THOUSANDS of runners ignored fog and drizzly weather to pound the streets of York and he surrounding area.

Some 7,000 people donned their running gear to take part in the second Plusnet Yorkshire Marathon, raising a fortune for a host of charities.

And thousands more lined the roads to cheer the runners on along the city centre streets and the countryside roads to the east of the city.

The 26-mile epic began at the University of York promptly at 9.30am but ten minutes after the starting horn was blown the long column of runners was still crossing the finish line.

First across the finish line was Leeds wheelchair racer Bret Crossley with a time of two hours, 11 minutes and 10 seconds.

The fastest runner was Kenyan Boniface Kongin who completed it in two hours, 14 minutes to take victory in his first ever marathon, with second place going to and Cosmas Kigen coming in third with a time of two hours, 16 minutes.

The first female runner to cross the line was Shona Fletcher, from Northallerton, with a time of 2:43:40, coming in 16th overall.

York runners Chris Poulton, Richard Ginn, and Darran Bilton were among the first hometown athletes back, all crossing the finish line within three hours.

Darran said: "The route passes my house at about mile four, and last year I cheered people on with a megaphone from my home and decided I had to take part this year.

"The support has been fantastic. I know there were some questions over whether there would be enough, but everybody in all the houses and all the villages and hamlets along the way have come out and put on their own carnival atmosphere.

"It felt like I knew everyone and you're not going to get that anywhere else."