Lucy, Ops Assistant
Lucy was born and raised in Dorset, where she spent most of her life exploring the rugged Jurassic Coast with family and friends. During her school years, she was uncertain about her future career path. To explore her interests and find her direction, Lucy began volunteering with several local charities, immersing herself in community service and discovering her passion for helping others.
When it came to picking a university course, Lucy landed on Sociology and Anthropology as a way to better understand the community she had been working in. This led to completing a masters in International Peace and Security at King’s College London. During university Lucy developed a passion for supporting and advocating for asylum seekers and refugees in the UK.
After university, Lucy worked in a number of customer-facing roles. From a global risk management firm, for the Department of Defence and eventually for her local council, supporting asylum seekers and refugees in Bournemouth. Despite finding a job she loved, Lucy had always wanted to travel long term with her partner Jamie. After COVID ruined her previous grand plans for travel, the need to drop everything and drive off in a van was becoming unbearable. The dream trip was driving the Pan-American Highway from Canada to Argentina.
After saving for two years, it was time to buy the van that would take them from Canada to Argentina. However, this process was complicated to say the least. With a tight budget and an even tighter timeline, the journey to find the perfect or even imperfect van seemed impossible. One day after scrolling on Ebay for the third time that day, Lucy landed on a 2011 Ford Transit Jumbo which was a left-hand-drive and it all seemed to fall into place. The only trouble was that it was the end of January 2024 and they intended to go travelling in the beginning of April 2024. This would mean that the van had to be converted in 2.5 months whilst working full-time jobs.
The three main components they wanted in the van were a fridge, a fixed bed and a place to store all of the outdoor gear. The conversion was a whirlwind of second-hand wood, working into the night with headlamps and painting (so much painting!). Despite thinking she was a perfectionist, the timeline and budget meant that the completed van has a few quirks but is fully functional and ready for the crazy journey ahead. This was Lucy’s first time buying and converting a van so it was a big learning curve. With so little time to convert the van, the electrics felt like a part of the process that shouldn’t be rushed. Lucy decided to use Nohma which took the pressure off and meant the system is perfectly suited to living and working on the road.
Working for Nohma has given me so much freedom to live and work on the road. I have always wanted to find a sustainable balance between travelling and working and Nohma has really allowed me to get this balance right. I love spending more time on hobbies and exploring new places whilst getting to see other people starting out on their own van life journeys.
Lucy Cutbush, Ops Assistant
So far on the trip, the Ford Transit Jumbo (which doesn’t have a name yet) has taken them from the east Coast of Canada, up to the mountains of the Yukon and down the west coast into the USA. For its first trip ever, the van is exceeding all expectations!
Lucy can always be found with one or two good books on the go as reading is one of her favourite things to do. She even added a bookshelf into the van so she could bring some of her favourite books on the road with her. She also loves cooking and has always been interested in sustainability. So when she’s in the van, there will always be lots of local produce and something delicious on the stove inspired by her travels.
Campervan electrics leaving you confused?
