistent presence through the middle miles but couldn't match Chance's closing gear, finishing third in 3:22:14. Both men ran smart, measured races in difficult conditions.

The fight for fourth was the tightest on the board. Dan Kelleher (3:25:32) and Neal Leibowitz (3:25:38) were separated by just six seconds after 26.2 miles. Kelleher was the stronger presence through the 25K–30K stretch, while Leibowitz had flashed early speed — moving from 189th to 155th among men in just the opening 10K. Neither could shake the other, and in the end Kelleher held on by the narrowest of margins. Lon Chang in sixth (3:26:22) wasn't far behind either, making the 4th-through-6th window a span of just 44 seconds across three runners.