Goodgym goes running!

Heetu and I signed up for the Knowsley Harriers Fab 4-Miler starting and ending at Halewood Environment Centre. After some sat-nav issues which delayed us slightly, we got super lucky with parking and were able to collect bibs, pin up, and make it to the back of the crowd just in time for race start.

We were slightly intimidated by the amount of professional looking running bibs, but it turned out to be a very friendly and supportive crowd. We were given fair warning of an ominous-sounding hill at the start, but after that it was plain sailing under the canopy of the trans penine trail and we were even able to cheer others on as they passed us - on their way back! - after the turning point.

Despite feeling like the turning point was forever out of reach, we eventually got there and headed back. We paced ourselves well for the last mile and managed a strong finish.

This was the second in a 4-race series, and there's a mystery prize for those who complete 3 out of 4. This lovely route certainly peaked our interest, whether we can make the next 2 remains to be seen...

Well a few of us met at the suitcases to run to Everton park and the others met us at task near the "love, love parks, love everton park" wall.

But the LLPLEP wall was not the object of our affections this time but a different sort of hidden natural granite wall which was "mosscared" to reveal a lovely place to enjoy the views by Miriam and Dan. Need to get our new good gym word approved by Susie Dent or at least on the panel of "I’m sorry I haven’t a clue"!

While we could hear the delights of satisfaction from the mosscared team the rest of us where trying to identify baby saplings in the grass bank and remove them to avoid them taking over the whole area. We also gave a few trees a trunk trimming or technically limbing up to trim away the baby branches.

John our Everton park leader presented us all with a leaflet of all their events where the good gym team are proudly there front and centre on the cover! We ran home thinking of all the fun times working in Everton park, filled with gratitude and appreciation that we have had the opportunity to work with John over the past years helping the Everton community.

Who says sticker reward charts don't work?

Motivated by Sally Ann's mystery prize system of everyone who attends our Goodgym monthly Parkrun session getting a sticker, with secret categories for prizes at the end of the year, I dragged myself out and jogged to Princes Park on Saturday morning to be sure I didn't miss a valuable May sticker.

At the start line it seemed despite the large Princes Parkrun crowds I was a solo Goodgymmer, always representing GG in the noticeable red t-shirts. However, during the first lap, I was delighted to be greeted by Siân & Lucien, who had very kindly made the effort to come along and cheer Goodgym runners on before they caught their train for a well deserved weekend away. Both were quick with the camera and got a few action shots, and I'm looking forward to seeing some (no doubt very flattering) images of me mid-run & mid-wave.

I continued on around the course with enough in the tank to pick up the pace for a strong finish, and it was so lovely to see Sian & Lucian again waving me on as I rounded the final corner. We caught up at the finish line for a quick chat and photo, before heading our separate ways - me to lightly jog home with an eye on increasing my mileage in preparation for an upcoming 10km, and them to grab bags and head to the train station for their weekend break.

Thank you guys for the support, it's really lovely to see familiar faces in the crowd during a run. Looks like the 3 of us May-de it and get our sticker for May ⭐

This task found us at our regular location St James's Gardens, the graveyard of the Anglican cathedral that is a much-appreciated oasis in the city for many. The day leading up to this task was filled with suspense as we anxiously checked various weather forecasts, trying to work out what we'd be dealing with. A storm was predicted for the evening, but it seemed it would clear up and be sunny by 7pm. After our last scheduled session at St James's was called off due to the weather we were really hoping to go ahead tonight.

The runners - Sophie, Sian, Dan and Bekah - met at the Suitcases at 6:30pm and were greeted by both sunshine and a sudden downpour. We got soaked but dried out quickly as it was warm, and luckily it stayed calm for our task, where we were joined by Steph, Lucien, Ellie and today's task owner Vikki, combining her roles of GoodGym member and Friends of St James's leader, alongside two Friends volunteers.

Vikki's plan was for us to clear brambles and litter from an archway. Considering the immense tangle of bramble we faced, she was worried that it would be too big a project for one session, but we all got stuck in and were finished in under half an hour. It was a really satisfying task as we transformed the area, revealing two gravestones marking the resting places of the Cow and McKinsley families that had previously been completely buried in thorns. Everyone did a great job and we were not put off by encountering a pair of soiled shorts and an unidentifiable furry object along the way! I do think that we earned the appreciation we got from passers-by, including someone who offered to donate trees in the future.

With this task completed we still had lots of time left over for weeding and scraping between flagstones, and Steph taught us some local history by pointing out the gravestones of Edward Rushton who set up the first school for the blind, and Robert Cain who opened a brewery. As we gathered for the team photo we realised that it was a very special occasion - every GoodGym member was wearing their GoodGym T-shirt! Well done to everyone for their hard work tonight, especially Vikki for leading, Bekah for organising, Sophie for leading the run, and Steph for bravery in turning up despite the storm forecast.