ImagesMagUK_March_2022

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS www.images-magazine.com 72 images MARCH 2022 You know the name, now get to know the person. Dave Smith, operations manager at TOT Shirts, talks about his love of Formula 1, cycling around the world and being selected for the Commonwealth Games tryouts for badminton UPCLOSE AND PERSONAL How long have you been working in the industry? 33 years and a bit, my first day being April Fool’s Day – says it all, really. What’s your most overused word or phrase? Will you just f@c%ing well get on with it?! Which tune can’t you get out of your head? Around The World by Daft Punk. My son is mad on Daft Punk right now. Did you know the phrase “around the world” is repeated 144 times, and is the entirety of the lyrics? What’s your favourite sports team? Either Williams or McLaren Formula 1 teams, particularly during the 80s and 90s, with drivers like Senna, Prost, Mansell and Piquet – one of my favourite pictures is of Mansell giving Senna a lift back to the pits. Tomato ketchup or brown sauce? Brown sauce! Tommy sauce is for kids! What’s the most embarrassing thing that’s ever happened to you at work? Many years ago, working on a press over a very long weekend, I wasn’t very well at all. I had to make a mad dash to the toilets, which was in vain, and so I stood just outside the toilet door hiding Dave Smith behind a pallet of shirts, naked from the waist down and screaming at Ralph to find me some joggers. Then Pete [Joyce; managing director] walks in, and starts asking how are we doing, and why am I standing behind the pallet? I explain that production’s fine, and I’m waiting for a pair of joggers because I’ve had a gravy moment. He replies ‘Great stuff’ and ‘You’ve got a weird sense of humour’, and walks off – I’m still not sure if he knows the truth. What fact about you surprises people? Many years ago, I was selected for the Commonwealth Games tryouts for badminton! I was knocked out in the first round. What’s your greatest ambition? To explore strange new worlds. What’s your hidden talent? I can juggle. If you were to do another job, what would it be? Race car driver. If you could be anywhere on Earth right now, where would you be? On my bike, riding around Japan’s Shimanami Kaido [a 70km cycling trail consisting of roads and bridges joining six small islands in the Seto Inland Sea]. Which gadget couldn’t you live without? My cycling helmet! It has an integrated headset so you can take calls, listen to the radio/phone, and connect with up to three other nutters and chat away as you cycle the globe. If you could ask one person (living or dead) one question, what would you ask? I’d ask David Bowie, is there Life on Mars? Dave was selected for the Commonwealth Games tryouts for badminton! Dave loved the McLaren and Williams Formula 1 teams during the 1980/90s Part of the 70km Shimanami Kaido cycle trail in Japan Juggling is Dave’s hidden talent