In this kind of situation any sane human being will see two possible options -“fight” or “flight”. Working with peopleimages.com, you know that there is in fact a third option in any life threatening situation: photo. Always hungry for exceptional images, Yuri Arcurs jumped at the opportunity to go on the 7th Save the Rhino Expedition - a five day, 400 km off-road cycling adventure through Damaraland in Namibia. Sounds awesome right?! Well, it wasn't all hunky-dory...

1. Can you out-cycle a rhino?

I dont think so, but you can try. In fact, on day three of the expedition I had a close encounter with a one ton black rhino (yep, the one in the image). To put it mildly, she wasn't particularly impressed with my presence and I had to flee by foot with my camera dangling around my neck. I got what I wanted though! :-) 

Being in the middle of nowhere, you start thinking about the strangest things like, “how do I block a lion from attacking me by using my bike as a shield?” or “how long can I survive on my own urine?”. I must have gone through scenarios like these about 100 times in my head - which is slightly more frequent than I would during a normal photo shoot.  

2. What was your lowest point?

On the first day of cycling I crashed three times in a very convincing manner with the bike and everything flying through the air. Amazingly, I was completely unharmed. For the remainder of the trip I went by the name “The Stuntman”. It might sound pretty cool, but it felt very uncool at the time. True to my new name, on the last day of cycling the front wheel of my bike got caught by the rear wheel of a trailer attached to one of the support cars and ended up actually running over me! I'm still flabbergasted by the fact that I escaped with only a few bruises and a cracked helmet (thank you helmet). While still dizzy from the fall, I managed to get a replacement bike and actually made it over the finish line! 

3. What was the best part of the expedition?

At the top of my list is the experience of getting so close to a wild rhino! I thrive on working with uncooperative models and this one might just take the cake. Another amazing moment was crossing the finish line holding my wife’s hand, who was crazy enough to join me on this fabulous adventure! 

4. What motivated you to go on the expedition?

First of all it was for a good cause - saving the black rhinos. Secondly, I´ve always liked mountain biking and think that people biking downhills through rough mountain scenery look really cool. 

5. What made the biggest impression on you?

We rode for five days and during those five days we only saw two cars, one of which was lost. I recon that gives you a maximum of 50% success rate in seeing your way through Damaraland on your own. Half a year or so before our trip, a couple from the US ran out of fuel and sat in their car until they perished. They were found a couple of months later. Damaraland is not a place you want to get lost in. If you do, you are dead. Even if you have a hundred million dollars to spend on a private army of rescue aircrafts you can not cover the area of Damaraland. Even if they spot you, it will take days to actually reach you by car. This brutality of nature impresses me. City dwellers, like myself, simply don't realize how remote some places really are before experiencing them first hand. Three weeks post-expedition and I am still limping on my right leg. It was a rough experience but also gives a sense of accomplishment being reduced to the very basics: cycle, drink, eat, sleep, repeat. 

6. Would you do it again?

Yes, in a different body! After having a body transplant from an olympic athlete :-) So I guess the answer is “yes” to both the transplant and another expedition.