Two Cities Half Marathon F65-69: Farrell Runs Away with It

• Ana Farrell won the F65-69 age group in 2:13:06 (10:09/mi), finishing more than six and a half minutes clear of runner-up Carmen Albanes.
• Carmen Albanes crossed in 2:19:35 (10:39/mi) for 2nd, but her early strength faded — she dropped from 172nd among women at the 1-mile mark all the way to 289th by the finish.
• Janet Dumonchelle ran a steady closing half, posting the 433rd-fastest women's split on the 10K-to-finish stretch, to claim 3rd in 2:40:42 (12:16/mi).
• 4th and 5th were separated by just 1:29 — Diane Printz-White finishing in 2:55:07 and Naomi Wooten in 2:56:36.

Ana Farrell, 68, from Palmdale, was never truly threatened in the F65-69 age group. She ran a measured opening half — sitting 272nd among women at the mile — then steadily picked off competitors, climbing to 255th at 10K and surging all the way to 199th by the finish. That closing push, the 178th-fastest women's split on the 10K-to-finish segment, told the real story: Farrell got stronger as the race wore on, and her 10:09/mi average was a full 30 seconds per mile faster than anyone else in the group.

Albanes, 67, out of Castaic, ran the opposite race. She was flying early — 172nd among women through the first mile — but the back half caught up with her, and she slid to 289th by the tape. Her 2:19:35 still earned a comfortable 2nd place, but the gap to Farrell widened as the miles accumulated. Dumonchelle, also 67, did the opposite of Albanes: she climbed from 592nd among women at the mile all the way to 471st at the finish, running herself into form over the second half to lock up 3rd in 2:40:42.

The battle for 4th and 5th was the closest contest in the group. Fresno locals Diane Printz-White (66) and Naomi Wooten (65) finished within 89 seconds of each other, at 2:55:07 and 2:56:36 respectively. Mayra Mendez, 66, rounded out the top six in 3:01:29 (13:51/mi), followed by Sheila Lynch, 65, of Clovis in 3:16:04 (14:57/mi). Maria Ramirez, 66, completed the eight-woman field in 4:07:01 — every finisher crossing the line on a warm October day in Fresno.