All my cheeky remarks about Mark Blake always being late for regional runs came back to haunt me as I was the last one to arrive to a crowd of people all looking at their watches! After a 20 minute chat to catch-up and allow any stragglers to arrive we set off for the nice steady run to the Stafford County Showground near Uttoxeter. We had a pleasantly uneventful run (apart from the Carlos Fandango MkI GTI that we passed!) and arrived safely at the show. The car park was already heaving with a good mix of air and water-cooled cars, all taking the opportunity to stretch their wheels at the first show of the year. As usual there were some simply stunning cars in the car park that would not have been out of place in the show and shine inside. Inside we split up to wander around the show and try and find those bargains that we have all been after for ages. I’m sad to report that my only purchase was a toy Beetle RSi for my lad – hopefully my luck will change during the coming months. The cars in the show hall were representative of the whole scene and there were some very interesting vehicles on display. A personal favourite is the immaculate GTI G60 of Roger Worten that drew a crowd of admirer’s all day. We eventually found the Club GTI stand in the centre of the hall with four more regular Derby region cars on display and the Merchandising and Membership teams in full swing. There was a steady stream of interest in the stand, merchandise and membership all day and all credit to the team for handling the enquiries in a friendly, professional manner. There was a real ‘buzz’ about the stand and show-goers were taking the time to admire the assembled vehicles which included a stunning MkI GTI, an immaculate MkIII VR6, a very rare original GTI Engineering RE2000 MkII 16-valve and the low-riding Black MkII GTI. Before I knew it, it was time to brave the cold and head home again after a very enjoyable start to the show season!
|
 |
 |
 |
||
 |
