Despite strong, gusty winds, Carlson took charge of the men's lead pack early, leading a group of nearly 20 men past the first mile in 4:47. Occasionally, Fasil Bizuneh (Flagstaff, Ariz.) and Reid Coolsaet (Canada) would take a brief turn at the front only to have Carlson take control again as Dan Browne (Portland, Ore.) and Brian Sell (Rochester Hills, Mich.) remained tucked in the pack.

Passing through 10 km just under 29 minutes, Carlson maintained control of the pace as Browne moved to his side. As the leaders started the long climb up the Hart Bridge towards the eight mile mark, Browne made an effort to break away from the pack. The move was enough to drop everyone except Carlson, who would answer with a move of his own, quickly putting ten meters on Browne.

At the finish inside Alltel Stadium, Carlson hit the line in 44:12, nine seconds ahead of Browne. Coolsaet finished third overall in 44:25 while Bizuneh took third in the championship division in 44:29. Brian Sell and Jason Hartmann (Springfield, Ore.) rounded out the top five in 44:47 and 44:57 respectively.

In the women's race, Kastor led from the gun and was on her own to fight the wind. Running 49:36, Kastor earned her sixth national 15 km title. Katie McGregor (Minneapolis, Minn.) ran the majority of her race alone as well, taking the runner-up spot in 50:53 while Tara Storage (Beavercreek, Ohio) took third in 52:33, Mandi Zemba (Minneapolis, Minn.) fourth in 52:33 and Samia Akbar (Herndon, Va.) rounding out the top five in 52:35.

Athletes competed for a total prize purse of $61,500, with the men's and women's USA Champion earning $12,000 each.