PENARTH and Dinas Runners proved that it doesn’t always rain in cross country races after taking part in the first Gwent League fixture of the season on the weekend.

Following on from the torrential rain of Pontypool and almost biblical storm of the Brecon cross country races last season, it was a relief that the Bridgend fixture on Sunday was dry and without even the slightest hint of a breeze.

There was a strong turnout from both the women and men, with the club desperate to score points and earn promotion from each of their divisions.

Before the race the women from P&D were presented with the runner-up plates for the Lady Veterans 45 and Lady Veterans 55 age categories after their efforts from last season.

During the racing in Bridgend the women ran two small laps of a 6k route, while the men ran three larger laps of a 10k route later in the afternoon.

Lisa Cleary, Cath Tailby Andrea Hurman, Louise Hunt, Yvonne Williams, Justine Cass, Claire Phillips, Judy Maragna, Cath Tailby, Helen Griffiths, Anna Helsing and Lindsey Hunt all did the club proud with their strong running.

Richard Jackson-Hookins, Knill Baird-Murray, Gary Brown, Malcolm Bradley, Chris Seal and Andrew Palmer also scored vital points for the men.

After the racing all of the members enjoyed homemade cakes and a cup of tea around the club tent.

During a skittles night on the Friday beforehand Penarth and Dinas Runners presented a cheque for £600 to Karen Jones, the community fundraiser for the Marie Curie Hospice in Penarth. The running club, who have also donated £600 to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) as their other charity of the year, raised the money from its two races earlier this year: the Cosmeston Relays and the Porthkerry 5.

Club treasurer Lyn Evans said that the money raised from the two races had increased five-fold over the last few years and that the money raised would help Marie Curie continue the “excellent work” that it does.

After receiving the cheque Karen Jones thanked the club and said: “The majority of our fundraising comes from people like you. We are really grateful for your fundraising and realise that it is no mean feat to raise this money. Thank You all very much.”

She also encouraged members of the club to sign up for the Marie Curie trek to Costa Rica in April 2016 and said anyone interested should visit www.mariecurie.org.uk/costarica or phone 02920 426068

During the skittles night, which was held at Penarth Rugby Club, Paul Mitchell and Louise Hunt were also selected from the club ballot to run the London Marathon in 2015. It will be Paul’s first attempt at running 26.2 miles, while it will be Louise’s second marathon in the space of six months as she runs the Amsterdam Marathon this Sunday (October 19).