Domestic brand

Last year, he took off from Hopkinton for a 26-mile trip into the unknown. Alan Culpepper had run a marathon in Athens, which invented this whole blistered enterprise, but not in Boston, with all its lore and legend, its potholes and pitfalls.

''Any time you're going in for the first time it can seem daunting," concedes Culpepper, whose fourth-place showing was the best performance here by a US runner in 18 years. ''Americans hadn't fared too well in a number of years, and that plays into your mind-set. It's not just the course itself, but the weather can be a whole other factor. It can seem a little overwhelming."

This time, Culpepper knows all about Hell's Alley and Heartbreak Hill and the Haunted Mile and the psychological squeeze that comes with being the top domestic contender in a footrace that hasn't had an American victor since 1983. On Monday, though, he'll have a considerable colleague in Meb Keflezighi, the Olympic runner-up who's making his Patriots Day debut. ''It's going to make for an interesting race," says the 33-year-old Culpepper, who has the faster personal best by 12 seconds.

Although they've been racing against each other since 1996, when Culpepper was running for Colorado and Keflezighi for UCLA and they met in the 5,000 meters at the NCAAs, Culpepper doesn't consider it a rivalry. ''Not per se," he says. ''I don't think of it in those terms."

America's two best marathoners are more like fellow travelers, taking on the Africans and the Europeans as US men's road racing has been coming out of its doldrums. ''When we did the Bolder Boulder two years ago and me and Culpepper and Abdi [Abdirahman] beat the Kenyans, I told Alan, you should come out to Mammoth Lakes and train," says Keflezighi, who's based in California with Team Running USA.

No thanks, said Culpepper, who's nicely ensconced near the Rockies with wife and fellow Olympian Shayne and happily hits the roads alone. ''No groups and hardly any individuals," he says. ''There are times when I'll hook up with guys occasionally, but I've always kind of done my own thing. There are huge benefits to training in groups, but for some individuals there can be a negative return."

Part of the going solo is practical -- the Culpeppers have a 4-year-old son (Cruz) and another child due in June. ''For us, it's more of a lifestyle issue and a function of being parents," he says. ''Having to drop Cruz at school and things like that."

By now, Culpepper knows what it takes to go the distance. The whippet-thin (6 feet 1 inch, 130 pounds) speedster who made the 2000 Olympic team in the 10,000 meters has evolved into a marathon man and he hopes to take that route all the way to Beijing in 2008. ''You only have so many chances and so many opportunities to run personal bests," says Culpepper, who posted his (2:09:41) in his 2002 debut in Chicago.

That performance, which equaled Alberto Salazar's 1980 effort in New York for the fastest first marathon by an American, immediately put Culpepper on the map and convinced him he could be a serious hardtop player. ''That was huge, that I could step out and have a race like that," he says. ''I just ran the race. I didn't know what I was doing. I just took it as it came."

His next outing was the 2004 US Olympic trials, which Culpepper won by five seconds over Keflezighi. Keflezighi claimed the silver medal in Athens but Culpepper, slowed by nagging injuries, placed a creditable 12th.

When he came to Boston last year, Culpepper found himself cast as America's Hope, the man who could end a string of 22 years without a laurel wreath in the planet's most storied marathon. ''There was a little bit of pressure," he acknowledges. ''But sometimes the pressure has aided my performance. In general, I rise to the occasion."

Culpepper came on strong, running a savvy tactical race to post the best US finish since Dave Gordon took fourth in 1987. ''Alan's run last year can't be overstated," says Mary Wittenberg, race director of the New York City Marathon. ''To finish fourth was remarkably impressive and important."

Just getting a glimpse of a Yank in the lead pack was a stirring novelty for the spectators, who'll likely see at least two this time with Keflezighi making his Boston debut. After going it alone last year, Culpepper won't mind having a running mate with the same passport and jersey. ''I feel comfortable racing next to Meb," he says. ''He's a calming-type presence. He's patient, he never panics. But he runs aggressive races."

What wins in Boston is aggressiveness wedded to prudence. Culpepper ran that kind of race last time when he stayed in contact with the leaders, then picked off challengers one at a time through the hills, including the previous two champions in Timothy Cherigat and Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot. ''I was really pleased with last year," he says.

Finishing three places higher Monday, though, will be a different kind of challenge. ''There are a lot of guys who've run much quicker than I have," Culpepper concedes. ''So much is up in the air."

The wind, the weather, and how the race shakes out through Wellesley and into Newton all will play a major role. ''You never want to underestimate or minimize how difficult winning a race like Boston is," Culpepper says.

Yet someone wins it every year. Why not a guy from Colorado who's accustomed to running alone?