I have never heard of group wee'ing before - how much do you have to pay to do that on the common? And do you have to wear a coloured bib?

Is there a technique - what if you don't want to go but the group says you have to - and it turns into more than a wee - do you have to pay more? These things matter because you need to know the rules or you'll look silly.

We have to be really careful though because we don't want to drive group wee'ing underground.

Just say no!

Zammo

There are orange gravel football pitches by Clapham Common Southside - which are empty for most days - except when used informally by a Latin American group at the weekends. Perhaps large fitness groups such as BMF could utilise this space - to minimise soil erosion and disturbance to individuals using the park.

I think a sliding scale of charges levied by Lambeth Council depending upon each company's profits is sensible. As for commercial enterprises such as Sky1, who erected igloo-dome marquees on Clapham Common Northside recently - they pay Lambeth Council large sums of money to use the park + the costs of restoring the soil.

Re: Group weeing [!!!!] - as another poster said - I think it is a criminal offence and if you dial '101' next time you see a group wee being performed - tell the Police operator where is happening - and fines/arrests can be levied once a Police Response Unite arrives.

That is very true. Most the classes are on when the common is empty. The common is huge - there is so much space that if they are really offending someone then there is easy to move away. When the group have to cross paths they are also very careful to look out for pedestrians and cyclists and wait for people to pass first.

But Clapham Common is huge! There must be enough space for some people to have a quiet stroll, without being disturbed by others who want to run, bike, play sports etc? It sounds like you have had a bad experience in your local park and I appreciate it is completely out of order to drive people off a footpath. But quite simply public places are there for everyone to enjoy - in London especially, it is so hard to get to specialist outdoor sporting facilities. It is crazy for me to have to drive/bus somewhere when the common is at the end of the road?! Often when the classes run the common is practically deserted anyway!!!

There is no way that a BmF class would do a wee on the common. It must have been something else. do pay Lambeth to use the common.

I agree that "we don't always want to go for a quiet stroll" but that is what many people want to do - away from traffic fumes and the stresses and strains of working life. if you want to exercise in a group, go to a sports centre, running track, whatever. The truth is that local authorities are desperate to make money and accepting payments for leasing out bits of parks willy-nilly is a readily available cash-cow for them.

I'd much rather they charged people to walk their dogs...

If they were a fitness group they should be reported for indecent behaviour!! That is awful! But surely you must agree that people should be able to use the common for different activities - we don't all just want to go for a quiet stroll...?

Bluebutterfly: the group I mentioned were definitely men...

Papinian - I agree that commercial enterprises using the common should pay for use, but I thought a previous poster confirmed that they do?! If it is a particularly bad winter - should they be charged extra for the fact that the ground is churned up more? Possibly, if the council can work out a fair way to calculate these costs.

At least BMF classes continuously move round the common to reduce their impact. I have to say that the football pitches which are used continuously every Saturday and Sunday are so muddy and churned up there is barely a blade of grass to be seen, but they always seem to recover over the summer, and is anyone suggesting that people should not be allowed to play football? I hope not, as we should really be encouraging sports in this country!!

I am really surprised that people have such negative feelings towards sporting groups - lets face it, the common is not used that much over the winter, why shouldn't people roll around in the mud if they want to?!

Camille - I also find myself gawping / smiling when i walk past people being asked to to extraordinary things with kettle bells or bungee ropes! As someone who has also attended BMF classes throughout the winter, I can completely understand why it would not appeal to everyone, but I can honestly say it would be impossible for me to recreate the exercises I do there by myself. Sure, I could go for a run and do a few sit ups or press ups, but the whole point of professional fitness trainers is that they push you to work to optimum levels - sprint training, resistance training, interval training - I honestly wouldn't know where to begin, and there is also no substitute for the group dynamic/competitive element that you get with BMF.

Finally Nana46 I am completely astounded by your story about the class that stopped to wee in front of you?!!! About three quarters of the people in all the BMF classes I go to are women and the thought of everyone stopping to do a wee half way through made me laugh! Are you sure that you weren't watching the real army train?!!

sarahm: I don't pay BMF money but I do pay the council tax that pays to maintain public parks, including Clapham Common. BMF is a private money-making relatively expensive class. Take it somewhere else or BMF pays for use just like Sky and all the other events do.

I agree! As someone who has been attending BMF every week across the winter (unlike almost every other poster with an opinion but no fact about the issue), I would like to say that the BMF guys are very considerate about how they use the Common and interacting with other users.
In my experience, we use a different part of the common each time I do a class (presumably to alleviate the erosion that people are complaining about). The guys who lead the class are usually very thoughtful about making sure their participants aren't getting in the way of other users of the common (e.g. cyclists or pedestrians) and I've never turned up to a class to find another 200 people there too.
I agree with the last post that there is just as much damage done by the regular football matches done on the common each weekend not to mention the large scale event like Sky's 'You think you can dance' or festivals which do far more damage over a short period of time. Plus of course, the winter has been incredibly wet so it's an exceptional year for water damage to all our open spaces.

It would be terrible if BMF were to stop. It is an amazing class. People are so friendly. The instructors are really respectful to the common and tell us off if stamp muddy trainers on the path. The class is so much fun but tiring. I went from a size 12 to a size 6 after 2 babies and actually ending up with some abs! I don't do the class for weight loss thoug. I do it for the exiliration of being outside on Clapham common and sucking up all that amazing fresh air whilst looking at the beauty of the trees etc. ok so a little mud get churned up as it does on the football/ rugby pitches. There is still plenty of green where it isn't muddy, it has been particularly bad this year but that was due to so much rain. The parks are there for the enjoyment of everyone. A little mud is a very small price to lay for the enjoyment it gives so many.

Stop being such miserable spoilers.

Our local parks are not intended for this kind of frenetic activity - I like to stroll quietly and relax, not have a group of sweating, grunting neaderthals whooshing past. I have been forced off the paths in my local park by these squaddies, whilst walking dogs and small children. One Sunday morning their instructor told them to line up and have a pee before the next lap, which they did in front of me and the children. Not sure if I find this acceptable even if it does keep them away from committing more violent crimes for a few hours.

The Guardian article isn't accurate - BMF have been using the common for at least 9 years - I used to go in 2004 - not "since January" as the article states.
Nor could they be able to possibly train "up to 200 people" - 'Elf & Safety considerations only permit a maximum number of people per trainer
... so please do take this reporting with a pinch of salt