M40-44: Stephone Paige II Runs Away With It in Fresno

• Stephone Paige II won the M40-44 group in 22:25 (7:13/mi), nearly two full minutes clear of the field.
• Nick Bennett claimed 2nd in 24:23, with Trevor Clinard rounding out the podium in 25:47.
• Places 4 through 6 — Caplinger, Maychen, and Marez — were separated by just 30 seconds (26:47 to 27:17).
• All 20 men in the M40-44 group crossed the finish line on a warm, clear Fresno morning.

Stephone Paige II, making the trip down from Los Angeles, was in a different race entirely. His 22:25 at 7:13 per mile wasn't just a win — it was a statement. The gap back to Nick Bennett (24:23) stood at 1:58, a margin that made the top of the M40-44 leaderboard look less like a competition and more like a time trial. At 40, Paige is the youngest man on the podium, and he used every bit of that edge.

Bennett held 2nd comfortably, finishing 1:24 ahead of Clovis's Trevor Clinard (25:47, 8:18/mi). Clinard in turn had daylight on Justin Caplinger, who crossed 4th in 26:47. But from there, the racing got tight: Caplinger, Daniel Maychen, and Manuel Marez — who traveled up from Tulare — were locked in a genuine battle, with just 30 seconds separating 4th from 6th over 3.1 miles in 74-degree heat. That's the kind of cluster where a single strong finishing kick reshuffles everything.

Behind them, Victor Garibay and Ku Vang broke 32 minutes for 7th and 8th, while a mid-pack group of seven runners between 34 and 43 minutes filled out the competitive core. At the back, all 20 finishers made it home — including Brandon Bedrosian, who completed the course in 1:03:46 to close out the M40-44 field.