When it comes to the Subaru 4-Mile Chase, Demesse Tefera can thrive under any conditions.

Tefera, who had successfully defended his title last year when the temperature was in the

80s, was even better in the 29th annual running of the race in Buffalo on Friday. The Kenya

native had no trouble with a moderate rain and temperatures in the 50s as he made it three

wins in a row.

Tefera's time was 18:16, his best yet here. It was good for a 23-second victory over

Abraham Ng'etich, a Kenyan who once ran for Iona College.

In the women's race, Jane Murage of Kenya was the winner in 20:39. She was four seconds

ahead of Deba Buzunesh of Ethiopia.

The Subaru race always attracts a top international field, and the runners displayed their

talents right from the opening horn. The lead pack of about eight runners hit the 1-mile mark

in 4:28, which was about on pace to threaten the course record of 17:53.

Some of the runners couldn't maintain that pace and dropped back. As the runners ran down

Summer Street and approached Elmwood Avenue and the 3-mile mark, the pack was down to two:

Tefera and Ng'etich.

"The other guy [Ng'etich] is my friend, we came together," Tefera said.

This was no time for friendship. Tefera put on a burst of speed and was suddenly ahead by

25 yards. The race was effectively over at that point, with Tefera's lone problem being an

ambulance that sped down Elmwood Avenue in the other direction and caused a small traffic jam.

He splashed home a winner at the finish on Bidwell Parkway.

"Today the weather was very fine, but the road was sloppy," Tefera said.

Is Tefera interested in going for four in a row next year?

"Maybe," he said. "I don't know, I don't know."

Murage won in a similar manner to Tefera. She pulled ahead around the 3-mile mark and had a

comfortable margin for the rest of the way.

"We were together until about 3 miles, and then the last mile I sprint out and I leave her

behind," said Murage, who trains just outside of Philadelphia.

"My friend told me it was a good race, and a fast race. So I came here to see if I could

improve my time," added the 22-year-old. "I like 4 miles. The other time I ran 4 miles I did

21 minutes, but this one was faster."

Murage used a word not usually heard in the summer to describe her night.

"It was cold, because it was raining," she said. "I'm not used to it, but today I said I'm

going to race in the rain. You have to jump over the water, [be careful] going around the

corners."

The moisture on the road and in the air was on the minds of everyone involved in the race.

That included Anthony Gallo of Flagstaff, Ariz., who finished fifth in 18:54.

"I've run this race two other times, years and years ago. It was hot and humid. So I'll

take the rain. It cools you off. The corners can be tough, but I don't think it negatively

impacted the race at all," said Gallo, an upstate New York native.

Gallo has been chasing Tefera all week. Tefera finished seventh at Sunday's Boilermaker Run

in Utica, while Gallo — the top American finisher at the Shamrock half marathon in

Virginia Beach, Va., in March — was 11th.

"A lot of these guys do the circuit, and they are definitely fast," Gallo said.

The men's masters winner was El Arbi Khattabi of West Chester, Pa., while the women's

winner among over-40 runners was Paula Wiltse of Brockville, Ont.

Among local runners, Chris Muldoon of Tonawanda placed 10th in 19:34, while Allison Carr of

West Seneca was ninth in 23:02.

The male and female open winners earned $1,000 each, while the American winners —

Kyle Heath of Syracuse (18:45) and Laurel Burdick of Manlius — picked up $500 each. The

two masters victors won $600 each.