London Booster

The “London Booster” is a mechanical sculpture created to commemorate the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. It is a 1958 double decker bus transformed into an athlete, with a pair of muscular arms and a sculpted bottom.

Because pushups are a training activity employed by almost every sort of athlete, the bus is poised to “boost” itself. Every day at 3 p.m. it does so, lifting itself high above the heads of onlookers.

The artist, David Černý, even equipped the hydraulic sculpture with realistic groans of a strained workout. The only thing that keeps it from its daily exercises is inclement weather.

The statue was installed in front of the Czech house in Islington during the Olympics. After the games had commenced, it was relocated to Prague. Černý is unsure how long the bus’s hydraulics will remain functional, so see the London Booster while you still can.