Headstarts
So that people of all ages can compete in this race on a more or less equitable basis some runners are allowed to begin the race before others. The following table indicates how many Headstart minutes each entrant will receive based on gender and age. Headstart minutes are based on years of historical data of actual times and records of male and female runners. Compiled and interpreted by Bill Rus, the race's official handicapper, the information is presented to the committee for review annually. Typically at least eight of the ten top finishers have been from different handicap groups.
2024 Headstarts
The 2023 race was fast: three single-age records were set among the top four finishers. The times for the top five runners averaged just 3 seconds above the single-age records. The new single-age records do not merit change to the handicaps.
Observarions and Recommendations for 2024:
The handicaps again produced a balanced field among top runners. Women in their teens, 20s, 30s, 50s and 60s placed in the top 10. Julia Maxwell Bailey (27) and Diana Fitzpatrick (65)
set new single age records. The five men who finished in the top ten were in their 20s, 30s and 50s. Paddy O’Leary (35) set a new men’s single-age record. Notably, only two men in their sixties – a strong category in past years – earned black shirts in 2023. They ran admirable races, but each posted times six minutes above the single age records for their ages. These results indicate that the lack of representation among the top few runners is not the result of the handicaps but instead due to the nature of the field this year.
For the 2024 race:
- No change to the handicaps.
- Continue to reduce the head start minutes by one minute for the winners of the last three races:
- Paddy O’Leary – one minute for winning in 2023
- Eddie Owens – one minute for winning in 2022
- Mark Tatum - one minute for winning in 2021
| Head Start Table and Start Times for 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||