Two teams headed to two very different tasks tonight in Tower Hamlets.

Painting and gardening at Look Ahead

Writes task force member, Becky: “Fellow task forcer Bryon headed up the team to Look Ahead Care & Support on Commercial Road where task owner Catriona was ready and waiting with the projects for the evening ahead: Bryon and Gabrielle headed to the front of the building to gather leaves; Luke, Jonathan and Katherine were despatched to tidy the garden, while Joel, Steve and I hit some of the indoor walls with the white emulsion. We were such a productive and focused team, before we knew it, it was time to tackle the 1.3-mile run back to base, without time to join the Cranbrook team for their tempo session. Oh well (every cloud, more like). We got our own speedwork in, though, with Joel and Bryon leading a speedy pace back to the hotel, via Meath Gardens where we managed to catch the Cranbrook crew at the Roman Road lights. All’s well that ends well.”

Sawing, digging and sanding at Cranbrook

I, in the meantime had headed to Cranbrook Community Food Group with a team of 9 to set about completing quite a variety of tasks requested from us by task owners Janet and Eileen, “Boys are needed to saw wood,” Eileen announced on arrival. Right you are. A slightly bemused female team then divided into two to dig, construct trellises and later move onto bench-sanding. LOTS was accomplished. Wood was sawed and wheeled to bins; trellises were beautifully and efficiently built; earth was dug and benches softened for painting. And then…it was 8pm.

Lap-and-log

Time for tempo? Uh-uh. The team were suffering this evening, with everything from sore calves from sawing, bruises from the previous day’s races, and just generally tired running legs. So we played lap-and-log. A new game that involved speedwork over laps of Meath Gardens followed by lower body, upper body and core exercises around the tree. The runners were a quiet but determined group of exercisers, running fast and balancing well. The core’s coming on nicely, folks. We headed back to the hotel for some serious stretching before calling it a night. Way to go, folks.

Big GG shout-outs

A big GG TH welcome to first time runner, Jonathan – it was great you joined our task force at Look Ahead, and well done for getting so much done (and run). And we hope to see you very soon.

Thanks to Bryon for heading up the Look Ahead team, and for making the evening’s planning that little bit easier, and to Becky for lovely report-writing and cool pics – and for sending it all so promptly.

Thanks to Annie, for the fabulous pun this evening.

And thank you to Si who saved the day somewhat in helping our task owners identify where the shed key had been hidden at 9.30pm on a Monday night.

Next week, we’re joining Tower Hamlets Big Clean Up, and, to celebrate England Athletics’ #RunandTalk campaign (twice a year they’re asking people to head out for a jog or run with friends, family or colleagues and have a chat to support Time to Talk Day and World Mental Health Day), which is running from 6th-12th October, we’ll be litter-picking around Mile End Hospital. What a way to spend your Monday evening – do come and join us, and sign up here.

And lastly, what better way to see in October than by heading to the GG social, this Thursday 4th October, from 6.30pm, Islington Townhouse, N1 0RW. More details are here.

Right, that’s it from me! Have a really great week, everyone, and look forward to seeing you soon.

We were a sturdy team of 22 tonight - just as well as we had an eleventh hour emergency task request from one of our longest standing task owners, Cranbrook Community Food Garden.

Cranbrook Crew to the rescue

Team Task Force saved the day again - Bryon took a team of 3 down to the food garden to lift decking in preparation for some paving stones due to be laid on Wednesday. The team of 3 got bundles accomplished, including other jobs around the garden once the decking had been swiftly lifted. The team were rewarded with some of the finest rhubarb in the land, and came to meet us at the farm clutching handfuls of this antioxidant-rich fruit (thinking about it, we could have used the stalks as relay batons for tonight’s speedwork). Amazing mileage, speed, efficiency and productivity from the Cranbrook Crew tonight.

Down on the Farm

In the meantime, I led our team of 19 to our first visit of the Autumn to Stepney City Farm, where task owner Charlie had a variety of tasks for us, and wasted no time in dispatching teams to the gravel path by the pig pen; the sweepers went to the ‘cement corridor’, bin emptiers to the, er, bins and the compost crew raced down to the compost area where they proceeded to shovel mounds of steaming compost for nearly an hour, only pausing for breath to try and sort out the flash function on my phone (#youhadonejob).

The farm was abuzz with busy GoodGymers, racing wheelbarrows of straw and gravel from pillar to post, emptying bins at record speed and lugging cement from one side of the pathway to another.

And before we knew it, it was time for a brief tour to see the Mars-the-pig plus piglets (“He’s called Mars.” “As in the bar?” “No, as in the God of War.”)

Greyhound vs hare

Then, sticking with our animal theme, our running game tonight was Greyhound vs Hare. We split into two teams to head back to our base: Bryon led the greyhound team, and I led the hare team. With a 3-minute start, the hares tried to speed back to base before the greyhounds could catch us up. It was quite the exhilarating run back after a busy night, and the team all performed amazingly.

What a terrific task force

Thank you to our utterly brilliant task force tonight: Bryon, Leanne and Becky for top fitness session-strategy planning by the pig pen; Bryon, for leading the greyhounds, Leanne for backmarking both there and back, and for taking over the fitness session at a crucial moment (when our headcount was momentarily out, on arrival back at Peel Grove…).

...and our utterly awesome new runners

A massive GG warm welcome to our first time runners tonight: Joel, Annie, Emily, Sophia and Luke. You did good. You all accomplished so much, with so many smiles, and many hands-on-deck. Thank you. And please come again soon.

Let's do it all again next week

Next week, we’re heading to Cranbrook Community Food Garden for trellis-building and gardening and, for those who fancy a slightly longer run, we’re also heading to Look Ahead in Commercial Road for two tasks: painting and gardening. So, there’s something for everyone next week. Sign up here and come and be part of the fun!

In the meantime, have a wonderful week everyone.

3 very different tasks, 3 very determined teams…

What a night! And what a beautiful evening it was indeed for another THREE tasks (this is becoming something of a habit…).

A stake-out (or not, as it turned out)

Becky led the largest team of 15 to the Keddelstone Walk Community Centre in Hollybush Gardens to meet some of our longest standing task owners, Michael and Margaret (and Beetlejuice, the elderly canine task owner). Despite having planned tonight’s pun around the staking part of the task, the accompanying staking noise was considered too much of a potential environmental nuisance by Margaret, so digging and raking was the order of the day. New gloves were dished out – thoughtful task owners we have here in TH – and, letting sleeping wasps lie (compost heaps can be quite the hazard – who knew), the runners ploughed away solidly for over 40 minutes giving the Ground Force team a run for their money. Thank you to the team for staging a brilliant stake scene, though, to accommodate the pun. What creativity! (pics of the non-staking task enclosed).

Dab hand decorating

Lieke, meanwhile, headed another small team of dab-handed decorators back to the Glasshouse Community Centre to complete the painting task. Well done for taking a new team to the task and for getting so much done, in a confined, warm space this evening – and for making it back for Pilates Sculpt in such good time.

Feelgood flyering

...And Gabrielle beautifully project-managed our leafleting task, a new task for fabulous charity Acknowledging Youths, planning an excellent strategy for the different leaflet themes vs. the most relevant outlets. Well done to her, Tim and first time runner Simona, who I had such a lovely time leafleting with - I felt we were quite the dynamic duo, with our sales pitch! We handed out many leaflets, to very willing and interested bar managers and coffee shop vendors, so a great job completed by all.

Pilates on steroids

And so we met by the wonderful Stairway to Heaven memorial in Bethnal Green Gardens at 8pm sharp for Pilates Sculpt. Apologies to those who felt the Pilates was going to be a gentle wind down to the evening (but I’m over the moon that we managed to make the last 20 minutes of the session as effective as the first 70). Glutes and abs are where it’s at, when it comes to your running. Honest.

On behalf of the group and our task owners, very big thank you’s go to…

…Becky J, for planning and leading the Hollybush task; for writing the Hollybush report and taking some lovely pics and for helping out with the pun. Thanks to Bryon and Si for navigating and leading the Hollybush run, and to Heidi and Charlotte for back-marking.

Thank you to Lieke, for planning and leading the Parkview painting task, including some great pics, and thank you to Gabrielle for helping to plan and execute a truly effective leafleting task, and getting some lovely pics.

…And big hello’s and WELCOME's

…to our lovely new runners this evening: Bijan, Henry, Ella, Chand, Daphne and Simona. And welcome back to Lauren, who isn’t new, but who hasn’t run with us for a while. What a joy to have you all on board this evening, and please do come back soon.

We’re back to Stepney City Farm next week!

Next week I’m delighted to announce we’re heading back to Stepney City Farm, for all manner of outdoor tasks. This will be followed by a relay race back to base! So don’t miss out – sign up now. Can’t wait to see you then, and have a really good week in the meantime.