My love for extreme sports doesn’t make me suicidal – Ini Akpabio

You and some members of your family are into extreme sports. Why are you attracted to it, the danger notwithstanding? Ini Akpabio: It is funny when people are surprised at the kind of sports my family and I are inclined to. Right from my primary and secondary school days I have always been interested in […]

You and some members of your family are into extreme sports. Why are you attracted to it, the danger notwithstanding?

Ini Akpabio: It is funny when people are surprised at the kind of sports my family and I are inclined to. Right from my primary and secondary school days I have always been interested in sports. I was the football captain during those days but had to quit it during my university days because my sight wasn’t too great.

Since football was out of the way, I indulged more in high jump and basketball because of my height. As for speed biking, I have always admired the gear, accessories and the power bikes themselves that I always saw with one of my friends. I also have a thing for adventure. So I just made up my mind that I was going to own one someday and I worked towards that ambition and succeeded. I was never scared of any of the dangers.

It is only in this part of the world that biking is not celebrated. In other parts of the world, it is one of the most lucrative sports. Power biking is a responsible sport and not like a suicidal sport as most people believe. I have been biking for about 7-8 years now.

Are extreme sports extremely expensive – and is biking particularly money-guzzling due to the bikes, accessories, etc.?

Akpabio: Yes, the power bikes are very expensive as their prices range from 2-3 million naira. The cost of maintenance it is also very high. Recently I travelled to the east with my power bike for a tour and by the time I came back I had a bill of N200,000 to put it back in shape because of the bad roads I plied.

The spare parts are mostly gotten from outside the country as they are not manufactured here and another constraint is that the mechanics are few and are mostly based in Lagos or Port Harcourt. The kits are also graded as there are designer names, some of these designer kits cost as high as N500,000. Another thing with the power bike is that if you do not ride them often, they get in bad shape easily. So I have made it a point not to have more than 3 at a time, though I am thinking of buying a new one by the end of the year.

Your wife and daughter are fellow bikers of yours. Did you convince them into joining you?

Akpabio: (Laughs) I did not have to convince anybody as my wife is more adventurous than I am. When I decided to buy my first power bike, I told my wife and expected that she would go hysterical about the whole idea. But she was calm about it and, surprisingly too, my mother did not make a fuss about it. So, anytime I go out for a ride, my wife would be a passenger, holding on tight to me. But somehow, somewhere along the line I think she got tired of sitting as a passenger and decided to ride on her own and that was it. She soon became perfect. As for my daughter, she started riding when she was 17. She, too, was a passenger to her mom and decided to learn to ride on her own. She started off with her mother’s power bike.

Aren’t you afraid of the danger?

Akpabio: Every sport has its own accident risk. When I started biking, I had a lot of falls and the terrain which I usually took a ride through was difficult. It was not easy but with determination and courage, I was able to make it. Likewise, my wife had her own number of falls, but as they say when you fall, the victory is in rising up and trying again.

We have never really had any major accident that is why I always advocate that the accessories are very necessary, if not for anything, for safety. But as you know, some riders take unnecessary risks and endanger their lives. But it is not as dangerous as people think.

Other than biking, what other sports are you passionate about?

Akpabio: I am also into cricket. And we’ll soon go into para-dropping, not from a plane but from a mountaintop. But we have to learn how to parachute from airplanes first.

My other kids are below 10 and cannot ride on the power bikes for now but we have been able to start them with bicycle riding. We have times when we all ride as a family on bicycles from Maitama to Garki and to Kado and back. My youngest child never gets tired and rides all the way.

Your wife seems to be well-known for her driving skills…

 Akpabio: My wife, as I always say, is a better rider than I am. We have been invited twice for the Arugungu Motor Rally and the first time, she emerged the Best Female Driver. But this year she emerged the Best Driver Overall. She drives better than I do, so most times when we travel out, instead of hopping into cabs, we just hire a car and she does the driving while I assist with navigation. She is very capable with anything on wheels.

With sports, you’ve already told us. But with business, was there any sign, as a kid, that you’d grow up to be a businessman?

Akpabio: My mum always said that I showed a lot of interest in industry as at the age of ten. That I always took particular interest in making sure that the petty trading she was doing then was always adequately stocked and well-managed.

Business has always been a part of me since my childhood days but I took particular interest in the hospitality and tourism business because I felt there was a vacuum in that area and I am glad that I have been able to make a difference in that area.

How did the brand-name Nanet come about?

Akpabio:  It is a combination of my mother’s name and that of a very close friend of hers which she lost. She cried so much over the loss of her friend that our father decided to name our restaurant then after their friendship, using her name Nancy and her friend Etop.

Nanet has been able to provide beyond catering as we started and even gone beyond accommodation and of recent we have been able to inculcate entertainment into the industry. Nanet has now become a tourist destination as we have decided to honour and celebrate Nollywood stars. When we took over some government hotels we were able to generate revenue and pay them back. The tourism business alone could go a long way in solving the unemployment crisis we have in the country because apart from the civil service, the hospitality and tourism business is one industry that covers every aspect of the working economy.

You and your wife seem to be a well-jelled couple. What’s the secret?

Akpabio: (Laughing) Ít’s a very long story as we were family friends and she was a very close friend to my younger sisters. When I was abroad I had this lady I wanted to marry but the only problem was that she refused coming to stay in Nigeria, so it did not work out. Then when I came back I started dating an Igbo lady and then a Hausa lady. Unknown to me, my mother was match-making in stealth. I did not understand at first when she always insisted that I sit for lunch with [my wife] when my sisters were not around, because I made it a point never to have any relationship with any of my sisters’ friends. But somehow along the line something started. Elizabeth came out tops among three possibilities and finally one of my friends said if I was not going to marry her, he would. So I went for her and that was it.

I would marry Elizabeth over and over again for the simple fact that she is responsible, hardworking, more daring than I am and the real rock behind me. She is also my business partner as people say I am lucky to have my wife as that with everything still intact.  I thank God for her.