Rob Lutter (29) was just an average working man in London, doing 15 hours a day, 6 days a week. Until he saw a colleague reading The Man Who Cycled The World and an idea started to grow in his mind. “I began to see images of people in vast deserts or desolate mountain landscapes, riding alone with the sun on their faces, beards full grown, dusty, but happy, making their way down long winding roads. I wanted to be that person. I had a bike already and I had a tent and suddenly it was as if a door had appeared in front me. A way out.”
Today Rob Lutter has been away from England for almost two years, carrying a Canon 5D MKKL SLR with some prime lenses and his iPhone. He has been on the road for about 15 months of that time. Two years ago he got on his bicycle and cycled out of London. His goal: 35,000 kilometers of cycling, passing through at least 30 countries.
Charity
During his trip, he has raised funds for several charity organizations. He keeps track of his adventure and shares his experiences through Instagram. Though charity wasn’t the main reason for this trip, it has grown close to his heart. “People are investing in you to keep going and it drives you when kind people make donations. It’s a reason not to stop. It’s a reason bigger and more important than yourself. I am currently in Hong Kong, where I have a chance to do some exhibitions. I am also redesigning a new website with a shop section in which I will sell photos to help me personally to keep going.”
Instagram
Rob says that getting his stories out there is his main drive to do this trip. “For me the bike, the camera, or whatever it may be, is just a medium, a bridge to the world. I actually would say that I am a storyteller: I use the camera to carry me through the world. For me personally, as a creative person, a photographer or whatever I am, I have always wanted to do something with the memories and ideas I have had. A drive to get them from my head and into other peoples heads. Instagram is a beautiful thing. Socially, we now have windows into people’s lives and windows onto places in the world we may never otherwise see. Creatively, it allows those who maybe can’t afford to buy tons of camera gear to take the pictures they always dreamed of taking. No longer should there be a niche group of people who are photographers, because everyone in the world has a story and has ideas and things they want to share and now they can, through Instagram.”
Just the beginning
To Rob, everything he runs into on his way can be a trigger for a well-shot photograph. “I exchanged an office chair for a bike saddle so no matter where I go I will always have new things to take pictures of. From a creative stance that is perfect for developing, improving and challenging yourself.” He never wanted to be an adventurer; he just wanted to get out there. “The hardest part of it all will be when it all ends, when I get home and I have nowhere left to cycle. In my mind I can picture every road, every turn, every camping spot I found, every meal I ate. Yet I cannot remember any days from before when I was in London, it all seems like one long day. This cycle ride is just the beginning. It’s just a platform by which to get people listening.”
Favorite picture
Rob’s favorite photo was taken when he had had been cycling two weeks through Kyrgyzstan, up into the Himalayas. “I was spending hours alone in the saddle, climbing a pass. Out of nowhere, the beautiful weather was taken over by rain and then snow as I climbed higher. In the far distance I could see a dim light, which I realized was sunlight. I was just trying to get down from the mountain and towards the sunlight far below. Eventually I came to a halt by the roadside on a long plateau section. I dropped my bike and stumbled up to this nomads cabin. She brought me inside and fed me and gave me hot tea. An hour later locals surrounded me, a woman’s little kid was pulling at my hair and suddenly they all looked outside. The storm had instantly stopped and the entire plateau was flooded with sunlight in a matter of minutes. Everyone rushed out of the cabin. The child was laughing and screaming at the return of the sun and the blue sky that was growing. It was such a special moment for me because I was on top of the world. I was where I had always dreamed of being. Different people from different worlds were there together just unified by such a simple thing. Nothing else seemed to matter anymore.”
Look to the stars
Being on the road, on a bicycle, on your own, is without a doubt physically and mentally challenging. What this trip has brought to Rob so far is the ability of letting go, he says. “Even though I am out in the middle of nowhere I feel more connected than I have ever felt in my life… because I have a story. That is my way of living. Never be comfortable. Never be satisfied. Always question. Always try to discover more. Explore further. Consider greater things, believe you can do more, see more, and understand more… Essentially… Look to the stars.”
You can follow Rob Lutter and The Life Cycle here:
Twitter@robertlutter
www.facebook.com/rwlutter
www.facebook.com/thelifecyclenet
http://instagram.com/roblutter/