Shears, Cheers and Beers
6 Goodgymers helped their local community in Islington
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Monday 16th September
Credits
Dan
BACK MARKER
Luke Burrage
BACK MARKER
Simon Fitzmaurice
SESSION ORGANISER
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Report written by Simon Fitzmaurice
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On Monday evening, Area Activator Simon caught up with Luke, Mehmet and Louise at the Arsenal Community Hub during the golden hour- the sun was setting as we engaged in a series of dynamic warm ups in front of the Emirates Stadium. Together, we ran up Sobell Road (past the famous ice rink), along Fonthill Road (by the WB Yeates pub- named after the Irish poet) and onwards to the Light of the World Church, the home of the Lighthouse Community Project.
On route, we ran with Dan and met Eslam at the site- who was preparing the space for this evening's session. The plan is to build the green space behind the church into a community growing area for neighbouring residents, so our Goodgym crew were thrilled to get involved! Luke and Eslam began with clipping away lots of overgrown greenery surrounding the gardens using shears and standing secateurs- a time consuming job, completed with many hands! Meanwhile, Louise, Mehmet and Dan assisted with shoveling some misplaced wood and bark chippings from two large planters, and spreading the material across the back yard (helping to protect the soil and to encourage visitors to use the grass areas during the winter months).
50 minutes was the perfect duration for this task, as our trio of diggers unloaded the last of the chippings at exactly 8pm- it was meant to be! We set off back down Evershot Street together before splitting off into two groups- Area Activator Simon ran back to The Emirates Stadium, but met with Dan and Louise for food and refreshments at The Swimmer N4 to celebrate our monthly post group run socials! Well done everyone!
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GOODGYM ISLINGTON NEWS
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Achilles International VI Guide Running Sessions
Every Thursday, 6pm, Various London locations
On Thursday evenings, the all abilities sports charity Achilles International holds a group run session at a London location.
Here is a list of our upcoming events and sign up pages. Runners, supporters and guides of all abilities and experiences welcome!
Thursday 19th September- Paddington Rec Track (Janice's Birthday Special)
Thursday 26th September- Stratford Olympic Park
Friends of Canonbury Square- Volunteer Morning (September)
Saturday 21st September, 10am - midday, Canonbury Square Gardens
The Friends of Canonbury Square Gardens host an open community gardening session on the 3rd Saturday morning of every month.
Usual tasks would include bulb planting, trimming, laying compost, maintaining flower beds and litter picking.
Highbury Quadrant Greening with Elizabeth House
Every Saturday, 10.30am - 12 midday, Highbury Quadrant Meadow
A fantastic task for post-parkrun runners at Highbury Fields or Finsbury Park!
Elizabeth House Community Centre, in partnership with Islington Council, Highbury Quadrant Tenants and Residents Association, Highbury Councillors and community organisations transformed three unloved and unusable green spaces on Highbury Quadrant estate.
These green spaces have been designed into three distinct spaces, improving bio-diversity and the local environment. There is now a beautiful meadow, an orchard and woodland areas.
Local residents have the opportunity to access these green spaces and take part in gardening and nature based activities, every Saturday mornings 10 am to 12 pm.
Saturday 28th September
Thornhill Square Gardens- October Workday
Saturday 5th October, 10am - midday, Thornhill Square Gardens
This is an open volunteer gardening morning set up by the Friends of Thornhill Square. As one of the largest public spaces in Islington without council maintenance assistance, extra pairs of hands for bulb planting, composting, litter picking and preparing flower beds would be hugely appreciated!
https://www.goodgym.org/v3/sessions/thornhill-square-gardens-open-volunteer-morning-october
Compton Terrace Gardens- Volunteer Session
Saturday 12th October, 10am - 1pm, Union Chapel, Islington
A smashing community mission for those partaking in Highbury Fields or Finsbury parkrun on a Saturday morning!
A friendly gardening group started to look after the park about 10 years ago. We are always looking for more help - with planting, mulching, pruning, and all the other things a garden needs.
Everyone welcome, no special skills needed! Lots of fresh air and a nice chance to meet local people. We meet once a month on a Saturday morning near the shed in the middle of the Gardens.
Crouch End Open Space (CREOS) Volunteering Day
Sunday 20th October, 11am - 1pm, Hanley Tennis Club Car Park, Greenways
Our monthly trip to CREOS this year for a woodland regeneration- loads of smashing forest path building has been planned!
https://www.goodgym.org/v3/sessions/crouch-end-open-space-creos-volunteering-day-october-2024
Camino Ultra London Lee Valley Eco Trail- Aid Station Superstars
Saturday 5th October, 9am onwards, Ranger's Retreat, Chingford DaznBone (aka Darren Strachan and David Bone) and the Camino Ultra team are putting together the logistics for their next 50km ultra race (running from Wanstead Flats, up the green corridor to Epping Forest and back), and have invited the Goodgym crew to get involved!
On the course, there will be 4 major aid stops, and we have been invited to take over the first refresh point and the penultimate aid station.
This will involve providing water and snacks to runners of all abilities during the key stages of their race, and to support them with smiling faces and enthusiasm!
Gait Analysis Training Session with Area Activator Simon
Wednesday 9th October, Emirates Stadium, 6.30pm
Gait analysis has been proved to be a useful tool for highlighting potential issues, making suggestions for improvement and checking efficiency in movement.
Simon would like to offer 10 Goodgymmers the opportunity to join him for a dynamic warm up and short interval session.
During the evening, recordings for forward momentum, running form and lateral stability (at different paces) will be made, and used to make suggestions for training focus or for footwear choices.
https://www.goodgym.org/v3/sessions/gait-analysis-training-session-with-area-activator-simon
Goodgym Race Team Big 4- Love Luton RunFest 2024
Sunday 13th October, 8.45am onwards, Luton Town Centre
This 5k, 10k, and half marathon around the streets of Luton is a popular road race with GoodGym. Join us for this 4th and final official GoodGym race team race of 2024. Big Goodgym running crew meet up to be expected!
https://www.goodgym.org/v3/sessions/love-luton-love-luton-runfest-2024
Met League Cross Country Series- Goodgym Race Team
Various locations, October 2024 - February 2025
Met League Cross Country is a set of five 7-8km races organised by London race clubs. They are held in parks and forests around London with the routes including a mixture of grass, gravel and a fair bit of mud (it is XC after all!)
Sign up to the Goodgym Race Team for £15, and enter ALL 5 RACES for the bargain price of £6!
Newbies encouraged and welcomed- the most fun you can have running over the Winter months!
Fixtures
12th October Claybury https://www.goodgym.org/v3/sessions/london-met-league-cross-country-claybury-3aab4cb8-8f15-4d0d-a0ed-126cdf50e85e
9th November Horsenden Hill https://www.goodgym.org/v3/sessions/london-met-league-cross-country
30th November Uxbridge https://www.goodgym.org/v3/sessions/london-met-league-cross-country-uxbridge
11th January Welwyn Garden City https://www.goodgym.org/v3/sessions/london-met-league-cross-country-stanborough-park
8th February Trent Park https://www.goodgym.org/v3/sessions/london-met-league-cross-country-trent-park
This task supported
A Food Growing Space designed to promote local food and plants knowledge and tools to become more resilient
involve people into the process of growing food from scratch, explaining the benefits of specific plants and teaching about a number of gardening techniques and approaches
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Islington
Joining the lovely resident gardeners at Thornhill Square Gardens for an evening of composting, watering and maintenance
