Tonight, the GoodGym team embarked on our longest run yet, a thrilling 9 km journey to Friary Park. It was a night filled with camaraderie, new faces, and a touch of mystery.

As we gathered at the Phoenix Cinema, our run leader Moya orchestrated a lively warm-up session, getting us pumped and ready for the challenge ahead. Among us was the courageous Kubilay ,tackling the distance with gusto, proving that every run is an opportunity for growth.

With Katy from Southwark joining our ranks, we set off along East Finchley High Street, pairs chatting away with Paul diligently back marking. The crisp night air fueled our spirits as we traversed the 4 km stretch to the park, the journey made lighter by laughter and conversation.

Arriving at Friary Park, we were greeted by the enigmatic statue of a woman, once lost in anonymity but now revealed to be a rejected likeness of Queen Victoria. Illuminated by moonlight, she seemed to wield a litter picker, a silent guardian aiding us in our mission.

Teaming up with the Friary Park friends group led by Nick, we dispersed into pairs to tackle the task at hand: litter picking. Amidst the occasional firework, we diligently scoured the grounds, though pleasantly surprised by the park's overall cleanliness.

As Moya ushered us back, Queen Victoria's silhouette waved farewell, her litter picker raised in solidarity. Returning to the Phoenix for a well-deserved warmdown, our spirits soared as Kubilay shared nuts from his Turkish farm, a delightful treat capping off a night of adventure and goodwill.

Until our next escapade, let's continue spreading positivity one run at a time!

A fantastic, five Goodgym members came together to help the friends of Friary Park. Four of us gathered at the Phoenix Cinema for a chat before setting off on the 5 km run down East Finchley High Street, into Glebelands and then up a steep hill to the park. It was a beautiful warm evening with the Sun starting to set we gathered around the newly restored statue of Queen Victoria. Apparently she had not liked the statue and had banished it and somehow it ended up in a suburban park. We then met up with Nick, who provided litter pickers and bags for us to spend the next half an hour collecting detritus. Joe add also joined us so we were now five! litter picking is a fun, mindful activity very goal orientated and we had several sacks at the end. Well done everyone for helping out and improving the park and encouraging the friends group in its activities. The friends group are looking to become a charity soon so they can start to fund raise and improve the park even further. Three of us ran 5 km back, and feeling the heat, we had some refreshments at the Phoenix.

Well done to Theodore who ran with leggings on! Yesika for running the longest group run distance of 10 km on her second outing! Jyothsna for recovering from injury to join us for the litter pick! Ruslan for being superfit, doing extra running and exercises en route.

Five fantastic, resilient Goodgym members came despite heavy rain. Unfortunately the host that evening cancelled our planned assistance at Friary Park. It was probably for the best being our longest run of 6 miles in total. Plan B was put into action as we decided to deliver some GoodGym leaflets to the local people of East Finchley. Running down the High Street our best bet was to get to the station and intercept would be members as they exited the station. We literally had to jump streams of running water. Check out the photo of Niki leaping across a road of water! It’s not an easy thing to engage with people after a hard days work in the pouring rain, but we managed to distribute about 30 leaflets to some likely looking candidates. Most importantly, we had a laugh! Skipping over puddles, dodging the worst of the rain, people ignoring us. There was even one guy that started limping as soon as we asked if he was a runner? 😂 Well done for weathering, the storm showing some grit and facing up to rejection! A most memorable day, certainly very different! But that’s good, right? And you know what we needed the rain!

We set off from the Phoenix Cinema, five of us on a mission! These unsung heroes, Kirsten, Rachel, Beattie, Moya and me Antonio braved the elements and ran all the way to Friary Park, where we met Cloud and Niki. Together, with our head torches, we swept through the park with a fine tooth comb, finding all manner of litter to add to our rubbish bag, sweeping it clean and leaving the park a joy to behold... this will undoubtedly be more noticeable at sunrise. There were even some crocuses peeping out, so we trod carefully with our head torches. All in all a job well done. But the journey was only completed when we ran back to the Phoenix for a reviving hot cup of tea. Well done everyone!

This was an unusual group gathering to celebrate Halloween by scaring and helping the community at the same time! We had cyclists and runners converging on Friary Park to help them prepare the ground for bulb planting. (rather than the usual run from the Phoenix Cinema.) We had four spooky cyclists heading from East Finchley and three terrifying runners looping the park. We met with Richard who outlined the task, provided tools and weapons... so that malevolent mummy, spider woman, pumpkin face, mad clown , grim reaper and the two stooges could set to work. The local inhabitants must’ve been taken aback by this sickening site! Once we had 'exercised' our demons we cleared up the mess and headed to the clouds ( The mad clown) for a slap up Halloween feast. thanks for coming running, cycling, scaring and helping! it was spook tacular fun!

thanks to Cloud for hosting and those that brought some food.

Four goodgym members met at the Phoenix Cinema to run the 4 km to Friary Park to help the friends group led by Richard and Yvonne. This is one of our longest runs with a nice section through Gleblands. One of the many green spaces in Barnet. Give a shout out to Antonio on his first group run with Barnet. ( click on the red link) also a sad farewell to Ali Who is moving on to Rome via Swindon! ( yes all roads lead through Swindon!) Bon voyage! We met Richard and Yvonne and set about litter picking and trimming the lavender. Both top jobs to while away half an hour. Valeria also joined us after cycling from home. Richard was explaining how these friends groups are becoming smaller as less people are interested in being involved. Which is such a shame for the community at large. It is great to be able to offer them a boost both of morale and with physical help. After completing our tasks we had a few bags of lavender and quite a lot of rubbish. The runners headed back to the Phoenix with a short detour through Coppetts Wood. We then had a warm down stretch and some refreshment at the Phoenix on its CAFE balcony... nice!

thanks for coming running, cycling and doing some good!