This is a show I regretted missing- STRONGLY- last year. Last year’s theme was the Harlequin, as it was the 25th anniversary of it. This year, it was the R32/Golf R’s as they reached 20 years old (the MK4 R32 was first listed for sale in 2002 in Germany). After some last minute planning for this years- I had a floor to sleep on (shout out to the homies at Black Forest Industries for the unrivaled hospitality and much, much more) and with a last minute flight booked, I loaded up my bags and flew out Thursday evening on 9/1/22, getting ready for a long, exciting weekend.
After a short night’s sleep on my Thermarest Trial Scout and some extra linen and a pillow, I got dressed swung by the BFI pop up shop in it’s infancy, then was picked up by my buddy Dylan from CT. You’ll be seeing his mk1 cabby in the future, in it’s ridiculous beauty. In the mean time, I hopped in his white mk7.5 Golf R and we headed over to the Coventry Parlor brunch GTG in what I can describe as the most BEAUTIFUL, scenic, and picturesque spot I’ve ever shot with a circular polarizer. I’ve never been so upset I didn’t have a dedicated car (and time) to do a shoot. The grassy area was well kept, the background to the left with the road, the fields…ugh. TOO GOOD. Anyway- we arrived and eventually had the pleasure of meeting one the owner of one of the most internet-famous cabby’s out there right now- Brandon Quail.
Being a dude super close to Jamie Orr, he’s a really busy dude- but as equally knowledgeable. We talked a little bit about Jamie’s 1.8T polo swap, hung out for a bit- in the meanwhile he was helping organize the meet- and quite honestly, a large portion of the show over the weekend. I can’t wait to have the oppurtunity to shoot his cabby one-on-one in the future, as these pics really don’t do it justice. Being one of very few mk1 cabbys with a Berg cup kit, it stands out in that regard but not secondary to the turbo flutter from his awesome 1.8t swap. Some other noteworthy folks I had met were Dylan’s co-adventurers Larry (multichromatic wrapped mk7.5), Zach (Bagged B9 S4), and Chris (white MK5 R32 on CCWs). Zach and I geeked out about some keyboard and nerdy stuff, Larry and I talked about how hyped he was for the BFI Carbon Fiber GS2 drop (he scored #4!), and Chris and I talked about a mish mash of a few things. As crazy as it is, I feel like I’ve already known these dudes my whole life. This is what I missed so much about cars. The COMRADERIE (yes, all caps). On that note- I’m pretty sure this is where I made two friends for life- Phillip and Taylor Pullen- who were handing out Pistachio base (the best base- write that one down) Mk3 Golf Harlequin stickers. (These two become very important later on in this post.)
After being humbled by an RS6 avant, biiiiig turbo 8L S3 (one of two there this weekend), two spektrum Golf R’s, and a few other neat things- we had a nice cruise up to the Reading Pagoda. This is, quite literally, a Pagoda. In the middle of Pennsylvania – on top of a mountain. Again with the perfect photo spots- and more new friends! You may have noticed that Caribbean Green Spektrum Golf R from the brunch meet…well, on that day I learned this is a one of one. Yes, the only Caribbean Green Spektrum Golf R. Better yet? The full Oettinger kit with exhaust. and LM’s. Shout out to Melissa (@caribbean.green.r on IG) and Michael for hanging out- really hope to see you guys at BFI’s 11th Oktoberfest, and REALLY hope we get to shoot the R! After a sweet line up of mk7’s between Dylan, Larry, and Melissa’s R’s, we hung out in the parking lot, scoped out B2BFAB’s Taos build (REALLY sweet overlander setup), and I headed back to BFI. Fast forward that night, and things got wild.
Awesome bagged Pomelo yellow MK8, Tiguan, CC, and of course the BFI MK8 R (now with it’s BFI F1 inspired livery, minus a few other surprises yet to go on) and Autrey from BMP tuning shows up!
This dude is hilarious and incredibly intelligent, also knowing that the best base color for Harlequins is the Pistachio Green base- with two Polo’s in this base on the way to him.
While hanging out we see someone who appears to be clearly intoxicated in a CRV end up lightly backing into an S5. This S5 is definitely an attendant’s car but at the moment, they’re no where to be found. While we watch the whole scene unravel with police doing a sobriety test, Phillip and Taylor pop up- hey strangers. (Remember when I said they’d be important later on?)
“Guys, you’ll never believe this- some drunk lady backed into this S5 and tried to walk away, she’s gone gone right now”, I enthusiastically describe to them. Both of their faces turn white and go “our s5?!” Well, I feel like an asshole. (sorry again guys)
“So guys, turns out someone backed into your car…should probabbbbbly go talk to the police about that. I’m so sorry you found out this way.” I wanted to die in a corner after this, but luckily, there was no damage and they got the accident report in case they needed it. Pictured below in all their glory- apologize on the horrible photo- dead of night with mixed street lights and strong backlighting- excuses I know. Shout out to the new blood brother and sister! And this was just the first day.
