Reid Buchanan, Kasandra Park top Bloomsday fields, as Americans claim elite titles for first time in decades

When Buchanan reached the overpass, with Ash Street below, that's when he built a four-stride lead.

The rest of the race belonged to Buchanan. Mwaura's final kick couldn't overcome Buchanan's lead.

"I went there (the Trolley Run) just to get a good tuneup effort and I surprised myself with how fast I ran. So I knew something special could happen today," Buchanan said.

Mwaura won bragging rights over Smith, who finished 11th (35:36).

Pre-race favorite Reuben Mosip, who faded heading up Doomsday Hill, dropped out. Simon Waithira, tabbed for second, was seventh.

Buchanan, 33, hasn't been running professionally since his sponsorship ended. But he continues to race because he's trying to put money away for a child's college education.

Buchanan said he dealt with the disappointment of just missing victory four years ago the only way he knew how.

"I had a few beers. How does anyone else deal with their problems?" he said. "And I moved on and kept training. The thing is, you could never win the race if you don't start it. So if I had given up then and never came back to Bloomsday, then I would never get a chance to win."

Moments later a runner ran up to Buchanan and was wildly celebratory with him.

"This is why I like coming back," Buchanan said, moments after accepting congratulations from Brian Barsaiya of Pullman, who finished 20th. "A local guy. I really try to be a part of the running community here when I'm here. These guys, they're really down to earth, blue-collar guys, like me. They have a job just like I do and put in the miles. So it's a crowd that I really mesh with."

Buchanan says he'll return to defend his title. He could be excused if he doesn't because many of the elite winners move on to other things.

But when Buchanan said he will be back, there was a sense of sincerity to his statement.

Buchanan moved to Kansas City with his wife recently and started a family. He continues to run for fitness. But he believes he's never run better.

It showed Sunday.

In the elite women, Kasandra Parker turned the race into a runaway.

Parker, who hails from Guttenberg, Iowa, won in 39:21 — 18 seconds ahead of Rachel Rudel. Pre-race favorite Betty Chepkwony was third (41:05).

Parker took the lead at the first mile and never relinquished.

"I just kind of knew how the race went out last year, so I kind of wanted to simulate that a little bit," Parker said.

Veronica Loleo of Kenya set a course record last year, winning in 38:02.02, more than a minute faster than Parker.

"I knew someone was really close at 2, 2 1/2 miles and then they started fading because I couldn't hear them anymore," Parker said. "Then it sort of changed my perspective like, oh, this might have to be a solo race. But I'm pretty used to training on my own and doing workouts on my own."

Parker ran much better than a year ago when she finished eighth in 40:48. She credited being better prepared to training for her first marathon.

"I'm getting used to running the longer stuff," Parker said. "That's been a huge help in preparing for these other races."

She said Doomsday Hill was challenging.

"I got a little bit tired, but when I made it to the top it's all downhill from (there)," she said. "It's definitely steep. It felt a lot better than last year, though."

In the wheelchair division, Hannah Babalola pulled off a repeat, winning in 41:16.

Vallera Allen won the men's title in a time of 28:52, nearly four minutes ahead of Hermin Garic (32:20), who was trying for a threepeat.