There was a biting cold wind blowing through Pitshanger Park this morning for Junior parkrun. It blew straight through the volunteers too, who nevertheless put on a cheery and enthusiatic event for all today's runners.

Steph Ducat, Chris McC, Kash, Gaby and Sevan all used their motivational skills to help the 61 finishers around the course. Kash and Gaby as marshals and Chris and Sevan as timekeepers were all cheering and put the power of the high 5 into action. Steph on the other hand had to be more creative as the tail walker, hopping, skipping and running to keep the final child entertained and moving towards completing his 2km.

At the finish, Mohamed was getting to grips with funnel management, keeping children in line. Harvey was barcode scanning and Chris Y was providing everyone with moral support. Chris was also silently mocking everyone else's lack of planning as he rocked his woolly mittens 🧤❄️.

Acton Junior parkrun were happy to welcome GoodGymers this morning across different roles to support the 54 finishers. Florian, Michelle and Sevan were marshalling, Alan and Kash barcode scanning and Chris was learning how to be a timekeeper, guided by an experienced traveller from Sheffield.

Chris had a surprise up her sleeve too. She had secretly worked her way up to 50 good deeds. So secretly, in fact, that no one else at parkrun from Ealing or Hounslow was aware of it. Not even Chris, as it turned out. Well done Chris! You can now request a snazzy black GoodGym t-shirt, perfect for evening soirée volunteering 👏🎉.

The runners were having fun too. Some more than others. One boy reported doing the crab walk all around the course 🦀, half of the distance one way, then switching direction to ensure his crabbing muscles had an equal workout. The last runner was enjoying herself too. By the end though, her style was being cramped by her older brother who'd finished a while earlier. He followed her repeating "Run faster. Run faster. Hurry up. Hurry up" until she eventually crossed the line. Charming.

The clean up shift of many Hobbayne socials gets delayed by the ongoing partying of the attendees and today was no different. Everyone was having so much fun that they didn't want to go home. That included dancing GoodGymers too, who were shimmying along to classics like Dancing Queen and Bonnie Tyler's Total Eclipse of the Heart.

In between the dancing, there was clearing going on too, with all of the GoodGymers clearing tables, folding them away and whisking away vacated chairs before the people using them knew what had happened. It was a stealthy operation that eclipsed any sign that a Burns Night party had ever taken place.

The four GoodGymers: Paul, Liuba, Sevan and Kash, returned to the Hobbayne Centre for the main session of the night: serving. They were joined by Mohamed and Scotswoman Chris. The latter had received a special invite from the charity after trasforming the not-so-Scottish attempts on ceilidh dances into an authentic experience last year.

The guests arrived early, so the Address to the Haggis performance commenced ten minutes ahead of schedule. The man who delivers the act each year recited Burn's poem and fiercely cut the haggis into pieces. The GoodGymers were ready to serve the food and queued in front of the kitchen. This year, their new system worked quite well, with the more popular meaty meals going out first and veggie versions being served on demand. Only the gluten-free options caused some confusion, but everyone got fed (including the servers) in the end, and even seconds were offered - although only vegetarian ones as the carnivore version ran out.

While Chris and Kash kept an eye on the guests finishing their meals to collect the dirty dishes, Paul and Mohamed helped prepare the traditional (at least in theory) Scottish dessert, cranachan. In the meantime, Sevan and Liuba took up the joyful task of pouring the whisky. The guests' devotion to the Scottish culture was tested as the toast was raised only after quite a long, although fascinating, talk about the life and heritage of Robert Burns.

Next in the event programme was the raffle. None of the GoodGymers was as lucky as Sevan last year - the hopes to win a free team pizza at The Green didn't materialise that night.

Finally, the highlight of the night arrived: our indispensable Chris calling the Scottish dances! With the assistance from Sevan and Kash and two ceilidh-savvy ladies from the community, Chris taught the Hanwell folk the steps for Gay Gordons, Dashing White Sergeant and Strip the Willow. With various results regarding the technique, everyone had fun and the ceilidh went even better than last year!

The GoodGymers have been already asked whether they are planning to show up at the Burns Night at Hobbayne in 2026. We think Chris is likely to become the lifelong star of the Burns Night, just like the well-respected performer addressing the haggis each year!