Neither rain, nor cold, nor dark of early morning could keep the athletes of Raleigh's City of Oaks Marathon and Rex Healthcare Half Marathon from their chosen race event today. Of the 3,200 registered participants, 2,716 actually braved the rain and blustery wind, testing their endurance in the 26.2-mile marathon and 13.1-mile half marathon to help raise thousands of dollars for health-related charities.

Patrick Reaves, 24, of Durham, NC captured the men's marathon win, crossing the line in a time of 2:33:03 and earning a $1,300 cash award. Reaves ran in second place for most of the race, working steadily over the grueling, hilly trails of Umstead State Park. But near the 20-mile mark, he quickly overtook today's third-place finisher, Nicholas Robin, 32, also of Durham, and pulled strongly into the lead. Robin finished in 2:39:37, less than a minute behind Orinthal Striggles, 33, of Elgin, SC, who earned second place in a time of 2:38:23. Striggles won $800 and Robin took home $600.

Today's grueling conditions agreed with women's marathon winner Elena Kaledina, 43, of Eugene, OR. Kaledina ran one of her best marathons today to win in 2:49:52, a course-record time. She earned $1,300 for her win and $600 as the first Masters (over age 40) winner. Svetlana Baygulova, 34, of Hebron, KY placed second in a time of 2:55:03, earning $800 for her performance. Monica Joyce, 51, of Ann Arbor, MI took the third-place spot, finishing in 3:03:28. Joyce earned $600 for third place plus $400 as the second-place Masters winner.

"I'm glad it's over," admitted Heather Davis, 36, of Raleigh. Davis took fourth place in the women's marathon competition today in a time of 3:13:57, just over 10 minutes slower than her 2008 time here that earned her the win. "The hills seemed harder this year," she said. "The rain was constant and bothersome, and then the wind picked up and that was tough." Still Davis admitted she was glad she participated in the event, a hometown race that she hopes to return to next year.

Fewer hills and closer finishes characterized today's Rex Healthcare Half Marathon. The men's event was particularly tight. Nine runners led the race in an early pack. As the wind picked up and the rain fell harder, a few runners dropped back, whittling the size of the lead pack to six. The six held tightly together in the last miles, and after a sprint in the final stretch, three athletes finished within one second of each other. The strongest final kick belonged to Kipyegon Kirui, 29, of Chapel Hill, NC, who claimed the course record with a time of 1:05:08. Kirui earned $1,000 for the win. Sprinting toward a photo finish were Daniel Kipkoech, 22, of Kennesaw, GA and Julius Kogo, 24, of Chapel Hill, both earning the official time of 1:05:09. Kipkoech captured second place and a $600 prize while Kogo earned $400 for third.

The women's half marathon was won by 37-year-old Ilona Barvanova of Eugene, OR, who reached the finish in 1:18:15. Barvanova took home $1,000 for the win. Less than a minute behind her was Natalie Sherbak, 23, of Virginia Beach, VA, who took second place and a $600 award. Divina Jepkogei, 24, of Chapel Hill, last year's second-place finisher, earned third this year in 1:19:32 and won $400.

The top five men and top five women runners in today's marathon and half marathon events won cash prizes, as did the first U.S. citizens in both races. (The winners of U.S.-citizen race awards were not available at press time.) Cash prizes were also given out to the top male and female Masters (over age 40) runners in both race events.

Proceeds from the City of Oaks Marathon and Rex Healthcare Half Marathon benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Rex Healthcare Foundation, and Wounded Warrior Project. Presenting sponsor Raleigh Running Outfitters established the City of Oaks Race in 2007 with the intention of bringing a prestigious running event to the city of Raleigh.

Complete race results are available at www.fsseries.com. For more information on the City of Oaks Marathon and Rex Healthcare Half Marathon, visit the official race website, www.cityofoaksmarathon.com.