A BEAUTIFULLY sunny Saturday morning enticed a healthy field of 126 runners to take on the picture postcard 5km Barry Island parkrun course.

The 102nd edition saw Gareth Hurman repeating last week's result of first over the line with a new personal best of 17m 36s.

For the third consecutive week, first lady home was Moli Lyons in a time of 20m 17s, registering both a new personal best (PB) and also attaining the highest age grading of the day.

For such a warm day, it was perhaps surprising to see just under 25 per cent of the runners record new PBs. This is simply fantastic and amply shows all the hard work being put in by all.

Continuing the theme of firsts, Barry Island parkrun welcomed 21 first time runners, three first time volunteers - Suzanne Blake, Terry Blake and Sam Barnard - and a first appearance in the run director's hot-seat for Dave Shields.

Dave was ably assisted by a highly enthusiastic team of 25 volunteers, cheering on the runners and ensuring the event could go ahead in safety. The volunteers are truly the unsung heroes of all parkruns, not just at Barry, but across the globe, and a huge debt of gratitude goes to each and every one of them.

Looking towards the forthcoming Easter weekend, will be the welcome the return of Pacer Saturday. For this pacing event, members of Barry-based Seriously Mad Runners will be doing 'odd' minute pacing runs from 19 minutes through to 45 minutes.

Pacing events are always popular, so if you fancy chasing a new PB the pacers can help you get there.

Barry Island parkrun is a free, weekly 5k timed run and is open to anyone of any ability from age four upwards - runners, joggers or walkers alike.

It starts at 9am every Saturday morning on the promenade. The start location can vary, depending on what’s happening on the prom.

Find out more on the run website at parkrun.org.uk/barryisland

If you would like to get involved in Barry Island parkrun, either as a runner or a volunteer, contact the team at barryislandhelpers@parkrun.com

This week, in numbers:

In total 126 people ran, jogged and walked the course, of whom 21 were first timers and 30 recorded new personal bests. Representatives of eight different clubs took part.

Male placings:

Gareth Hurman (SM18-19) (Unattached) was first over the line in 17:36 - fourth time in eight appearances.

Paul Kehl (VM50-54) (Unattached) was second over the line in 20:04.

Jeffrey Cox (VM50-54) of Les Croupiers RC, was third over the line in 20:17 - has been first to finish on four previous occasions.

Female placings:

Moli Lyons (JW11-14) of Barry & Vale Harriers, was first (4th overall) over the line in 20:17 - fourth time in seven appearances.

Caitlin Williams (JW11-14) of Seriously Mad Runners (Barry), was second (15th overall) over the line in 23:12 - has been first to finish on six previous occasions.

Leanne Hockey (VW35-39) of White Rock Runners, was third (16th overall) over the line in 23:15 - has been first to finish on two previous occasions.

The three highest age grades were recorded by:

Moli Lyons (JW11-14) – 80.28 per cent for the time 20:17 (fourth overall).

Jeffrey Cox (VM50-54) – 75.10 per cent for the time 20:17 (third overall).

Gareth Hurman (SM18-19) – 74.91 per cent for the time 17:36 (first overall).

The female record is held by Emma Wookey who recorded a time of 00:18:09 on June 20, 2015 (event number eight).

The male record is held by Oliver M Williams who recorded a time of 00:15:58 on March 25 (event number 100).

The Age Grade course record is held by Angharad Mair who recorded 88.54 per cent (19:55) on September 26, 2015 (event number 21).

Barry Island parkrun started on May 2, 2015. Since then 2,377 participants have completed 10,222 parkruns in just shy of 204 days, covering a total distance of 51,110km - the equivalent of a lap of the earth and a lap of the moon combined - smashing out 2,130 new personal bests.