No skipping hill reps, we'd bedder raise our game!

GG Yorkies ran en masse to Hull Road Park to help TCV dismantle old raised beds!

We didn't have a single new runner join us on this occasion, just all the old stinky ones, but we did get to announce the GG Yorkie of the Month for February and it was...... MARVELLOUS MITCH!

Mitch has done loads including leading and attending community missions, helping out with leading groups as a run leader, getting a coveted first finisher spot at parkrun and generally being an awesome GoodGymer. He's the most helpful one there is and is always quick to step in and help - make sure you go give him some cheers for being so good.

With Pete as our back-marker, we headed off for Hull Road Park. We even got to run in on our lovely new footpath. We were met by Rachel and Kristina who had really pulled the boat out on tools and wheelbarrows, it felt like there was almost a wheelbarrow for every single runner.

We had three tasks to complete in 35 minutes:

• Dig all the soil out of the raised beds and make a big pile on the nearby tarp
• Clear all the green waste to the skip (approx 200m away)
• Dismantle the raised beds carefully enough to re-use the wood

Tim and Tom (from now on known collectively as TimTom) were on skip duty; basically the muscle lifting wheelbarrow loads of stuff into the skip. Top wheelbarrow runner of the night has to go to Charlotte who was absolutely powering along and probably ran an extra 2km in wheelbarrow relays.

Craig nearly had to go to the naughty step as he was getting so carried away with sledgehammering that he nearly took out several people with falling planks, but generally the dismantling was a much gentler affair than I had envisaged.

One group were being really careful as they'd discovered frogs hidden in the soil of their raised bed. Tristan was busy lifting them all to safety.

What are they doing in here? Do frogs hibernate?!

The planks were piling up and soon Rachel opened up the hut whilst several people started carried dismantled planks back to storage. Debs managed to get a piece that did look very much like a headboard, probably not one anyone would really want in their bedroom though.

Anyone got wood? - Debs

...

No-one's got any wood? It is cold though - Craig

At the five minute countdown, only the soil of one raised bed remained, as well as a couple of barrow's worth of green waste, so everyone got stuck in the get the tasks finished. It was a wheelbarrow frenzy!

We need reversing beeps for these!

With our task completed, we celebrated with a couple of long hill reps up Green Dykes Lane before running back to base.

It was a big crew for post-run-pub-social and on investigating our pics we realised that Mitch had his eyes closed for the GGYofM picture, but we'd managed to leave the frame back at Priory Centre so, like the true good'un he is, Mitch ran back to retrieve it for an eyes open picture. What did I say, give that man a cheer!