Algirdas Gurevičius (born 23 August 1985) is a Lithuanian adventurer, touring cyclist and filmmaker.

Biography

Algirdas Gurevičius began filming and engaging in

bicycle A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike, push-bike or cycle, is a human-powered transport, human-powered or motorized bicycle, motor-assisted, bicycle pedal, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two bicycle wheel, wheels attached to a ...

tours in

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

in 2004. Since 2006 Algirdas has been involved in expeditions to other countries, both as a participant and as a leader. He has since biked in

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

(2006),

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

(

Crimea Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrain ...

in 2007),

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

(2008), the People’s Republic of China (2009),

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

(2010),

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

(2011), the Russian Federation (

Altai Republic The Altai Republic, also known as the Gorno-Altai Republic, is a republic of Russia located in southern Siberia. The republic borders Kemerovo Oblast to the north, Khakassia to the northeast, Tuva to the east, Altai Krai to the west, as well ...

in 2012),

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

(

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya ( ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. More than list of h ...

, State of

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...

in 2013),

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

(2014),

Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan, officially the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia lying in the Tian Shan and Pamir Mountains, Pamir mountain ranges. Bishkek is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Kyrgyzstan, largest city. Kyrgyz ...

(2015),

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East Asia, bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south and southeast. It covers an area of , with a population of 3.5 million, making it the world's List of countries and dependencies by po ...

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

(2016),

Namibia Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...

(2017),

Tajikistan Tajikistan, officially the Republic of Tajikistan, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Dushanbe is the capital city, capital and most populous city. Tajikistan borders Afghanistan to the Afghanistan–Tajikistan border, south, Uzbekistan to ...

(2018),

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

the United States of America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguou ...

(2022) and made documentaries about many of them. He has also made Youtube vlogs about solo cycling tours in

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

(2017),

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

( Lofoten archipelago, 2019), around the borders and coastline of Lithuania (except the

Curonian Spit The Curonian Spit, sometimes called Courish Split (; ), is a long, thin, curved sand-dune spit that separates the Curonian Lagoon from the Baltic Sea. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site shared by Lithuania and Russia. Its southern portion lies w ...

and

Dieveniškės Dieveniškės (in Lithuanian literally: ''Place of gods''; ; ''Dzevyanishki;'' Yiddish: דיװענישאָק) is a town in the Vilnius County of Lithuania, about from the Belarusian border in the so-called Dieveniškės appendix. It is surroun ...

"appendix", 2021), and a hiking tour with his wife in Poland ( Tatra mountains, 2019). In 2024 Algirdas cycled and published vlogs about his solo trip around

the United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

(

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and his way home to Lithuania via

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

the Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

, Estonia and Latvia. Algirdas organizes the cycling tours, with each tour focusing on the exploration of nature, mountains and wilderness over a period of about a month. The tours are run on a

not-for-profit A not-for-profit or non-for-profit organization (NFPO) is a Legal Entity, legal entity that does not distribute surplus funds to its members and is formed to fulfill specific objectives. While not-for-profit organizations and Nonprofit organ ...

basis, with participants using their own equipment and covering their own expenses, such as food and plane tickets. The participants also share day-to-day duties during the trip including taking care of food, medicine, financial planning and basic repairs of bicycles. Algirdas' expedition team usually consists of a small group (2-6) of Lithuanians (veteran members and first-timers alike) but he also has experience of teaming up with foreign (British, German, Indian) travellers. His group travelling to Namibia included another Lithuanian traveller Aurimas Valujavičius, who later became famous after crossing the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

on a solo rowing boat trip in 2023. As a professional camera operator and film editor Algirdas directs and produces his documentary films himself (in the latter trips he began using a

drone Drone or The Drones may refer to: Science and technology Vehicle * Drone, a type of uncrewed vehicle, a class of robot ** Unmanned aerial vehicle or aerial drone *** Unmanned combat aerial vehicle ** Unmanned ground vehicle or ground drone ** Unma ...

for filming as well). Before each trip Algirdas launches a public website featuring a GPS tracker as well as text and picture sharing capabilities which enables the public to track the expedition’s progress. In 2011 Algirdas Gurevičius co-founded "Špikis", a Lithuanian non-profit public

organisation An organization or organisation ( Commonwealth English; see spelling differences) is an entity—such as a company, or corporation or an institution ( formal organization), or an association—comprising one or more people and having a pa ...

that seeks to promote travelling by bicycle. In February 2019, at the premiere of his latest film "Cycling around Tajikistan" Algirdas announced that he was ceasing his activities relating to organizing cycling tours and filming documentaries about them, in order to focus on his other ideas and projects. However he expressed hopes of returning in the future with at least one more movie, with one of his long-held wishes being to cycle around

Kamchatka The Kamchatka Peninsula (, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and western coastlines, respectively. Immediately offshore along the Pacific ...

(Russia) to see its

volcanoes A volcano is commonly defined as a vent or fissure in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often fo ...

(after the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

he decided not to pursue this idea anymore). In May 2019 he started publishing

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

podcast A podcast is a Radio program, program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. Typically, a podcast is an Episode, episodic series of digital audio Computer file, files that users can download to a personal device or str ...

s "Pokalbiai prie laužo" (Lithuanian "Conversations by the fire"). In June 2019 he also began publishing

vlog A vlog (), also known as a video blog or video log, is a form of blog for which the medium is video. Vlog entries often combine embedded video (or a video link) with supporting text, images, and other metadata. Entries can be recorded in one ta ...

s, addressing practical questions arising during the preparation of cycling tours. In 2022 Algirdas and his wife completed their longest cycling tour, which took over 6 months and covered 6000 kilometers (more than 3728 miles), publishing their vlogs (some of which were subtitled in English) along the way. In this trip the couple crossed the USA from the Canadian to the Mexican borders (Western Wildlands route, including the Hiawatha Scenic Bike Trail and the Skyline Drive in Utah), as well as parts of the

Pacific Coast Pacific coast may be used to reference any coastline that borders the Pacific Ocean. Geography Americas North America Countries on the western side of North America have a Pacific coast as their western or south-western border. One of th ...

, Canada ( Trans-Canada trail),

Yellowstone National Park Yellowstone National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States located in the northwest corner of Wyoming, with small portions extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U ...

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...

and other places. Algirdas singled out the Skyline Drive as the most spectacular section of all of his tours, and one if its summits as the campsite with the most gorgeous views. During the tour “Špikis” was collecting contributions, half of which were donated to a Lithuanian fund aimed at preserving forests, with the couple adding a contribution of their own. In January 2024 a film "Iceland: Lost in Desert" premiered in the major cinemas of Lithuania. It featured Algirdas travelling with his wife around Iceland with a car, as well as hiking (August 2023), while reminiscing about his earlier month-long bicycle trip around the country in 2010. The online version of the film had English subtitles added. Later some additional material from the trip was published in a series of vlogs on "Špikis" YouTube channel as well. In May 2024 Algirdas started a 5 week solo cycling trip around

(and some parts of

). After a short flight home in July, he returned to

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

to cycle back to

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

, Lithuania through

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. He completed his trip in September 2024 having cycled more than 6500 kilometers (4000+ miles) and visiting 11 countries.

Filmography

The following films were shown in Lithuanian cinemas, on multiple Lithuanian TV channels, and at international EU Film Festival in Georgia. Some of the films are dubbed in English and are available online.VŠĮ Špikis
Retrieved 12 September 2024. * "Dviračiais per Rumuniją" (Cycling around Romania, 2011, English subtitles) * "Dviračiais per Altajų" (Cycling around Altay, 2012, English subtitles) * "Dviračiais per Himalajus" (Cycling around Himalayas, 2013, English subtitles) * "Dviračiais per Gruziją" (Cycling around Georgia, 2014, English subtitles) * "Dviračiais per Kirgiziją" (Cycling around Kyrgyzstan, 2016) * "Dviračiais per Mongoliją" (Cycling around Mongolia, 2017) * "Dviračiais Afrikoje: Namibija" (Cycling in Africa: Namibia, 2018) * "Dviračiais per Tadžikiją" (Cycling around Tajikistan, 2019, English subtitles) * "Islandija: Paklydę dykumoje" (Iceland: Lost in Desert, 2024; English subtitles added for the online version)

References

External links

* Website of public establishment "Špikis" https://www.spikis.lt/en-US/ * "Špikis"'s YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@spikisfilms * "Špikis" on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/spikis/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Gurevicius, Algirdas Lithuanian film directors Male touring cyclists 1985 births Living people Film people from Vilnius