Tonight we welcomed newbies Matt, Charlie, Jemma, and Jack from Gymshark to the group. A big shout out goes to Jack who is doing the Gymshark 66 challenge! He has chosen to run 6.6 miles every day for 66 days, raising money for a worth cause, Birmingham Children’s Hospital. It was great that you chose to complete today’s run with us and we wish you all the best for the rest of your challenge!

After all the introductions and we learnt an interesting fact about everyone, it was time to hit the streets and set off for tonight’s task at The Courtyard.

We had a long steady run down to the Courtyard with Chris leading the way and Rachel and Jen backmarking. Once there, we were grateful to get inside out of the cold and a chance to catch our breaths back!

We then got to work varnishing the cupboard doors and finishing off the last bit of painting. Since many hands make light work, we managed to varnish all fourteen lower doors in just 25 minutes! That just leaves the top few cupboards for next time and we’ll be on the hunt for some white paint to touch up some of the door frames.

It was then time to wash all the equipment, put the room back to how we found it ready and say goodbye to the craft ladies that meet at The Courtyard and head on our way back. The slightly longer run than usual meant we didn’t have time for a fitness session, but the uphill route on the way back gave us that little workout that we need!

It was great to see everyone last night - I hope you all enjoyed it and look forward to seeing you all next week to help another organisation out!

Tonight we welcomed Jen for her very first GoodGym run and welcomed Andy back, who is finding his running shoes again and has been inspired by his son in the new year!

Once the introductions were done and all up to date on some upcoming tasks and community missions we’ve got planned, we set off into the darkness for The Courtyard.

Rachel and Jen were back marking, Fiona and Andy in the middle, and myself and Chris leading the way. Thankfully all the rain for this week seemed to fall on Tuesday, leaving us with a chilly but dry run.

At The Courtyard we prepped the community room to continue painting where we’d left off before Christmas. Unfortunately we couldn’t find the paint brushes to start with, but thankfully the scout leaders were on hand to find 4 paint brushes for us. One needed a slight trim but Chris stepped in with his hairdressing skills! We set to work up the ladders, clearing the cobwebs and applying the new coat of paint.

Time whizzed by and it was soon time to clean the brushes and put the room back to how we found it, ready for the users of The Courtyard on Thursday.

We just had time for the obligatory photo outside before heading back up the hill and back to base. Great running everyone, especially considering the slightly longer distance than normal - good to keep those New Year’s resolutions in check! See you next week.