Local Runner Found Guilty of Lining Up Near 7:00/Mile Banner at Half-Marathon Start When He Can’t Run Anywhere Near a 7-Minute Mile
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A jury yesterday found a local man guilty of lining up just a few feet from the 7:00-minute-mile pace banner in a half-marathon start corral, when in fact he was incapable of running anything even close to a 7:00-minute mile.
Under a strict new law, David Fincher, 38, could face penalties including a fine of up to $5,000 and up to 18 months in prison. He will be sentenced early next month.
Fincher’s case stems from his participation in the Mills Pit Half-Marathon earlier this year. Arriving late for the race, Fincher hastily pinned his bib number to his shirt and hopped a barrier to join the hundreds of runners already in the event’s starting corral.
Fincher, who admitted during cross examination that he had “barely” trained for the race, elbowed his way toward the front of the pack of runners, eventually settling in just a few feet from a large banner reading “7:00,” meaning that runners in that area expected to run at or about 7:00-minute-per-mile pace.
A runner averaging 7 minutes per mile would finish a half-marathon in about 1 hour 32 minutes.
Prosecutors presented a mountain of evidence showing that Fincher “was not remotely in 7-minute shape, and, in fact, perhaps hasn’t run even one 7-minute mile in his life.” Fincher’s best ever time for a half-marathon, they told the jury, is 2:04:33—an average pace of 9 minutes 30 seconds per mile.
Fincher’s time for the Mills Pit Half-Marathon was 2:20:08, a pace of 10:42 per mile.
The jury, consisting of fellow runners, took just 20 minutes to return a guilty verdict.
Before dismissing the jurors, Judge William Somerset said that he hoped Fincher’s prosecution would serve as an example to others.
“The days of lining up (in race start corrals) where you clearly don’t belong are over,” Somerset said. “Those pace banners are there for a reason; any runner who doubts that should talk with Mr. Fincher.”
Fincher, who sat expressionless for most of the trial, did not comment.
