Meet the high achievers

From the Telegraph & Argus, first published Monday 27th Aug 2001.

You know you're somewhere special when you stand more than 6ft 8ins tall and still feel dwarfed by those around you.

Welcome to the land of the Tall Persons Club where the members make even basketball players look average.

And arriving in vintage style on a steam-hauled train, about 80 of the country's tallest men and women announced their impressive presence in Haworth on Saturday for the club's annual gathering.

"These meetings can be a bit disconcerting for some of the members because invariably they have wandered around thinking they were the tallest person," said Bierley member Mike Harrison, a respectable 6ft 8ins tall.

"And then suddenly there are all these other people looking down on you.

"The tallest person in the club, and Britain, is Chris Greener, who is more than 7ft 6ins and although I'm tall, standing next to him for the first time was a bit disconcerting, he's almost a foot taller than me."

A tall order indeed, then, for anyone reckoning they're big enough to scale the peaks of this particular mile(ish) high club.

Or maybe not. "The average height for women is about 6ft and about 6ft 6ins for men but there are no regulations for entry," said Mike.

"If you feel tall enough to want to join our club then by all means do.

"But there aren't many men under 6ft 4ins or women under 5ft 10ins."

The Bank Holiday meet was the tenth annual weekend event the club has held and saw the group wander over to Haworth from their hotel in Sheffield on Saturday for a day out, before returning to their South Yorkshire lodgings for dinner.

Mike said: "We get enough double takes from people when we are out and about on our own and I've been pictured in the Telegraph & Argus enough times that people start to recognise me.

"So obviously with so many of us wandering around we were bound to get a lot of stares."

But the club does not just provide an excuse for the high and mighty to go stomping around the countryside for a spot of fun.

Its website and members also provide valuable information on products for tall people, medical information and the challenges taller than normal children can face. Mike added: "These meetings are nice because we feel relaxed when we are altogether, no-one really thinks of anyone as a tall person, just a person."

Stretching their legs on the platform at Haworth was a welcome relief for the group after the 30-minute steam train journey from Keighley.

But their presence was not so imposing for all the onlookers, one woman commenting "they don't all look that tall, do they?".

At 7ft 2ins, Cardiff bus driver Matthew Langmaid was the tallest of the group: "But I don't think of myself like that, if other people stare that's up to them.

"It was a bit cramped on the train but being a bus driver it's better than I'm used to."

Stooping through the entrance to the railway station, which is itself about 6ft 6ins high, outsiders were given a very clear view of the everyday problems tall people face.

Another, more serious, one is that of deep vein thrombosis currently plaguing airlines and economy class passengers.

But although it is a relatively new topic for the average person, not so for tall people.

Spokesman Mary Noakes said: "It's something we've always had to live with but only now has it got mainstream attention.

"We've set up a transportation working group within the club to lobby the Government and airlines into addressing the situation."

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