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Registration opens Monday for Army Ten-Miler

Online registration opens Monday for one of the hottest fall races in the nation’s capitol, the Army Ten-Miler.

This year, a record 26,000 runners will have a spot in the Oct. 7 race — 2,000 more than last year — but you should still hustle if you want to join them. Despite a 4,000-runner increase last year, registration closed in just 81 days.

Here’s a rundown of what you need to know about the race that “Runner’s World” magazine named as one of its “6 Big 10-Milers to Run”:

Prices and deadlines

The registration fee for individual racers is $45 through June 30 and $55 starting July 1.

Prices for team registration are $35 through June 30 and $40 starting July 1. Soldier teams — active Army, National Guard and Army Reserve, ROTC and military academies — can pre-pay early for a race entry on the race web site.

The deadline to register using a pre-paid entry is Aug. 16; teams can include between four and eight runners.

For those who prefer to mail their entry, a form will be posted April 2 on the official Web site. But race officials urged runners to sign up early online.

“We are predicting that the race will reach its new and expanded capacity very quickly, so we are urging runners to sign up early — online — to ensure a slot in America’s largest and best 10-mile race,” said Jim Vandak, the race director, in a press release announcing the registration opening.

The course

Runners will start at the Pentagon, heading north along Washington Boulevard in Arlington, Va., before crossing the Arlington Memorial Bridge into Washington, D.C. From there, the course takes runners through Foggy Bottom and along the National Mall on Independence Avenue.

After looping past the Capitol building, runners will return along Independence Avenue and cross the Potomac River again, this time on the 14th Street bridge, and finish at the Pentagon.

A detailed map of the 2007 course is available on Mapnetwork.com. It includes information on mile markers, water points, first aid stations, rest rooms, time clocks, photo locations, entertainment areas and more. The map will also be available in printed form on-site for runners and spectators.

Packet pickup

Packet pickup will be held at the Crystal Gateway Marriott Hotel in Arlington, Va. Racers can pick up their materials on Friday, Oct. 5, from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. or Saturday, Oct. 6, between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. The starting gun sounds at 8 a.m. Oct. 7 for the first wave of runners, with the second wave starting at about 8:10 a.m.

Training

Not happy with your 10-miler pace yet? With six months to get ready, there’s extensive online training information available on the Ten-Miler site, much of it provided by well known running coach and Olympian Jeff Galloway.

Galloway and members of the Galloway training program will answer selected questions from runners in the message boards on the Army Ten-Miler site.

Also, for those in the D.C. area, a 10-week training program will be held on Saturday mornings from July 23 to Sept. 29. For a $79 fee, participants receive a 10-mile Galloway-designed training schedule, the training textbook “Galloway’s Book on Running,” a technical singlet with the Army Ten-Miler logo and access to the Saturday training sessions.

Those who need an online running log can find one on Marathonguide.com; registration is required, but it’s free.

More information

All proceeds from the race support the Army’s morale, welfare and recreation activities and services for soldiers and their families. For more information check out the race’s official Web site or call (202) 685-3361 (DSN: 325).

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Running in the Army Ten Miler