THIS is an extremely hard column to write but I’m going to use it as a tribute to one of the best blokes I’ve ever met or known.
Early Sunday morning on the 20th of July I woke to a call from my mate Coxy that our best friend, our brother, Toby Hughes had passed away after suffering a heart attack.
Tobes was 50. We had been together all day the previous day as we all went to the races at Rosehill with members of my gym. Tobes was in great spirits and even backed a few winners. To hear that he was now gone was utter devastation.
I first met Toby in 2018, we had just finished a golf day at Penrith golf club and were heading into the pokie area to donate some dollars.
As we sat down, I heard a voice say, “You’re Mark Geyer aren’t you? I’m Toby Hughes, dealer principal at Sinclair Hyundai, your daughter Montanna is our ambassador and does our live reads for radio, small world”
“Nice to meet you brother, how about getting me into one too (a Hyundai)” I said jokingly. “Come down tomorrow and lets chat,” Toby said. I did, and I’ve been driving a Hyundai ever since. That was 7 years ago. Now all my family and most of our gym members also drive a Hyundai.
I quickly realised how generous a man he was and that he also had an aura, of which I was drawn to. But there was also a tinge of sadness in his demeanor. I found out after our meeting that he had recently (3 years before I met him) had a heart attack while shopping with his young son at KMart.
He was 40 at the time. If it wasn’t for a paramedic next in line at the checkout, he would have died. In fact he did. As he put it “I did a Jesus Christ, died on the Friday and came back on a Sunday.”
We quickly got him started into his “new self.”
“I have a small gym at my home where about 10-12 fellas workout each day then we go for a walk, why don’t you join us,” I asked. “Gym” he laughed, “I’m 135kgs or more, as you can see I’ve never been to a gym.”
“Just come and do whatever you can, no pressure,” I assured him. So he did. And he never looked back. Within 3 months he’d lost 10 kilos, after another 6 months he’d lost a further 20kgs, and within 12 months had lost an impressive 40 kgs to be just under 100kgs “for the first time in as long as I can remember,” he exclaimed.
When we opened MG Activ gym in early 2020, Tobes was there enrolling new members and preaching about how fitness had saved his life. He even completed his Cert 3 in Fitness to, as he said, “Help you guys out when you need it.”
Toby became an extended member of my family. Whenever I had to do a speaking gig, wherever it was, he’d be my wingman. He even had his own ‘lounge’ at my home called “The Tobias corner Lounge” where he’d often crash after we’d had a few. My houseful of kids and their friends would be throwing pillows in his direction when he was snoring saying “Go to bed Tobes” He also had a spare bed in our back room for such occasions.
That was until Tobes had recently found love with the lovely Tanya and was as happy as a pig in you know what.
He was the only man I’ve ever known that I never saw angry or yell at anyone. He was my wife Meags chatting buddy when we’d have a few wines and Toby would say, “I’ve got an idea” I’d say “Meags, Tobes has an idea” and those two would chat about everything and everyone for hours in their quest to change the world.
I still can’t believe I’m never going to see that smile of his or his unmistakable belly laugh again. I’m so sad.
Toby leaves behind 5 beautiful kids; 4 daughters Isabelle, Aleksa, Sienna, and Nikita. And his son Phoenix, his mum and dad Ron and Ingrid and sister Sam. His doting staff at Hyundai, his MG Activ gym family, as well as the countless charities and sponsorships in Penrith he supported.
My close mates, Tobes, Bobby, Coxy and myself had our own text chat group that we spoke to each other daily in. We are going to miss that lots. We are going to miss the Instagram Reels that he would send us – at least 5 of them before 6am.
We are going to miss him punting on 6 horses every race then saying “Yep, just won that.”
We are going to miss him never saying No, and when asked if he’d like to go somewhere saying “absolutely!”
We are going to miss him fullstop.
He was such a major part of our lives everyday for the past 7 years that it feels like forever.
We all loved you lots, Brother Bias and we know you loved us. Rest in love my man. We’ll never forget him or his unmistakable belly laugh!
MG (random Westie) OAM
