A group of Cape petrolkoppe really put in the long miles recently in what has become a commitment to the scene that takes them on memorable travels.
The event itself was an initiative put together by Port Elizabeth koppe Morné Piet, Caryn Kivido and Lyle Benjamin, the enigmatically named Lovemore Stance campover and hosted in Victoria Park in the windy city.
Bobby Nitro spoke to Morné as well as a couple of Cape drivers who attended. The overall vibe was that this was a weekend of note, one kop even going so far as to say that, in his opinion, that the Stance scene had now moved to PE.
Quinton Roberts, of lowering company Q-Beams, adds: “The interesting thing is that in PE they all roll static, the law is not strict the way it is in Cape Town where we have to inflate the airbags whenever we get stopped. In PE it’s down to the essentials.”
Jade Rhode, 27, took his 1961 sky blue Beetle (also lowered by Q-Beams on airlift with a 20 litre tank) to the event. He says: “Lovemore Stance was one of the best shows ever, the hospitality was hundreds, my brother.”
His and another three cars were taken up to Uitenhage by truck and they drove them back home. Jade says that this drive back to the Cape was a highlight, because “there were no breakdowns, no leaks, and all of us came home lekker.”
Besides the drop, Jade says he has tried to keep his Beetle as original as possible and he “doesn’t want to change much, it’s very nice as it is, my brother”.
As for the show, for Jade one of the things that was most rewarding was the opportunity to meet, in the flesh as it were, many people he had “met” on Facebook. Quinton echoes this, saying: “You’d walk past some people and recognise them from social media.”
Organiser Morné says: “It was our first time trying a campover in this, the third year of the show, and it will get better. We had about 150 cars and, interestingly, about half the pre-registrations were from Cape Town.”
That doesn’t surprise Bobby Nitro. After all, the Cape has a high degree of commitment, gees and downright skill when it comes to the car scene.
Morné continues: “We did have a competition, yes, with awards to the top 20 Stance cars, but this event was more of a get together and a party. We had a stretch tent, a stage and DJs, so we partied. For me, it was a Summer Outdoor Stance Party fusing good music, kwaai gesellige mense and great cars.”
Jade continues: “There were representatives from all the major cities there and there was no trouble whatsoever, no bad reviews. The whole of PE and Uitenhage was there, the scene is big that side.”
Jade, who started his petrolkop career with a Tazz (also built by Q-Beam), says he is building his dream car at the moment. It is a 1969 Variant, and “is coming soon” to the Cape scene.
Quinton, who established Q-Beams, says he started out doing VW Beetle suspension but then got his big break when Tariq from Capestance asked him to drop his Merc, and that car as, we all know, became quite a phenomenon on the scene about two years ago.
Quinton says: “After doing the Merc on air, people started noticing my work, and asking that I assist them in their projects.”
Around that time it was all static, then the move to airbags gathered momentum when a couple of influential mense on the scene made the pressure shift.
For the PE show, Morné concludes: “It was really a success, we will be doing it again.”
For all the Cape kopp e reading this right now, when this event comes up again next year and you’re wondering whether to go the distance, remember that there is nothing better than getting the result of all your commitment, hard cash and even harder work out on road. Cleans the pipes out, so to speak.
And if you’re still not convinced, Quinton has this to add: “And the nightlife in PE is kwaai, all the car people get together and they jol. Let me tell you. I’ll be coming back.