Browne rolls to third win here

Dan Browne wasted little time during the 20th anniversary of the Army Ten-Miler yesterday.

Turning the nation’s largest 10-mile footrace into his own solo training run for the New York City Marathon in two weeks, Browne broke free after two miles and earned his third Army title in record fashion here.

“I think this bodes well for New York City,” said Browne, who lowered his own event record from 1997 by 15 seconds to 47 minutes, 29 seconds.

Casey Smith of Arlington, also in preparation for a marathon (Philadelphia on Nov.21) matched her dominating victory here in 2002 by winning again this year.

The drizzling rain throughout the morning, coupled with temperatures in the mid-50s, did little to dampen Browne’s triumphant return. Actually, the Portland, Ore., native felt right at home with the weather.

“It’s like this four months of the year in Portland,” Browne said. “I’m very focused on the New York City Marathon, so if I didn’t look comfortable out there it would have been a problem.”

Browne’s focus is much different than in 1998. Just out of West Point and a part of the Army’s elite running squad WCAP (World Class Athletes’ Program), Browne then was bursting onto the scene as a competitive distance runner. The 5-10, 145-pounder took the leap from 10,000 meters to marathon in 2002 and won big at the USA Marathon Championships in his debut at Twin Cities (2:11.35).

Third-place finishes in the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in February in Birmingham, Ala., and in the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials 10,000 meters in July in Sacramento, Calif., earned Browne, 29, a trip to the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. More importantly, they solidified his status as one of America’s top distance runners.

So he came here this year not as an Army athlete but as a professional runner and member of the Oregon National Guard, coached by one of America’s all-time greats, Alberto Salazar. Browne came to break his own record, although after he picked up a cold a few weeks ago, he was not quite sure he could do it.

He flew into Washington last Sunday to attend a White House reception of U.S. Olympians and Paralympians on Monday. Browne said he visited Walter Reed Hospital and kept to his steady diet of 120 miles during the week with 18- to 19-mile runs in the nation’s capital because it was too early to taper for the marathon.

Right from the gun, he left behind some 13,000 starters and was under the record. Former WCAP teammate Teddy Mitchell and 2002 Army champ Ryan Kirkpatrick of Fort Carson, Colo., barely held onto Browne through the first mile in 4:38, already seven seconds ahead of the record.

“I knew he was going way faster than I wanted to,” said Kirkpatrick, 26, who watched Browne slowly pull away over Memorial Bridge and toward the two-mile mark. Mitchell, close runner-up to Sammy Ngatia in 2000, also dropped back.

Browne passed the midpoint in 23:42, 10 seconds ahead of pace. “It was a little faster than I expected,” he said.

Browne was more than a minute ahead when he crossed over the 14th Street Bridge and headed into the Pentagon parking lot. He pumped his fist a few times down the final stretch before crashing the finishing tape.

Kirkpatrick followed in 48:32, Luigi La Bella of Rome (third last year) was third again in 49:32 and Mitchell of Albuquerque, N.M., was fourth in 50:03.

Ngatia, 45, won the master division for the fourth time in 52:45.

Smith was in as much control of the women’s race as Browne was of the men’s competition.

“I felt good the whole way,” said the 25-year-old Arlingtonian. “This year I PR’d by a minute over my time here two years ago.” Her winning time yesterday was 57:26 compared with 58:21 in 2002.

Casey said she saw a couple of women near her at mile three or four but was solo from there, adding, “I didn’t look back.” Former Leesburg, Va., resident Christine Clifton of Kirkland, Wash., was second in 58:02.

Smith was joined this year by previous champions: Alisa Harvey (1998, 1999, 2003) was fifth and Susan Molloy (event record 56:20 in 1995) was 41st. Martha Merz of Mystic, Conn., won her third consecutive masters title in 1:00:51.