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Long before Starter Tom Moore raised his gun, sportswriters were calling the race "the Miracle Mile." "If all the 'Miracle Miles' were laid end to end," protested one old track hand, "they'd reach straight to heaven." But superlatives could be forgiven. Besides Snell and Beatty, the eight-man field included three other sub-4-min. milers: California's Jim Grelle (3 min. 56.7 sec.), and Bobby Seaman (3 min. 58 sec.), Marine Lieut. Gary Weisiger (3 min. 58.1 sec.). Each had a plan for winning: beat Snell. "If we don't beat this guy on his honeymoon," said Weisiger, "we'll never beat him."
The Modesto track was lightning-fast as the runners took their marks. Rangy (5 ft. 10 ½in., 171 Ibs.) Peter Snell, relaxed and smiling, was in lane No. 1; little (5 ft. 51 in., 128 Ibs.) Jim Beatty, tense and drawn, was in lane No. 2. The others were strung out across the track. Bang! At the gun, California's George Jessup pounced in front. Beatty was second, Weisiger third, Grelle fourth, Snell a distant sixth. Nobody expected Jessup to be around for long. Sure enough, midway through the second lap, Beatty leaped into the lead.
Now the battle began. On the third lap, Gary Weisiger sprinted up, grimly fought off Beatty and Grelle. "Go, Gary, go!" fans screamed. They looked for Snell: there he was, lengthening his stride now, slipping past exhausted Jim Beatty —but still 10 yds. behind the leaders. Into the last turn the runners pattered, straining for speed. Grelle began to fade. Could Weisiger hold on? Could Snell catch him? In an instant that nobody who saw it will ever forget, Snell turned on his incredible kick. The impact on the field was the same as if he had kicked them all squarely in the shins. Hrrrooommm! He flashed past Grelle and Weisiger and drew away—5 yds., then 10, then 15. At the finish line, coasting now, he was 20 yds. in front. Officials announced the time: 3 min. 54.9 sec.—the fastest mile ever run in the U.S., the third fastest in history.