THOUSANDS of runners were pounding the roads around Woking at the weekend, with the return of the Surrey Half Marathon event.

Whether chasing a personal best or raising money for charity, runners set off from Woking Park on Sunday morning on a variety of looped routes, tackling either the half marathon, the 5K course or the 2K kids’ race.

With conditions not as wet as had been feared, the rain holding off until later, the main event saw Ed Shepherd as the first runner home. His chip time was one hour, six minutes and 49 seconds – one minute and 36 seconds faster than the race’s winner last year. The fastest female runner was Ruby Woolfe, who finished the distance in one hour, 17 minutes and 29 seconds.

In the 5K event, Stephen Blake was first home in a time of 15 minutes and 44 seconds. The fastest female runner, and fifth in the race overall, was Martha Collings of Woking Athletics Club with a chip time of 17 minutes and 52 seconds.

In the 2K race, Thomas Living was ahead of the field in a time of seven minutes and 35 seconds. Eliza Edworthy was the fastest girl with a time of eight minutes and 47 seconds.

For a special picture spread of the event, get the 16 March edition of the News & Mail – in shops now.