Determined to Live Out His Dream, Biker Helps Charities Along the Way

Bruce Smart of England has so far traveled to 36 countries on his superbike in the name of charity. He is currently visiting Indonesia.  (Photo courtesy of Teapot One)

When 37-year-old Bruce Smart first decided to launch the Teapot One initiative to travel around the world on his superbike, he had no idea what he was getting into.

The numbers are astonishing: a total of over 181 days on the road so far across over 36 countries since he started the journey back in October 2012, from London, the city where he lives. All in the name of charity.

But the journey hasn’t always been smooth. The biggest obstacle Smart has endured so far has been in West Africa, where he had to suspend his journey and return to the UK. That experience was for Smart the lowest point in his life.

“At the end of the Sahara Desert in Mauritania, I had a bad time crossing the desert,” Smart said.

“The people wouldn’t sell me any food or water to cross the desert. Luckily I’d met another traveler, who shared their provisions, so we got through, just.

“If I hadn’t met them I wouldn’t have made it. I was in a very bad way with the heat. Then there was the police who robbed us daily.”

After crossing the border into Senegal, Smart made the difficult decision to go back home.

Yet this experience was not an excuse for Smart to quit. As of May 9 he was back on the road. The aim is to pursue 70,000 miles, or 112,650 kilometers, in a period of 12 to 14 months, for which he hopes to raise 70,000 pounds ($112,600).

The money will all go to the foundations that Smart has chosen to support, which include the Lymphoma Association and The Children’s Trust in Tadworth, a foundation for children with disabilities.

Besides those UK-based foundations, Teapot One is also supporting causes here in Indonesia, where Smart is currently riding.

Jakarta-based Sanctuary, a company focusing on broad- and narrow-based risk management consultation, pitched in to sponsor Smart during his journey throughout Indonesia as well as connect him to the Gentur Cleft Foundation, established to help children with cleft deformities to receive the treatment that they need.

“Sanctuary became aware of Bruce Smart’s Teapot One charity initiative earlier this year,” said Glenn Stirling of Sanctuary, who is corresponding with Bruce during his stay in Indonesia.

“We decided we would like to lend our support, including sponsoring Bruce for the Indonesian leg of his world tour. After talking to Bruce, we thought that the publicity generated by his monumental effort may also be a good opportunity to raise some additional funds for a local children’s charity here in Indonesia.”

Smart’s journey in Indonesia began in Medan, North Sumatra, then took him to Jakarta and Malang in East Java. He is planning to be in Indonesia for around one month, with a final stop in Bali, before continuing on to Dili in Timor Leste, and then crossing south to Darwin in Australia.

The story of Smart’s journey truly is an inspiration. When asked how the idea of Teapot One was conceived, he explained that it had to do with a lesson he learned from his mother after she was diagnosed with terminal cancer.

“One day me and my mom were watching TV when ‘Long Way Down’ came on,” the father-of-one said. “That’s the show about Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman riding motorbikes around the world. I started to moan, saying how much I’d love to do something like that, but it was OK for him as he was a Hollywood celeb with loads of money.

“My mum just turned to me and said that we only get one shot at life, look after those you love, but live your life.”

That moment motivated Smart to book his motorbike test there and then. His mother died, at St. Christopher’s Hospice, one of the charities Smart is raising money for, just six days after Smart told her that he had passed the test.

Meanwhile, Smart learned to live life to the fullest. The message behind the Teapot One initiative is to never delay making your dreams come true. “It’s very easy to dismiss your dreams as purely that, dreams,” Smart said.

“It’s easy to say I can’t do that as I have a job, a house, a family, not enough money and things like this. In my case, I have all these things, including not enough money! I still don’t have enough to finish the trip, but will keep going for as long as I can.

“I worked hard, saved, and sold everything I owned to do this trip. Even then it wasn’t enough and I was lucky to get sponsored.”

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