Getting to the root of the problem!

On what turned out to be a fabulous evening with a beautiful orangey-red sky, a seven strong team of GoodGym runners assembled at Shaw Lane to socialise, run and volunteer in Barnsley!

We were joined by the lovely Emily from Durham who regularly attends GG York and Newcastle. She is undertaking research into GoodGym for her PHD and wanted to come along to GG Barnsley to join in the fun and see what GG is like in a smaller area! Our other regulars included Sharon, Mairead, James, Anna and Rachael!

We headed off with the sun setting behind us on what is the longest and most challenging run we do in Barnsley. For those who know Barnsley, you'll know it's impossible to run anywhere without a hill or two thrown in, and last night was no exception. The run there was 3.5km with two uphill and two downhill sections, we stayed in a tight group with Mairead bringing up the rear,.

When we got there we were met by Daniel, one of the residents Stuart and a huge bush! The challenge, should we choose to accept it, was to remove the huge bush, branches, leaves, roots and all! Armed with spades, forks, rakes and loppers, the team spread out around the bush and began pulling it apart. There was the added challenge of the bushes roots being covered by a thick layer of shale and slate, but James showed it who was boss by casually dragging up huge root beds! Rachael took the lead on the lopping, removing the bushy part of the bush to reveal the roots below for the others to remove. Anna and Emily worked together to tug some of the stubborn roots out, at one point nearly going flying when a root came up easier than they had expected! Sharon and Mairead focussed on the opposite side of the bush, bashing the roots with spades and tugging them out. It was a real team effort!! There were many bush inuendos to be had and although it was a physically tough task, it was a lot of fun with lots of laughing - exactly what GoodGym is all about!

With 10 minutes left the group worked super fast to ensure every last bit of the bush was removed, and aside for a few root beds, the space looks unrecognisable from when we had arrived! The space was to be kept clear, as Daniel explained the bush attracted lots of rubbish and bush-diving children (odd local sport perhaps!). Stuart and Daniel were extremely grateful for all of our hard work, we said our goodbyes and headed off back to base.

On the way back, the uphill was longer than the downhill, with a spooky wooded area thrown in. With everyone a bit weary from the run there and upper-back workout of the bush removing, we took it steady and stuck together all the way back. It was amazing to see everyone putting in so much effort to get back and helping to encourage each other up the big hill. Seriously good effort from everyone last night, you did yourselves proud! Well done GG Barnsley!

It's a shorter run next week (yay!) Hope to see you all there, sign up here