New Year New Challenge: Kilimanjaro cabbies set to peak higher in new challenge

After three London cabbies lost twelve stones and climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in 2019 for charity, the new year is heralding a much bigger challenge for a group of thirty London Cab Drivers.

Two of the original Cabbies Do Kilimanjaro, Daren Parr and John Dillane, have embarked on a much bigger challenge for 2020. Thirty London Taxi Drivers responded to a request to change their lives, by losing weight, getting fit and climbing Kilimanjaro, while raising money for the London Taxi Drivers’ Charity for Children and a children’s community project in Tanzania.

But Daren and John will be pushing themselves even harder in 2020. Not content with climbing one mountain, their challenge will be to climb Mount Meru first and then meet the other cabbies at the foot of Meru’s neighbour to attempt the six-day ascent to reach the summit of Kilimanjaro.

London Cab Driver, Daren Parr, says: “Climbing Kilimanjaro was the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. The cold, the relentless climb, the lack of sleep and the altitude sickness,all combined to make us all feel very miserable, but this was a challenge for charity, and we weren’t going to give up. John and I tripped and stumbled up the final 600 metres butstanding on the roof of Africa and seeing the curvature of the earth was the most incredible sight and made all the days of pain fade away.”

London Cab Driver, John Dillane, continued: “We never expected to do a second challenge, but we had so many fellow cabbies who were inspired to join us in Tanzania, that we decided to do it again. As if it wasn’t hard enough climbing Kilimanjaro, Daren and I decided we needed something new to challenge us. I suggested we climb Mount Meru, before climbing Kilimanjaro and that was it, without hesitation we looked at each other smiled and nodded!”

The group of 30 London Licensed Taxi Drivers, will be attempting to lose 52 stones, get fit, with the support of Be Military Fit and then travel to Tanzania where Daren and John will climb 4,562 metre Mount Meru before being joined by the rest of the cabbies to climb 5,895 metres, to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro.

The Cabbies do Kilimanjaro team is hoping to raise £7,500 for the London Taxi Drivers’ Charity for Children and £2,500 for a children’s community project in Tanzania.