On the usual Wednesday night run, it was only Joe signed up for the weekend task at Baddow Farm, who’d be joined by Joanne for her first event with GoodGym Chelmsford.

So he couldn’t be-leaf how poplar he was as a decent turnout of GGers arrived on a cold morning. We all welcomed Leanne back to her first session in over a year with a good chat before the safety briefing. Rich got very excited about “a chainsaw on a pole” but as he and Sallyann had to cycle home afterwards, he decided against using it and everyone kept their limbs. Joe’s approach to clearing thick undergrowth was to clmb inside it and cut himself out. This was the opposite of Joel’s, and the two hacked the thicket apart to meet in the middle and get to the root of just when is the best time to enjoy a pint of stout. By this point a professional chainsaw slinger had arrived and helped fell what Rich couldn’t start with a hacksaw or Andy couldn’t finish by hanging off a branch with a handful of helpers. He was very complimentary about their work though, but Rich won’t be branching out into tree surgery just yet. Drinking tea, eating biscuits – thanks Lions! – and waiting for instructions on what to do with the trees gave us the ideal opportunity for group photos, and for Andy to nail a Parkrun-style jump. Biscuits finished, trees cleared and one garden now much lighter and more open than before, we headed home for baths and a rest. If helping a local charity wasn’t enough, it also meant we were level with Colchester in the tight local derby to be Group B’s top GoodGym team. Thanks everyone!

Joe