Results/Photos

Date: Aug. 21, 2026 Participant: Carlos Pena #13 Race: 2026 Habanero Habanero 135 Distance: 0.0 miles

Steady Grinder Claims Age-Group Title After a Brief Turn at the Overall Lead Carlos Pena, 44, of Laredo, took on the inaugural Habanero 135 a distance TROT added in 2026 specifically because 100 miles wasn't enough for the race's veteran finishers. Racing through Texas heat on the 10km repeating loop, Pena covered 132.6 miles in 42:20:56, finishing 11th overall (10th male) out of 39 starters and capturing the M40-49 division title. Pena's race showed the classic arc of an ultra of this length. He opened fast, running sub-11:00 pace through the first six miles and sitting inside the top-15 overall from the gun, claiming the M40-49 division lead by mile two and holding it for the bulk of the race. As fatigue and heat accumulated, his per-lap pace naturally stretched from the 12-13 minute range in the first 40 miles to the high-teens and eventually high-20s per mile by the race's final third a predictable and well-managed decay over 42-plus hours on course. Most notably, deep into the effort around the 109 to 113-mile mark, roughly 35 hours in Pena briefly held the outright overall lead, topping the entire 39-person field for several consecutive laps before settling into his final placement. Looking ahead, Pena's data shows his sharpest fade came in the final 20 miles, where lap splits climbed past 20-27 minutes per mile. Given the 135's pacer eligibility after mile 50, leaning further into pacer support in that closing stretch could help stabilize the back-half pacing and convert more of that mid-race positioning into a stronger finish. Overall, a well-executed run on one of the state's most demanding courses, punctuated by a genuine moment atop the leaderboard.