The Oceanside Mother's Day 5K and 10K run drew approximately 450 participants.
It was another successful event organized by the Oceanside Running Club Association. This year's number is up from 390 in 2024. It was again held in Qualicum Beach and started and finished at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 76 on Veterans Way.
The weather was a bit cloudy and a slight drizzle took place for brief spell but running conditions were ideal.
The 10K race had a total of 90 participants. Overall, Devonte Scarlette of Courtenay crossed the finish line first in a time of 34 minutes and two seconds. Coming in second was Royd Burkart of Port Alberni in 37:53 and placing third was Qualicum Beach's Timothy Thompson-Essex, who posted a time of 39:09.
In the women's category, the top three overall finishers were all from Nanaimo, with Brianna Cairns grabbing the gold in a time of 41:50, followed by Melissa Ross in 48:10 while pushing a stroller with two babies, and Becky Hannibal placing third in similar time of 48:10 but with a later gun time.
The popular 5K walk and run event featured runners of all ages and skill levels. There were a huge core of participants who graduated from ORCA's 2025 Learn to Run program.
Kate Cook of Nanaimo topped the 5K race overall and was also first in the women's division in a time of 20:38, with Samantha Wright of Campbell River placing second in 21:16 and Valerie Hunter collecting the bronze in 22:14.
The top male finisher was Gaetan Dijon of Qualicum Beach in a time of 22:12, which also gave him the overall-third place bronze medal. Coming in second was young runner Levon Leitao of Qualicum Beach in a time of 23:57 which also earned him the top U-10 boys honour. Finishing in third place was Brodie Taylor of Courtenay, who clocked in at 24:11.
Finshing second in the U-10 boys category, with 63 runners registered, was Sam Browne of Bowser who posted a time of 26:24 and collecting the bronze was Finley Hart of Parksville in 27:14.
In the U-10 girls division, Isabelle McDermitt took the gold in 31:05 with Amelie Roy of Coombs earning silver in 32:54 and Rachel Larsen of Nanoose Bay picking up the bronze in 37:53.
In the U-15 women's category, Parksville's Lorna Rasmussen came in first followed by Claire McAulay of Port Alberni in second place and Sage Xziekan-Gwilt placing. third.
In the 10-14 girls age group, Kate Cooke of Nanaimo finished first with Samatha Wright of Campbell River and Valerie Hunter of Qualicum Beach landing second and third respectively.
In the 10-14 boys age group, Brodie Taylor of Courtenay was first past the post followed by Felix Wiebe of Nanaimo and Dustry Koester, who came in third.
The race was also a fundraiser for local charitable organizations Parksville Haven Society and Forward House. Race director Doug Brown said that during registrations, participants had donated more than $3,000 and once all the accounts have been tallied, he expects the amount to increase.
Full results can be found at https://www.startlinetiming.com/en/races/2025/oceanside/event/5K/division/M1014
