A total of 399 participants completed Sunday’s Daffodil Festival 5K and 2-mile Fun Run, according to a release from the Gloucester Rotary Club, which sponsored the events. This was the first year the run was held at Beaverdam Park.
Eldridge Northstein, 51, of Gloucester, a machinist at Newport News Shipbuilding, led the 101 runners across the finish line in the 5K event. H.F. Clements, 47, a Gloucester native and resident of Hatteras, N.C., where he is chef of a local restaurant, finished third behind Scott Baker, 35.
It was a close finish with Northstein’s elapsed time of 23:25, followed by Baker with 23:39 and Clements, 24:47. Northstein is the son of John and Laura Northstein, this year’s Daffodil Festival parade grand marshals in honor of their many years of community service.
The top female finishers in the 5K were 30-year-old Beth Karrman (25:03), 27-year-old Christy Lindberg (25:34) and 32-year-old Emily Baker (28:09).
Hunter Richardson, 10-year-old Bethel Elementary School fifth grader, was first in the 2-mile Fun Run, finishing the course in 15:31. Petsworth Elementary School claimed the Fun Run trophy for the fifth consecutive year with the largest participation—298—in the 2-mile Fun Run.
In addition to the trophy awarded annually for the largest school representation, ribbons were presented to the first three Fun Run overall and in student grade groups.
Trailing Richardson in the 2-mile Fun Run were second-place finisher Chandler Records (Peasley seventh grader, 15:54) and Ava Atkinson (Ware Academy sixth grader, 15:57).
Winners in the K-second grade category were Kohlby Wilson (Bethel second grader, 19:02), Charlie Somervell (Bethel second grader, 19:26) and Ty Baker (Petsworth first grader, 19:58). In grades 3-4, winners were: Isaiah Bishop (Abingdon fourth grader, 17:29), Jackson Dutton (Bethel third grader, 18:06) and Jamell Fields Jr. (Botetourt fourth grader, 18:25). Cody Leigh, a Bethel fifth grader, placed third among runners in grades 5-6 behind Richardson and Atkinson with a time of 16:17. Finishing behind Records among seventh and eighth graders were Peasley seventh graders Bryce Robins (16:01) and Aaron Shipe (16:03).