The occasion arose following an article in Call Sign by Allen Togwell where he bemoaned the fact that finding a gym where DaC drivers could have a gentle work-out, not just to help get-fit, but also to relieve the stress of the job and at a reasonable price, was becoming quite difficult.
In stepped the excellent YMCA Central gym in Great Russell Street where not only would the rates be reasonable, but they would allow our drivers full, unfettered freedom to enjoy all their facilities for one week totally free of charge. If then you enjoyed it, you could join. The gym named the exercise Taxi Drivers Fitness Awareness Week.
Following some publicity shots accompanying the article in Call Sign, Carlton Television got hold of a copy of the magazine and decided to run a news item on the idea. However, they didn't want to just send a crew down on the off chance that a cab driver would be there, they asked Dial-a-Cab to send down some volunteers to
make absolutely sure! Fortunately for us, being one short at the last
minute, ComCab's Barry Rowan stood in.
Later that day, the completed news item appeared on Carlton's
'London Today' programme headed by Natasha Kaplinski - who all three
volunteers said they wish had done the interviews!
She opened the piece by claiming that London's cab drivers could use some
shaking up as driving for a living was far from being the healthiest of
occupations. She went on to speak of the item in Call Sign, which she
called the cabbies trade paper!
The video opened with Alan Gold (L95) driving his cab around
town with a camera crew in the back (but not Natasha Kalinski...!). The
commentary suggests that the traffic we have to drive through on a daily
basis causes extreme stress and sure enough, a close-up of Alan's fingers
tapping away on the steering wheel helps to convince us that it must be
true. The mystery voice (actually that of
But now, thanks to Call Sign (and Natasha Kalinski), drivers could work away their stress at the excellent YMCA gym in the first ever Taxi Drivers Fitness Awareness Week and turn from 'fatties' to 'fitness freaks!'
In the gym, all three drivers spoke well. First up while doing back exercises was Paul Tully (Y40), who said that stress came with the job and that working-out definitely helped relieve it. He was followed by Barry Rowan who spoke of the possibility of heart attacks for those who suffered with stressful jobs on top of being unfit, while Alan Gold also added that a good work-out not only helped rid him of built-up stress, but also of the aggression that most drivers eventually feel at some point in their working day.
Closing the section, Natasha Kaplinski spoke longingly of "...all those men in shorts!" So it must have worked!
The day-time membership fee of the YMCA at Great Russell Street is £30 per month (one pound a day) between the hours of 7am until 4:30pm and represents excellent value for such a well equipped gym which includes squash courts and a large swimming pool.
Metrocab
TTT Offers Smooth Rides for Drivers