Perfect Race Day, Record Turnout at 2025 Hoag OC Marathon

May 6, 2025

Competitive finishes and Star Wars Day spirit highlight feel-good moments from Newport Beach to Costa Mesa

Orange County, CA /ENDURANCE SPORTSWIRE/ – With cool temperatures, coastal views, and clouds cloaking the sky in classic “May Gray” fashion, Sunday morning couldn’t have been better weather for running a marathon. Or, as half marathoner Ellie Stevens put it, “This is the perfect day.”

And so, on an ideal Sunday morning, a record 15,000 runners, walkers and wheelchair athletes showed up for Day 2 of the Hoag Orange County Marathon Running Festival.

The elite runners took center stage, speeding to the finish line, joined by several inspiring human-interest stories.

The fastest marathoner was Xavier Smith of Lake Forest, who won the men’s marathon in 2:23:41. Stephanie Mundt of Tempe, Arizona, won the women’s marathon in 2:52:08.

“It was perfect weather, and the view of the ocean during the first half of the race was spectacular,” said Mundt, who earned her first marathon win. Mundt ran collegiately at Arizona State, where she battled an eating disorder and multiple stress fractures.

“I’ve gotten healthy since then,” she said. “Found my groove with a sustainable way of training. It feels really good, just awesome.”

Kristopher Mugrage of Alamosa, Colorado, won the men’s half-marathon in 1:07:40, calling the course “beautiful.” Stevens, who lives in Las Vegas, took the women’s half marathon in 1:16:01.

“It was gorgeous,” said Stevens. “It was so, so gorgeous. The support out there was amazing.”

It was also a special morning for Orange County’s Christine Mayfield. Mayfield was at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival in Las Vegas on Oct. 1, 2017, when a gunman fired more than 1,000 rounds from the 32nd floor of Mandalay Bay, killing 58 people and wounding at least 413. On the day of the tragedy, Mayfield had run 24 marathons. She vowed to run 58 marathons in honor of those who died. Sunday’s Hoag OC Marathon was her 58th. Mayfield is 58 years old.

“It’s an honor, an absolute honor,” said Mayfield, who finished in 4:52:29. “It’s been a beautiful journey. Just to know that hopefully the families and close friends of the 58 angels will know that their loved one will never, ever be forgotten. We know their stories. We love their big, beautiful, bold lives. And we hope to honor those lives in the way we spend our days.”

It was also a heartwarming moment for Newport Beach roommates Tyler Schimpf and Hawken Miller. Miller lives with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, a condition that weakens muscle cells. The 6-foot-4, 210-pound Schimpf, 29, a former professional baseball player, pushed Miller in a wheelchair to complete his first marathon.

“It doesn’t matter who you are – 26.2 miles, you feel every bit of it, especially when you’re pushing Hawken. It was an honor to do this for him,” said Schimpf, who was moved by the support on the course. “That’s the coolest part of it is people are out there, cheering each other on. That’s what it’s really about. It’s about a community coming together and inspiring each other.”

Among the most powerful moments of the day came from David Lyman, a retired Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Technician, who completed the full marathon wearing a 74-pound EOD 9 bomb suit. After 8 hours and 55 minutes, Lyman crossed the finish line in Costa Mesa to cheers and tears, raising funds and awareness for the EOD Warrior Foundation.

“This was never about the time,” Lyman said. “It was about finishing. It was about honoring a community that has always carried more than its share – and showing them I can carry this, for them.”

Maybe no one had a bigger smile than Gavin Boller. In 2007, Boller was hit by a truck while walking and lost his right leg. On Sunday, he pushed his way to his first marathon finish in a wheelchair.

Asked what inspired him to start racing, Boller said, “I was in a bad place mentally (after the accident), and I didn’t know how to get out of it. (The idea) came to me out of nowhere, and I’m forever thankful because it changed my life.”

After finishing Sunday, he felt the most satisfying form of exhaustion.

“It was unbelievable,” he said. “I’m done. I have nothing left.”

For complete results, photos and more, visit www.OCmarathon.com.