Deep in the Northern Cape there is a dedicated event that, come Easter, pulls in spinners from across the land like a magnet.
The place is Kuruman, featuring what is likely the biggest dedicated spin pitch in the country, Maruping Spin City, and it was the place to be over the Easter weekend.
This annual event is hosted by the area’s Team Saluki, this being the fifth year, and attracted over 60 spinners and drifters plus a huge crowd of over 10 000 spectators.
Easter in Kuruman kicked off on the Saturday at the airstrip with drags, show ‘n shine, a sound competition, limbo and spin, the whole shebang. This leg of the tour is organised by Donovan “White Boy” Rudd.
He says: “After organising for a month straight, to see the event go off without a hitch, watching our vision for it actually happen, the cars pulling in, there was a sense of making history.
“Our philosophy at Team Saluki, and we even put it in our terms and conditions is “to leave the politics behind because at Kuruman it’s all about crowd entertainment, that’s what we promise and that’s what we deliver”.
Bobby Nitro also spoke to Donovan “DJ Dony” Steytler after the event, who was point man for the Maruping Spin City leg of the event on the Sunday.
He says: “Team Saluki was founded on a passion and love for motorsport by Kuruman businessman Mr Bubby Dada, and his two sons Mano and Renzo are both in the industry and have been spinning since the age of 12.
“The team does its best to maintain the professional side of the sport, abide by the legal aspects and is looking to become a leading brand in motorsport, while giving back to the community and supporters.”
With almost 80 000 followers on Facebook, Team Saluki is growing fast.
Because of its location, Kuruman attracts the Cape spinners, drivers from Joburg, Kimberley and even as far as Botswana.
“And the huge paved pitch is next level, with spectator stands around three sides, a clubhouse and facilities, with all safety procedures adhered to.
Big name CapeTown drivers such as Boksie, Eddie Rasta, Kenny Rinkwest, Shane Green and more stieked uit to represent us.
MC and motorsport media personality Shahiem Bell was there for the first time.
He says: “I will definitely return, the atmosphere was electric, top names from around the country were there, with patrons getting top value for every cent they spent getting there.
Asked who stood out tops over the weekend, Donovan replies diplomatically: “We can say all the spinners came out top, because all of them were on top of their games.
“The performance of each driver was outstanding and we appreciate them all.”
There is no doubt that events like this, aside from bringing huge tourism potential to the small town of Kuruman, really up the level of performance, entertainment and the profile of our homegrown motorsports in the country.