Simon Gutierrez may be 48 years old, but he runs like a much younger man. Gutierrez, of Colorado Springs finished third in the masters race at USA Cross Country Nationals, Feb 7 at Flatirons Gold Course in Boulder, Colo. Gutierrez charged to an early lead, covering the first mile in 5 minutes, 5 seconds. "I wanted to make sure we had a fast first mile because there are a lot of good sea-level guys," he said. "I thought that would hurt them and it did, except for two guys who took it to me at the end."
Jacques Sallsberg, 40, of Oasadena, Calif., won the 8K race in 26 minutes, 29 seconds. Greg Mitchell, 41, of McMinnville, Ore., was second in 26:44. Gutierrez, who finished fourth in the same race a year ago, clocked 27:00. He also had the best age-graded percentage, which is a method of calculating performances for any given age. Gutierrez's 87 percent performance would be considered a "national class time," and nearly "world class," by USA Track and Field.