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Gallery: RadikalBugz R.A.R.S. #1

The mastermind behind Belgium’s RadikalBugz Crew, Gianni Sanchez, got in touch: they’re going to organise possibly the one and only aircooled VW meeting of the year, he said, so we just had to check it out!

Read and see the full published article in: AirMighty Magazine #41

CLICK ON THE IMAGE TO SEE THE FULL GALLERY – [GALLERY]

For some reason, in Wallonia – the French-speaking part of Belgium – it was easier to organise a get-together than in the rest of the country – Flanders – and the rest of Europe or the rest of the World even… Actually, I had considered going along myself when RadikalBugz’ Aircooled Rumble Show R.A.R.S #1 was first flagged up for Saturday September 12^th, but with the COVID-19 epidemic and the rules changing daily, I simply didn’t know if it could be possible, or even smart to attend. But, after doing some research and finding that region being ‘code yellow’, I threw all my stuff – AirMighty stand, Duvalay sleeping bag, food and refreshments – in the Barndoor, and hit the gas pedal!

Saturday

At 6.00am on the Saturday morning it was a straight-line drive to Mons in Belgium. Situated on a very cool abandoned industrial area near Bergen, it was a 3-hour drive for me. So, after an early start, getting coffee along the way, and hooking up with Chris from Slammed Clothing for the ride, we arrived on site around 10.00am. We were shown to our trader spot and quickly set up camp. We were literally at the heart of the party, and that implied we were in for a long day and a late night, as the RadikalBugz Crew always has something special up its sleeve.

Busy and good times!

It was amazingly busy, with many participants arriving on the Saturday, and during the evening everyone managed to find a slot to lay their head for the night. With more than enough territory for show, shine and sleep, this location has a lot of potential to grow into a bigger event in the future as well. It was great to speak to so many people that we’ve missed seeing during these corona-isolated times, because the social aspect of our Aircooled scene is undoubtedly one of the most important aspects for us. Loads of people stopped by the stand and we bantered at the required 1,5m distance, and enjoyed the Belgian Waffles cooked by Arnaud Coquette out of this ‘Le Van’ food-truck – I loved them so much I couldn’t resist going back again in the morning for another round – plus some beers, of course, and a burger before the evening got started.

That meant it was party time, and that’s what RadikalBugz do best. They kicked off with a risqué bikini-carwash, followed up by a striptease act, and of course this drew quite a crowd, who stayed around for a beer or two, and rocked out to the live punk band, which was followed by DJs and dance music that played long into the night. Eventually, at who knows what time, I crawled into bed to get some much-needed shut-eye…

After a great evening…

Sunday morning, the gates opened at 9.00am again, and the site ended up getting even more crowded than the previous day, as many day-trippers came over to check it out. There were too many cool cars to mention, though one that stood out was Kevin Villa’s stunning 1957 Oval Beetle. What a crazy, highly-detailed and amazing-looking car! Several prizes were given to VWs in random categories: Best Type 1, 2 and 3, Best Low, etc…, and, of course, a Best-of-Show that went to the 1952 Zwitter belonging to Davy Roels.

See you next edition!

It was a totally great show, and definitely one to put on the agenda for the #2 edition. Thanks, Gianni, for the invitation, plus the RadikalBugz Crew for setting it up and great hospitality. It was a fantastic weekend!

Read and see the full published article in: AirMighty Magazine #41

More info: RadikalBugz Facebook-page