🌹16 sensational GoodGymmers met on a pleasant (if chilly) Valentines Monday evening. The moon was bright and it had stopped raining so love of GoodGym was firmly in the air 🌝

❤️ To prove this, we each said what we love about GoodGym (and/or running). The ability to consume cake and/or beer featured strongly, along with a lot of love for Mitch 🥰

👋We were thrilled to welcome Morgan for his first session with us and greatly appreciated that his love of GoodGym was for our snazzy red t shirts👕

🥳We also wished Tristan a very happy birthday 🎂

😵‍💫Having suspected that Kristina and I may have got our wires crossed about tonight's task, my back up planning was vindicated and put into action. Therefore, having established that Kristina was unlikely to arrive at West Bank Park, a troop of folk popped back to the Barretts' house to collect the GoodGym litter pickers. The rest of us headed to Hob Moor via Windmill Rise for some hill reps (what a treat!) 🏔️

🥫After smashing the hill reps, we regrouped at Hob Moor for some litter-picking. What initially felt like a “hunt the litter” session, we eventually found a patch of litter-ful ground and felt that we’d at least achieved some good with our evening, having filled a few bags-worth 🛍️

🍪After posing for a group photo next to a group of orienteer-ers who we were sharing Hob Moor with tonight, we headed back to base, stretched and ate biscuits before parting ways home/to the pub 🍻

📸Apologies for the less organised than usual session tonigh, and for my shockingly bad group photo – Louise took the decent photos.

Today we have made another attempt at eradicating Himalayan Balsam from the woodland on the eastern side of Hob Moor.

The task owner instructed us that everything else, except the Balsam is good for the habitat and has to stay, so we were extra careful not to remove ever so stinging nettles and the sticking to your clothes weeds.

Are we removing the sticky weed too? - Louise

Wearing her wellingtons and not deterred by nettles, our new member Nicola was straight at it. Give her a big cheer!

We pulled the plants from under the trees and midst of thorny brambles, then carried them to custom made alfresco areas to create piles in an effort to make these areas less appealing to congregate at.

As we were scattered across the woodland various conversations took place and people seized the opportunity to catch up face to face with so many at the same time.

Balsam bashing is like gardening sex – Vicky

Paul was celebrating his 200th good deed. Achieving 200 good deeds is not an official mile stone on the GG website, nevertheless deserving recognition. High five Paul for making a difference so many times!

After one hour of native species conservation some of us still had the energy for a hill reps session. Running and walking up the 200 metres long ascent was fun and we even had some racing on. Stretching after the running was a great time for a chat about future events and other things GoodGym.

Well done to everyone involved with the task and participating in the training session! See you at Glen Allotments next Monday - It will be listed on the web tomorrow morning (Tue 22 June).

8 GG Yorkies met with Richard from Friends of Hob Moor to litter pick in the forested area by the train tunnel.

Over the course of the hour, ten bags were filled. Mitch was very excited to find a a very rusty barbecue and Ed bravely tackled the smelly swamp to retrieve a tarp and a table top. The remnants of a romantic date were found (rosé bottle, WKD bottle, condom wrapper, condom, all in a pile of nettles), whilst Amy, Ben, PK and Leanne found evidence of a different sort of fun night, with a ‘homemade drug device’ and ‘premium drugs stabby thing’.

The group meandered home in the glorious sunshine, leaving a rider, safer forest ready to be balsam bashed in a few weeks.

8 GoodGymers joined today to continue our Balsalm Bashing .

First off we welcome new starter David who got stuck straight in to the task. We are also celebrating Excellent Emily for completing her 100th good deed. Make sure to give them both a cheer!

We split into two groups. One group continued removing the Balsalm that has built up on Hob Moor. Unfortunately due to COVID, the Balsalm has been left to grow worse than previous years. However this has not deterred us GG'ers from jumping in head first and removing as much as we can. Through all the nettle stings, grunts and shouts of 'ow!' we managed to make a large dent in the Balsalm. However the flowers were exploding their seeds, so unfortunately this is likely the last time for Balsalm removal this year...the plant may have won the battle but we will win the war!

The other group were picking up the litter that has been left by delinquents. Through their work, 3 bags were filled and they also found: a) an abandoned wheelchair and b) an old road sign. We all left these by the bins at the end of the task to be collected by the council. I didn't hear much from this group, but I'm sure it was very calm and focused minus the sprinting dibgy dog!

As 11:30 hit, we packed up our tools and could see how much litter and Balsalm we had cleared. Now this is how you spend a Saturday morning!

Bash! Bal-sam
It kills diversity!

Bash! Bal-Sam
They will conquer it!

(Seemingly there is no reason for these extraordinary biological upsets)
(Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha)
(What's happening Yorkies?)
(Only Doctor Mitch, expert in Yorkshire flooding, has provided any explanation)

Bash! Bal-sam
It is everywhere!

(Don’t worry, Hob Moor, thanks to GoodGym York there is no cause for alarm)

Bash! Bal-sam
This job is impossible!

Pull up every one of it,
Pile up every one of it,
Even with a nettled hand,
Every man, every woman,
Every one, do the mighty Bash!

(Goodgymmers down! Injuries galore!)
(What do you mean injuries galore?)
(Nettles, brambles, and Laura headbutted a spikey tree. And someone get Steve a balaclava!)

Bash! Bal-sam

(They’re alive!)

Bash! Bal-sam,

They’ll pull up all of it,
Just a Yorkie with a Yorkie’s courage,
You know they’re nothing but a Yorkie,
And they can never fail,
No one but the strong at heart,
Defeats the Himalayan Beast,
Oh-oh, oh-oh

(Goodgym, Goodgym, I love you, but there’s at least fourteen more hours to do to save Hob Moor - so it’s home time!)

Bash!

12 runners met with John from Friends of Hob Moor to attack the rampaging himalayan balsam which is spreading through the forested area and clogging the dry stream bed. We swiftly spread out and began our vengeance, using a range of techniques to get the weed out. Rich took a 'team tall' approach, only taking out the tall pieces where as Mitch's attention to detail led him to find a road sign stand. Ed and Amy (with the help of Fergs the Dog) worked on the brook bank and, as neither of them were soaking wet at the end of the task, I assume they didn't fall in.

Newbie Emma got the proper goodgym experience with a nettle to the face and Nikki kept being her usual self and ended up with a nasty bramble scratch. A few brief snacks later (we found wild raspberries) and there was soon so much balsam that Mitch could hide in it.

A group picture (and a few more raspberries later) and it was time for home and picking out thorns!