The Mobile Adventure Base
The motorhome proved especially useful in 2020 when either between, or in some rare cases during, lockdown I had to go out for work. We tried our best to postpone any shoots or projects until after the lockdown restrictions had lifted but regardless the ability to remain independent was a huge asset. Not only was it safer for me and those around me but many of the normal accommodation options were simple not available. Being able to travel, work, cook, eat, wash and sleep all in one place made life much easier.
This convenience carries over into 2021 when we’re seeing restrictions on our movements ease more and more. I love to be self-contained and have everyone in one place. I’d always choose my Adamo 75-4 DL over a hotel room for work for a number of reasons.
Firstly there is ease of being able to pack all my kit (and sometimes there is a lot of it) in one place and be able to access it at any time rather than have it spread between hotel, car and location. I have the room to set up an office and, because I usually have my Adamo on-site with me, I can chip away at writing, editing or answering emails when I have breaks during the day or when I’m waiting for dinner to cook or the coffee to brew.
The ability to cook food for myself is important to me. In previous years it’s all too easy to fall into bad eating habits when on the road filming. Whether its service stations, take-aways or tasty hotel food there are not many healthy options. My work requires me to be in reasonable physical condition and I strive to eat well. The Adamo, with its massive fridge/freezer means I can stock up on supplies and fuel myself when traveling.
Another advantage to my recovery and performance is sleep, something hugely important to me, and something I often struggle with when I find myself in a different hotel bed every night. I, and I think most people, sleep better in a familiar setting, ideally their own bed. I’ve now spent so many nights in my Adamo that it’s my second bedroom and I can sleep as well there as in my other, fixed-to-the-ground, home.
Of course, there is one other reason for using the Adamo on my adventure and filming projects – location, location, location. In 2020 I spent a great deal of time in Cornwall freediving, at Wookey Hole in Somerset cave diving and in Devon skydiving. I even used it when on a course my local Search and Rescue organisation I volunteer with. Of course, all these places have hotel within a 20 minute drive. However, I was able to park up and live on the beach in Cornwall, at the entrance to Wookey and next to the planes parked up by the runway at the Drop Zone. You don’t get a shorter commute to work than that. But even better than the non-existent commute is the views. In Cornwall I opened my blinds to look over the shimmering seas of Porthkerris Bay. In Devon I’d gaze out over the still, open green space of the rural airfield watching the windsocks gently fluttering. Lying in bed, surveying the view and drinking fresh coffee makes the, often very early, mornings something to look forward to.
And I’ve got plans to take the Mobile Adventure Base further afield in 2022. We’re hatching plans to use it as the Team GB Speed Skydiving team’s official tour bus for competitions in German, Portugal, Sweden and The Netherlands, freediving-filming trips to southern France and cave diving expedition to Bosnia-Herzegovina. I’m not sure what 2022 will look like but the ability to have everything I’ll ever need in one place, mounted on four-wheels means I can always get out there.
