It was a diamond day for a distance run Saturday morning, as the dozens of Prairie Village, Fairway and Mission Hills residents who completed the Waddell & Reed Kansas City Marathon and Half Marathon can attest. And while it’s an accomplishment just to cross the finish line, we thought it was worthwhile to give a special shout out to the area’s top finishers.
The best overall performer among local residents in both distances was Drake Vidrine, a Mission Hills man who finished the half marathon in 1:20:17 — or a 6:08 mile pace. He finished 11th overall in the half.
And, according to the online race results, he’s between 65 and 69 years old.
Holy jeeze! That is ridiculously impressive! So ridiculously impressive that we couldn’t resist the temptation to Google stalk him…which revealed evidence suggesting that either: 1.) the race administrators registered him with the wrong age group, or 2.) he is not only an incredibly gifted runner, but a late bloomer who has unlocked the secret to halting the aging process.
Whatever the case, congratulations to Drake and rest of PV, Fairway and Mission Hills’ top performers:
Full Marathon: Men’s top three
- John Kohler, PV: 3:00:02, Men’s 30-34 Division, 17th Place overall
- Casey Kershner, PV: 3:09:47, Men’s 35-39 Division, 30th Place overall
- Michael Knapp, PV: 3:10:32, Men’s 25-29 Division, 32nd Place overall
Full Marathon: Women’s top three
- Tracy Whelpley, Fairway, 4:07:11, Women’s 45-49 Division, 515th Place overall
- Kris Bethay, PV: 4:09:44, Women’s (Division unknown), 542nd Place overall
- Ruth Gardner, PV: 4:15:17, Women’s 25-29 Division, 612th Place overall
Half Marathon: Men’s top three
- Drake Vidrine, Mission Hills: 1:20:17, Men’s 65-69 Division (This can’t be right…), 11th Place overall
- Marvin Mastin, PV: 1:26:25, Men’s 45-49 Division, 37th Place overall
- Dan Lara, PV: 1:34:48, Men’s 40-44 Division, 125th Place overall
Half Marathon: Women’s top three
- Lexi Bellem, PV: 1:35:17, Women’s 18-24 Division, 135th Place overall
- Pamela Jurgensmeyer, PV: 1:35:51, Women’s 30-34 Division, 141th Place overall
- Elizabeth Duncan, PV: 1:37:42, Women’s 30-34 Division, 174th Place overall
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