Collecting Together with
Rob Miller
And you met in London?
We’re all familiar with the utilitarian tool watch. Rugged, versatile, and built to withstand the forces of nature. But rarely has a modern collector put these functional timepieces to the test as frequently as Rob Miller. The U.S. Army veteran and entrepreneur has launched and funded numerous companies, racked up countless hours in the cockpit, and marched across the South Pole, always making sure he has the right watch for the job.
We sat down with Rob at an airplane hangar outside Chicago. “It’s really my happy place,” he says of the hangar. Coffee in hand and surrounded by planes, we discussed watch collecting, exploration, and his urge to discover the world around him.
What came first: flying or watches?
Watches came first for me, because they’ve always been tools that I had to use professionally when I was an Army officer.
Did you fly in the military?
I’ve always been an aviation buff since I was a little kid, my life path just took a different direction than flying in the military, but I always loved that aesthetic. I love airplanes, the operation of airplanes, and the instruments of airplanes. The flight deck on an airplane up to 2005 or so looks like a pilot’s watch, they look like little round steam gauges of instruments.
Did you wear a watch in the military?
I wore a Timex indiglo. In the US Army, especially in the 1990s, our advantage with thermal sights with night vision goggles was so significant over our peer adversaries that we fought entirely at night. You needed a watch that you could see at night.
Did being in the Army influence your views on time?
I think so. Because, you know, with the importance of time, the importance of being there on time. There’s the old Army adage, “if you can’t be on time, then be early.”
Do you use your watches when you are flying?
You need to know what GMT, or UTC time is, because all the weather reports are all based on UTC. I like to have a GMT watch on and I typically bring something like the IWC UTC. It has an easy indication of UTC; you can just glance at it quickly and see what time it is in UTC. The IWC UTC is coincidentally the watch I wore on my check ride when I became a private pilot and was the very first Swiss watch I ever bought.
How many of your watches have been flying with you?
To be honest with you, the only reason a watch makes its way into my rotation and goes flying is if I haven’t taken a cockpit wrist shot with that watch lately. That’s really the decision factor.
What was your first experience knowing that you wanted to explore the world around you?
It’s difficult to answer because it’s just the human challenge of “can I do this?” I think every human being sort of who asked themselves that question wants to test their capabilities. It was like the first time I jumped out of an airplane or the first day in basic training, or the first time I landed a plane. I keep asking myself “Can I really do this?” “Do I have what it takes?” I think there’s that constant drive that’s something innate in human beings.
Was there an experience that made you want to explore the world around you more deeply?
I grew up in South Dakota and you don’t get exposed to much foreign culture there. I got a tiny taste of it in the Army when we got to deploy to the Iraq border after the first Gulf War. Once I had my own kids, I had a desire to give them the opportunity to see places and to meet people that aren’t from here. Traveling with them and experiencing those travels through their eyes created a self-reinforcing kind of that wanderlust. You see it reflected in their eyes and you see how fascinated they are by it, and it’s just self-perpetuating.
How did you get started with exploring?
I was in the UK on a business trip where I was introduced to one of the world’s greatest polar explorers, Rob Swan. He was the first person to walk to both poles. He’s in his early 60s, he’s done multiple expeditions to the South Pole, he sailed around the world, he’s a climate activist. Two and a half years later, I was standing on the South Pole with him.
We met for breakfast once here in Chicago, Rob makes a living trying to save Antarctica, he runs a foundation called 2041. The mission is to make sure that the world renews the treaty that protects Antarctica.
Did you connect on anything unexpected?
We kind of hit it off on watches. He used a GMT-Master II and a sextant to navigate on both poles because his first expeditions were in the early 1980s before GPS.
You were a member on the Last 300 Expedition, correct?
Yes, the expedition was designed because Rob and his son Barney, the year prior, had done an expedition where they would survive solely on renewable energy. You would use fuel for the stoves to survive and you need power, obviously, for your devices and GPS. They used all solar power and then they use renewable fuels, which is risky because if you can’t boil water, you can’t survive. While walking across the continent with 300 miles left, Rob broke his hip, and had to be evacuated, and then went through a hip replacement surgery.
And Rob wanted to complete the expedition?
During the Last 300 expedition Rob Swan was dropped off 300 miles from the pole and would walk the last 300 miles that he didn’t complete. I joined him at what’s called the last degree, which is 60 nautical miles from the pole. We walked the 60 nautical miles, which is 72 statute miles, but when you’re doing it at -20°F, where if you sweat, the sweat freezes on your body, and you could get hyperthermia, it’s a different challenge.
How long did that take?
We would complete the journey in increments of 50-minute marches with a 10-minute rest. And it took us seven and a half days. There’s only 45 days where the weather is survivable and allows for this type of expedition. Our median temperature was around -20°F, I think the coldest was -25°F and the warmest temperature was -18°F.
Given that weight is at a premium, did you take any watches to the South Pole?
I took four watches with me. I knew I had to take a GMT-Master II because of Rob’s history of exploring with the GMT-Master II on his wrist. I couldn’t really decide if I should bring my Pepsi or if I should bring my Batman. I brought both.
What other watches made the trip?
Before the trip, I was debating what else to bring. I had a chance to chat with the Grand Seiko USA representative about this expedition and about what watch to bring. He suggested the Spring Drive GMT, suggesting it would work better at lower temperatures, and be much more accurate. I bought this watch for the expedition and I wore this watch on my wrist, I didn’t even protect it, and it never lost a second.
Last but not least?
I also brought my 9300 Omega SpeedMaster, which is the in-house Omega two register dial Chronograph. And this one got chosen for one main reason: the chronograph. It is super easy to read, and it reads like a clock, so when you’re marching for 50 minutes marches and resting for 10 minutes, elapsed time ends up being very important.
Do any pieces have special stories?
I own an IWC Big Pilot “Safari” Tribute to 5002. Chris Granger-Herr posted a picture on Instagram, and I was allocated one by direct messaging him. This is like my spirit animal of a watch, a titanium case, heritage, direct from the boss of my favorite watch company. I was thrilled to be able to get this watch.
You are interested in recycled and sustainable products, how do watches fit into this ethos?
We need to think about the fact that we are indisputably warming the planet, and that Antarctica is indisputably shrinking. Antarctica contains 60% of the world’s freshwater, and it’s three miles of ice, so what happens to Antarctica and whether or not it melts, or at what rate and what happens to that water, that all matters. Ultimately, watches aren’t disposable. They will not end up in a landfill, they will always work as long as I service them.
What is your next adventure?
Spending more time with my family and my wife, because, for me, I was challenging myself to see if I could walk to the South Pole and not die! They weren’t getting that same endorphin high that I was getting, they were just worried about me.
Cool, any more flying?
Currently, I am planning to fly my Super Cub and do more tailwheel flying off airport, short takeoff and landing, literally taking your airplane out to the woods, landing in a field and camping for the night sort of stuff. Flying short takeoff and landing planes requires a lot of practice and technique. And, you know, it kind of gives you that same feeling of doing something challenging.
Any new watches on the horizon?
As long as companies like Breitling, IWC, and Longines keep iterating on the classics, I’ll keep buying watches!
Photography by Jeff Marini