Victor Herrlin - Contributor [Sweden]

I was born in Sweden and for as long I can remember, I’ve had a burning passion for cars. From the tender age of three you could find me playing with toy cars in my room, mimicking engine sounds. All that I spoke, thought and drew pictures of was cars. My earliest car-related memory is riding shotgun with my father in our Golf GTI, and as we were driving along, I would eagerly wait for my father’s mark to shift the gears from the passenger-seat. It was from this moment on that I was determined to get behind the wheel by any means. And eventually, I did! My love for cars is unconditional and is spread out to anything from European, American Muscle, JDM Cars, Vans, Super cars, Hyper cars and 4x4's. I just love them all and simply can't get enough!  

At the age of 6 I moved with my mother to Dubai and went to an American school. There, I spent most of my free time and weekends out in the desert with friends and family "dune bashing" in 4x4's and ATVs. This is where I finally got to drive something by myself for the first time as it’s 'allowed' for people above 6 years old to drive ATV's in Dubai. Any spare time that I had, any sign of daylight and you could find me driving around in the desert. At the age of 12 I moved back to Sweden to live with my father while I completed my junior high and high school years. As my mother still lived in Dubai I would travel at least 3-4 times a year to visit her and my friends. This maintained my love for desert driving and whenever possible, on road driving too…

After a long and tedious wait I was finally old enough to get my driving license and sure enough, first thing I did when I turned 18 was to pass my driving test and get my license. I immediately applied for a part-time job as a driver for a transportation company. While still schooling in Sweden, I was able to drive long distances almost every day and looked forward to the next day of work as it meant more driving. 

I finished my mandatory studies and graduated at age 19. It was time to decide what to study next and what university to go to. I decided to take a few gap years to work full time, travel and take time to think what route would be right for me. I knew for a fact that whatever I chose to study, it would have to have something to do with cars, but I was not sure what exactly that might be. I decided to leave my chauffeur job in Sweden at age 21, although by then I was a manager. As my mother now lived in Singapore, I took the opportunity to go live on this sunny island country for a while and see if there would be any intern spots available to help me decide what to study. Luckily enough, I got an intern spot at the local Singapore car magazine 9tro. 

After my sweet time at 9tro I discovered how much fun it was writing and decided to go back to Sweden. Once there, I applied to a popular media school and was accepted to a course in basic journalism. As of December 2012, I have my diploma. 

Right now, you can find me in Dubai applying to Auto magazines where someone will hopefully take me on as an intern again and which may even lead to a full time job. While I pursue my dream job, I make sure to take some time to follow my passion for cars and add to my experience by going out in the desert as much as possible, sit down and write so I don't lose my touch, and take a few laps around The Autodrome, the local race track here in Dubai. 

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