The weather was dry this morning for Woking junior parkrun, but hooo, how chilly!

Woking Goodgymers came in force to cheer the young runners who sped the two laps round the park. Adam (and his Mum), Alys, Anne, Luan, Nadia and Wayne met at the Bandstand before taking up various positions to marshal. All of us, with a varied degree of enthusiasm, took part in the warm-up. Adam was excused because if his broken foot though.

The first runner to cross the line did it in 7:29 and the 120th runner's time was 21:16. There were 24 PB and 9 ran the route for the first time.

Will we see you on Thursday evening at the Foodbank when we will do our monthly deep clean? In the meantime, happy running to you all.

This week, we headed over to Knaphill Lower School to continue work on their Trim Trail.

Working together with a small GoodGym crew, we split into teams to tackle different areas of the space. Stephanie and Zoe focused on painting sections of the perimeter fence, giving it a fresh lift, while Kirsty, Ben and Anne cut back overhanging branches, removed small trees, and cleared the foliage along the fence line.

By the end, the garden was already looking noticeably tidier and more open. A really productive session and a great step forward in helping create a welcoming space for the children.

Welcome to Zoe who completed her first community mission!

**White Rose Lane Nature Reserve

This morning Jemma & Ben Fitted two new owl boxes and 3 bat boxes to oaks in the nature reserve just off of White Rose lane. Removal of some Balsam in the area also. 🦉

On a bright and sunny morning , I was happy to see the clear blue skies after lots of rain as I headed towards Woking park to help get ready for the Junior Parkrun happening. As I had an unfortunate injury, there was no running for me today. I got to the park and the start line and finish were all setup and all I had to do was confirm to Harold, the run director I had arrived and what was my role. I was placed at position 8 Marshal point which was down by the bridge near the decking by the lake that is now full of water again. My Mum came down to support too and she was placed at marshal point 9. As it got closer to 9 the park started to fill with lots of the athletes that are going to be racing.

Not long before the start James showed up to make sure every thing was covered which was great timing as Harold, the run director had appealed for more volunteers as we were short for the minimum amount that was needed to be able allow Parkrun to go ahead. As James and a parent step-up to fill the empty marshal stops the run could happen.

With all the marshals in position and the children lined up to start the run, Harold quickly count down form 3 to 1 so that the children had a fast start. It wasn’t long before the first children ran the fist lap, some avoiding the puddles and being very strategic in where they landed, others with perfect aiming to hit every puddle square in the centre.

With all the children making great head way on their run, it wasn’t long before the fist child finished in a time of 7:52, with second place fighting close behind with a time of 7:53 that must have been a nail-biting finish. After all 91 children finished the marshals where relieved of their positions and I went back to the Bandstand where I continued and help clear up the remaining parkrun equipment before my Mum, James and I went to have a celebratory coffee.

Well done for a great job by everyone.

Woodhill Church

This bonfire night 5 Goodgym Members met at Woodhill Church To Help With An Outdoor Task 😊

A big Welcome to Ben who joined us for his first task, hopefully first of many 👍

Wayne & Olalekan get to the church a little early and were met by Jules who looks after all the projects around the church grounds.

First task was two get all the 40 compost bags from around the front of the church to the back of the church as they got delivered and dropped off at the wrong side. Wayne & Olalekan started to move them around after 2 rounds Olalekan asked if there was a wheel barrow available which we could load up and save us many trips back & forward. Jules did have one available which made life very easy. After 4 trips all 40 bags were brought to the bedding area. Julie, Stephanie & Ben had arrived at this point. At this point we followed instructions from our garden expert Julie. We placed the bags all along the perimeter and cut them open in readiness to spread the compost.

Above us in the night sky we can see and hear fireworks going off 🎇. Using forks and shovels we spread the compost all around the bedding. Withing 40 mins the job was completed.Jules was very grateful what would of taken her hours we done in no time 😊.

We put the tools away then Jules treated us all the some pasteries and bread which were very tasty ❤

This week again, four GoodGymers met at the Lower Infant School in Knaphill to carry on the work started in the trail garden.

Kirsty enrolled her husband Bryan to come and help, as we had realised, last week, that we needed more muscles for some of the tasks. Let's all welcome Bryan back to GoodGym Woking!

Olalekan was asked to dig some trenches following marked lines on the ground. These represent the different areas of the trail garden. Once he had done this hard work, instead of having a rest, Olalekan took hold of the rake and gathered more leaves. It looks like the never ending job! But we are in November and we are working in a wooded area....

Kirsty chose to do something different from last week and be more artistic: she joined the team who were painting the loooong fence. It is going to take quite a while and hopefully more parents will come and help in the following weeks.

Bryan was eager to use his DIY skills and started to assemble a water fountain. It is made of so many pieces that not everyone could do the job. I am sure Bryan cannot wait to resume his art work and will bring his power tools next time.

Anne was asked to support the stepladder while Mark and Vikki started to set up the beautiful teepee made of slats of wood. The children will certainly like it! Then, it was time to go back to cleaning the beams of the trail covered with green fungi.Quite a dirty job, but it is rewarding to see the end result. There are more beams to clean though...

All in all, we were all pleased with our Saturday morning mission. Olalekan and Anne ran back to town along the canal, making the most of the good weather!

Tomorrow, we might see you at junior parkrun; then on Wednesday we will help the Community Fridge in Knaphill.

In the meantime, happy running to you all.