There was a fantastic turnout for this year’s Tartan Dash parkrun at Ganavan Sands, with runners tackling the hilly course in crisp and sunny conditions.
Plenty of tartan was on display for the 295th parkrun at Ganavan on Saturday morning, with 82 participants running the five kilometre route.
They were provided with musical accompaniment from a group of young local bagpipers as a good mixture of visitors and locals enjoyed the winter sun.
These pipers had been organised by Aaron Hussein, with 13 of them lining the out and back parkrun route, which takes entrants along the cycle path towards Dunbeg.
A hardy bunch of primary seven Rockfield Primary School pupils also braved the cold to boost the numbers as they took part in a sponsored run to raise funds for a school trip.
There were seven personal bests achieved, with Max Holloway the first runner across the line in a time of 18.55.
Rockfield pupils Theo Daniels and Alexander Maxwell also performed strongly, running the course in under 30 minutes on their first attempt.
Oban’s local parkrun is reliant on volunteers, who generously give their time up and had got up early on to check the course on Saturday and to step in as marshals.
The Ganavan Sands parkrun has taken place at Ganavan at 9.30am on Saturdays since 2016 and is open to all runners and walkers.
This year’s Tartan Dash was part of The Winter Festival, with the special festive event in Oban providing cakes for every runner at the finish line.
The original Tartan Dash used to see competitors race between Oban Distillery and the war memorial, with the closed road nature of the modern day event likely a safer option.