I got to know Tom when we drove from Europe to South Africa in 2016 and shared a tent for 4 months.

Whatever skills I lack, Tom’s got it. While I do the trip planning, he is the one that makes sure we have a bonfire to cook on and a dry place to sleep. We compliment each other. Like water and fire. Or the sun and the moon.

On another trip we organized together, driving 4 months from Norway to Ghana we got to experience this once again. Where I was the one planning the trip and communicating this to the group, Tom was the one who stood ready to put the plan into action. Like making the cars ready and making sure things got done. 

Tom has stayed absent from alcohol and social media since our first trip in 2016, so with him we can rest assured that he will not be busy on the phone and he can also be great help when we need someone who can take us to the clubs and back home safely again in the night. Tom is a very sociable person, but also someone who can take the time off, when all duties are done, to read classic novels or to practice another language. 

Some things that characterize Tom is that he has a good, but sometimes dark, sense of humor and that he knows how to fix things, including bonfires. He will make sure we have a system in place for loading the cars and let you know if you make a mess of the system in place.

If it wasn’t for Tom, there would be no ViA adventures. He is a free soul and will probably be road tripping for many years to come.