This week's group run saw us get truly down and dirty as we descended to the basement at AFC Heatham House to tidy out the cellar!

Starting with a welcome for first-timer Ellen, and a 3km run from the Tap, we arrived at the impressive Heatham House front door to find out what the evening held in store. Heading down to the cellar we discovered others who had arrived just before already hard at work pulling crates, equipment and a myriad of different objects out of the cavernous rooms to the corridor. The room has been used as a dumping ground for a long time, with the best of intentions, and was too much of a job for anyone to get done alongside working with the kids who make the most of the AFC facilities.

Objects found included a banana pen, disco balls, a dead mouse, an old sports quiz and two crates of collapsible cups!

In an excellent example of how GoodGym can work at its best, just 50mins later our work amounted to nearly 11 hours of combined manpower and the room had a lot more order and space by the time we left to run back to the Tap.

We were back in the woods on Richmond Hill for this week’s task, on a bright Saturday morning. Ken had told us it would be a real workout and we arrived to find 2 large sacks of MOT gravel ready to be spread on the pathway to restore its surface.

We were joined by a group of young lads working towards their Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award, and Ken gave them instructions to spread the MOT on the path once we started bringing it down.

We had done a similar task at the bottom end of the path early in the summer so we knew what this was all about. There were plenty of wheelbarrows and shovels on hand and we got stuck in with gusto, filling the barrows and walking them down to the site.

We made quick progress and soon the section of path was starting to take shape, and the bags were quickly emptying. This spurred us on further and before long the last 4 barrows were on their way.

After a strenuous job like that we decided to try a new place for coffee and went to the Hollyhock cafe to enjoy the views.

The second Monday of the month for Richmond GoodGym is the night when the all the might and manpower and enthusiasm of the weekly Group Run is focused on our sponsored garden plots in Buccleuch Gardens by the River Thames. Monday September 11th was a particularly monumental challenge but with a lot of hard graft we proved equal to this Herculean task and finished a massive amount of planting and watering and still had a bit of energy left for the monthly social afterwards.

It was a particularly challenging task as we were attempting to plant an incredible gift of over 50 plants donated by the nearby Petersham Nurseries. Beth and Anita had collected the donated plants from Petersham Nurseries earlier in the day, and were surprised, delighted and awed by the Nurseries’ generosity.

This influx of high-quality, well-established plants left the Group Run runners with a Herculean planting task, exacerbated by an additional 5 trays worth of Verbena Bonariensis and blue catanache grown from seed waiting to go in .

Early arrivals Beth, Anita and Rosie did some preparatory weeding around the Buccleuch Garden benches and The Three Pigeons Plot and sorted a planting schemes and a rough division of labour. Meanwhile Liz led the main Group Run from The Tap Tavern in Richmond and arriving at Buccleuch Gardens everyone was allocated into one of three teams led by Beth, Anita and Rosie (GG Richmond’s Buccleuch Gardens Task Force Team). In this way and with just two spades we somehow managed to complete an extraordinary amount of new planting around The Arcade, The Benches and The Three Pigeons Plot.

And, with three non-stop water carriers working throughout, we were able to water in the new plants and bring much needed water to some of our plants struggling in the September heat wave.

We can’t thank Petersham Nurseries enough for such an amazing donation of plants. Hidden away near St Peters Church, Church Lane, Petersham, TW10 7AB you’ll find not only a high quality plant nursery but also a unique café, shop and an acclaimed restaurant . It is the most magical spot. Please do go visit and say ‘Thank You’.

https://petershamnurseries.com

Along with a run through Richmond to the leafy space of Petersham Common, we could be heard expressing countless 'oohs' and counting our blessings as we had the joy of seeing Richmond riverside on a warm September evening with a lovely sunset to match. The fun didn't stop there though as this evening's group run was in partnership with Athletic Brewing, the alcohol free beer brand that GoodGym has started working with. Before setting off from the Tap, Liz shared some info about the brand, their B Corp status, focus on healthy living and quality, as well as their hefty donations to maintaining trail paths. Many things close to our own hearts!

The task itself was to collect rubbish from the roadside and paths along Petersham Road and up Star & Garter Hill. As always we were shocked and saddened by how much there was, and the kind of things people had discarded into these green spaces. Amongst the many bottles there was also a driver's 'L' plate, numerous half-filled paint cans, clothing and a broken traffic cone.

Having collected cans through the task, the team were rewarded with some fresh ones at the end of the session, the 'Upside Dawn' beer from the Athletic Brewing range. A perfect way to end a warm evening in our beautiful town.