Big 3: From Escape to Expression ✍🏽

Three years down and a lifetime to go, this isn’t just TurboNerdz, it’s my story on wheels…

Three Wheels then, Two Soon…

Since the conclusion of my exams, I’ve had a writer's block. I knew the 3rd anniversary of TurboNerdz was fast approaching, but I found it difficult to pen down anything. More like I was so exhausted from the exams that afterwards I didn't even want to read a signpost, let alone compose a blogpost. For something that unofficially kicked off in 2020 by posting random car facts on my WhatsApp status, it's truly been one hell of a ride. I decided that this post would be an appreciation for the journey so far, making it as raw as possible.

The Duality: Medic and Automotive Journalist

The Journey So Far

In the last blogpost titled automotive catchup with turbonerdz, I reiterated how writing served as an escape during my first professional exams. At some point, I was doing more of writing than reading, until I was able to strike a balance. I want to give a big shout out to my course mates, the soon to be 2026 Doctors for being my very first supporters. They helped repost my blogposts and through one of them I got my first job offer. The only catch was that the offer meant I would have to stop writing about cars. It was a paid job, not so much, but as a student any small change you can find is a plus. I thought about it for a while and declined the offer.

Nissan R34 G-TR (Still the Dream Car) Source: Reddit

A few months later, my phone developed some issues and I didn't want to call home. I then decided to take on that job offer, but I couldn't find the number of the employer. I asked the course mate who had referred me to him for his number and he too couldn't find the number, mysterious right? I felt really bad at the time, but thinking back maybe I wouldn't be celebrating Big 3 today. I mean, for a few thousand naira, my whole career trajectory might have changed.

234Drive: The Experience

Some of my friends would say, 'guy you're really good, you should get paid for what you do'. I knew it was true, but at the time I just enjoyed writing and didn't think much of the money. Well, not until the aforementioned disaster struck. It was at that point I curated my CV and began sending it out on LinkedIn with so many 'we regret to inform you' replies. On a fateful night, in my usual fashion I had cast my CV seeds on LinkedIn and a few days later I got an unexpected reply from John, the CEO of 234Drive. I was so delighted to have been acknowledged by the automotive brand I had admired and tagged to my blogposts since inception. As history will have it, that was how I landed my first job and boy was I excited; Not just for the money, but for the opportunity to work with people I looked up to in the automotive space.

The Dream Bike? Kawasaki Ninja h2r!!! Source: Antre Du Motard

Shout out to my bosses (John and Richie) and co-workers (Adeh, Olamide and Crank) at 234Drive, because I enjoyed every bit of the seven months I worked with them. Most importantly, a big shout out to my editor, Oyinda who finetuned my writing. She is probably reading this post and shaking her head at all the many errors I have made so far. Lol, I am sorry for failing you 😭😂. I remember the first draft I sent to Oyinda, the whole thing came back red with corrections and I was furious. In my head, I was like are you saying I can't write or what, but I kept my cool and learned the ropes from her.

Ordinary Writing

Full disclosure, the idea for my most successful write up so far, 'What happened to ABC transport' was given to me by Oyinda. For that article, I made almost 5 drafts before Oyinda felt it was okay enough to begin, coupled with so many corrections in between. I was frustrated by that project, but thanks to Oyinda for believing in me, that article gave me the rare opportunity of speaking to Frank Nneji, the CEO of ABC Transport. 234Drive was a big challenge, but through them, I honed my writing skills. If you're seeing this, thank you.

Goosebumps 😁

Through this ordinary writing, I have had the opportunity to interact with some of the big names in the automotive space. P.S - by God's grace, your boy may have another rare privilege to feature on an automotive podcast by next month. It's truly been one hell of a ride and one day I will tell the full story on a bigger stage, but for now the grind continues.

The Believers

First off, I want to thank God for bestowing on me the gift of writing and helping me discover it through the many love letters I have written over the years, lol. Sometimes I think my stuff is mid and then someone I look up to takes a read and they're like this is good. Next up, a big shout out to my Pops for passing on the automotive genes. Thank you for all the random car facts you told me as a kid and for always taking me to the mechanic workshop. All of those things created the spark that became this flame. Also grateful to my mum, the LOML and biggest supporter who joined Instagram and TikTok just to engage with my content. I am immensely grateful to my siblings for letting me watch Top Gear on Saturday mornings when they really wanted to watch cartoons while we were kids and for always supporting me till date.

TurboNerdz at the Ilorin Car Show

A big thank you to my three wonderful roommates in 400 level; Seyi, Lawrence and Hasler who first set eyes on my unpublished write ups and encouraged me to publish them. Also for my soon to be 2026 Apex set of  Doctors, y'all are the best. The names are too many, but a few honourable mentions are Dr Temi Wisdom, Dr Lola, Israel aka Pablo Escobar, Tolu aka Sisi Eko, Isabelle, Catherine, Dami, Tochukwu, Ife aka Crashzilla, Eniola, Toyosi and everyone else who spurred me on from the very beginning, thank you for believing in me.

The Future?

I can't say exactly what the future holds for TurboNerdz, but one thing I can say with certainty is that no matter how chocked up this medical life is, I will never stop the automotive grind. There's so much more to be done in the Nigerian automotive space and by God's grace, TurboNerdz will be at its forefront. At this point, I take a bow and say, until next time always remember to Turbo that engine!

Source: Top Gear

P.S - 08140266662 is the number to call if you are in the market for any cars! Peace out ✌🏾