Martin's in it for the long haul
Abbe Bates talks to Martin Gibson, Chairman of the Howmet Sports and Social Club in Exeter, to discover how his twenty-four years of organising led to the group’s first long haul trip to the USA this year.
Martin Gibson has been Chairman of the Howmet Sports and Social Club in Exeter since 1989 and has been involved with organising for the group as a committee member since 1983. Having begun by organising just day trips, he now arranges all the Club’s overnight breaks, both at home and abroad, including the group’s first long haul trip a few months ago. Explaining more about the group, he states “The club itself started life in the 1960s, with an annual Christmas dinner and dance and grew from there. The company is now known as Alcoa Power and Propulsion but was formerly Howmet Castings – hence the Club’s name; we are an investment casting foundry, making blades and vanes for turbine engines.”
Martin has been with the company for 41 years, starting off as an apprentice and now working full time as its Electrical Engineering Manager. He fits in his organising responsibilities around the day job, spending his spare time at home arranging the bulk of his group trips and holidays. “The club offers full membership to all full time members of staff working at the site in Exeter,” states Martin. “Twenty-five pence a week is taken from each member’s wages and the company then matches this sum. We also offer associate membership, which is designed for people who work on site but are not part of the company – for instance the canteen staff, who are contracted in from an outside source. They pay an annual fee of £13 but this is not matched by the company.” In addition, the club includes honorary members – those who were a full member when they retired from work at the site. These members do not have to pay a fee at all. In this way, all the trips are subsidised for members by around 15-20%. “All members are also allowed to bring one guest along on trips at a subsidised rate as well as their own children. Any further guests pay full price but the club doesn’t put a limit on numbers for trips. We currently have around 750 members, including associate and honorary ones,” comments Martin.
The club has an Executive Committee, made up at present of 12 people including the Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer and each committee member can put forward ideas on trips they would like to arrange. Martin has the majority of organising responsibilities, arranging some day trips and all the clubs overnight UK breaks and holidays abroad. “We meet once a month at work to discuss the success of events and trips that have already taken place and to propose future trips,” he says. “Added to this, we have an AGM, usually in April and outside working hours, which all members can attend, and at which I report on the year’s activities and the committee is re-elected.”
Not content with his busy role as Chairman, Martin is also a member of the Exeter and District Electric Club, having been President until July. The Club is open to anyone involved with the electricity business, from wholesalers to contractors. Activites include skittle evenings and a Christmas dinner and dance and Martin offers his overnight trips with the Howmet Sports and Social Club to its members.
Advertising his trips is simple; he puts up posters on noticeboards at work and also emails members with information; people can then add their names to lists that he pins up alongside the posters, to register their interest. “Ideas for my trips come from a variety of sources; I am a member of the Group Travel Organisers’ Association (GTOA) Western branch, so I get information this way, I read GTO magazine and I also pay attention to members’ own suggestions,” says Martin.
The diversity of the club is highlighted by the various different sub-sections that exist; golf, fishing, motorbiking and surfing are all covered in this way. “Each sub-section will also have its own committee, the only requirement being that one member of this must also be a member of the Executive Committee. Members of the Sports and Social Club can then opt to become a member of any of these sub sections, for a small added charge each, and take part in the various subsidised day trips and events that they organise along these lines. “In years gone by, we also had sub-sections covering football and cricket, but since shift work was introduced it became increasingly difficult to arrange matches that everyone could make, as this was the basis of their activities,” explains Martin.
Going transatlantic
Martin started to introduce longer domestic breaks and overseas trips when he became Vice-Chairman in 1984, something he has continued into his Chairmanship. For the first time this March, he decided to arrange the Club’s first long haul trip to the United States. He explains, “I started to think about long-haul trips a few years ago and was initially looking at China but was then invited on a familiarisation trip to the Rockies with Uxbridge-based Collette Worldwide Holidays. I was so impressed with the organisation of the trip and the good quality and location of the hotels that I decided to book ‘The Music Cities’ package that the company offers to Tennessee. It was the first time that I had used Collette and one of the sales representatives visited us beforehand to give a presentation, attended by 30 people members. Initially, 12 people actually paid their deposits, including a member who was mad on Elvis, but due to various circumstances, only 6 people eventually went. Even so, it was a brilliant trip and we were absolutely blown away with visiting Graceland during our stay. I would definitely use Collette again.”
Other overnight offerings
Martin tries to organise at least two holidays during the year, with at least one overseas, as well as an annual London Theatre Weekend.
Past overseas breaks have seen the Club visit Germany, Ireland and Amsterdam as well as Belgium, France, Jersey, Austria, Switzerland and Italy.
“I used to use Kent-based Bob Cole Group Travel for the majority of my overseas breaks, travelling to Dinant in Belgium for three days in 2003, Lake Como in Italy in 2004 for five days and Leuven in Belgium for four days in 2005. I took 30 people away to Lake Como and this was interesting as I chose to include the optional extra of a ride on the Bernina Express through Switzerland on one day of our stay. All the drinks (including alcohol) and meals were included at the Britannia Excelsior hotel on this holiday, which went down very well, and we also enjoyed a lake cruise complete with wine tastings along the way at a local vineyard,” says Martin.
Since the company ceased trading, Martin has started to use Wiltshire-based Success Tours for most of his overseas trips. Says Martin. “I got talking to the company at one of the GTOA National AGM’s and subsequently attended a familiarisation trip to the Amalfi Coast. The company seemed to organise very good ‘off the beaten track’ itineraries, which I liked.” He has since taken groups to Paris and Lake Garda with the company.
In the UK, meanwhile, Scotland is a popular destination with Martin and his members. “I use a company called Lochs and Glens in Dumbartonshire to organise everything on these trips,” reports Martin. “I first came into contact with the company in 2002, when the landlord of a local pub in the village of Woodbury decided to take some of his regulars away and organised a trip to Inversnaid that February. He had booked two coaches but could not fill the second so I agreed to take this over and bring members of the Howmet Sports and Social Club. All in all there were 49 people on that trip from Howmet and so many members were interested that I had to run another trip the following month for another 41 people.
Since then, Martin has organised three more trips with the company to Scotland and plans more, even taking 95 people on one break in February 2003. “The trips are always for five days and I continue to offer places to Woodbury locals, who also come on some of the club’s other breaks,” explains Martin. “Lochs & Glens is very good to deal with and owns its own hotels and coaches, so this all comes as part of the package, along with excursions, which in 2003 included a trip to Inverarary.”
In 2005, meanwhile, Martin organised a first-time trip to the Isle of Wight for 94 members with Daish’s Travel Group based in Devon. “I had visited the Isle of Wight previously on a GTOA familiarisation visit and a fellow GTO suggested Daish’s. We stayed at Daish’s Hotel in Shanklin and I also hired coaches from the company as an added extra to take us around the island. I had also met with a representative from Rosemary’s Vineyard in Ryde on the GTOA familiarisation trip and so arranged a trip here separately after we arrived on the island. All in all, the holiday was good and the trip to Rosemary’s Vineyard was fun as it included wine tasting!” he chuckles.
A staple of Martin’s breaks in the UK is the annual London Theatre Weekend. “I arrange this as a package with Hookways of Meeth in Devon. The coach company organises theatre tickets, coach travel and accommodation for me and we usually stay in the Thistle Guoman Tower, which offers good rooms and a great location near Tower Bridge. I always request the most expensive stall seats at the theatre that we can get at a reduced price so that we get the best view.” The most recent show that members of the Club saw was Les Miserables but, in the recent past, they have also enjoyed Guys and Dolls, The Woman in White, Mamma Mia! and We Will Rock You.
Active service
The Club arranges a day trip during most months of the year along with regular evening visits to the local Plymouth Theatre Royal, where they receive group rates, and events such as quiz nights, Christmas get togethers for the children and teenagers of members – provided free – and the Christmas dinner and dance. Day trips also include football trips to see various matches of interest including, recently, the chance to see Exeter City play in the Conference playoffs at the new Wembley Stadium. “The club arranged five coachloads to this event, with members sorting out their own tickets,” says Martin.
Martin is an old hand at organising day trips, having begun his foray into arranging for the Club in this way. He explains his methods of booking coach travel by saying, “I simply ring around local operators to see which company gives me the best price – I tend to use Hookways and Dartline in Exeter and Mid-Devon Coaches in Bow for most of my day trips as they all give me a good service.”
A particular day trip that Martin organised in 2005 was to the Goodwood Festival of Speed in West Sussex, which features a range of different sports cars. “Although I only took 11 people on this occasion, driving a minibus there, it was a very good day out.”
On a similar theme, in 2003, Martin organised a day out to Thruxton Race Circuit in Hampshire to see the British Touring Car Championship. “I took two coachloads and booked direct with the Circuit, obtaining good group rates, and pre-booked breakfast stops at the Little Chef at Chicklade and Amesbury Services; the venues were very accommodating and both laid on extra staff to meet our requirements,” states Martin.
In the past, Martin has also taken four coachloads of members to Longleat in Wiltshire for a day out. “This is a very good outing as well – I buy passport tickets once I arrive, which give entry to all the different attractions on site and are discounted for groups. Most recently, I took two coachloads in June for our annual family summer day out. This trip was the first time we had taken grandchildren of members along at a subsidised rate, which was nice,” he explains. “We had heavy rain on the way there, but luckily, during the day, this reduced to light showers and didn’t stop the group enjoying themselves before another downpour as we were leaving!”
Other regular day trips that Martin organises include wreck fishing in the English Channel, which he arranges through the skippers of local boats, and – in the past – shopping trips to London.
And beyond…
Martin’s future plans include a trip this October to Tuscany for five days with Success Tours and a four-day trip to Amsterdam in March next year with the company. A London Theatre Weekend will once again take place next May to see Billy Elliot. “I would also like to arrange another long-haul holiday and am still considering China but it would be nice to get more people next time,” he says.
Advising other GTOs, Martin says, “It’s important to build relationships with suppliers and don’t be afraid to be pedantic – it’s always best to check that all the i’s have been dotted and the t’s crossed – oh, and research hotels before you take a group there if possible. The organisational bit aside, the best part of the job is definitely when people come up to you after a trip and say how happy they were with it – I enjoy that most.”