From lovingly polished classic cars to scented candles made the way ouma’s ouma made them, there was something to capture everyone’s imagination at this weekend’s cheerful Hi-Q Wheels at the Vaal Festival.
More than 30 000 visitors flocked to the sixth annual Wheels at the Vaal country fair, held in glorious spring sunshine weather of 28 degrees at the Vaal Triangle Campus of the North-West University, Vanderbijlpark. While the classic cars that began this popular country fair six years ago were on proud display, organisers also called the festival ‘the biggest life cultural exhibition in the country’.
For Hi-Q, South Africa’s leading consumer tyre retail franchise, the role of chief sponsor presented an ideal opportunity to come face to face with a broad spectrum of customers.
“The uniqueness of this festival draws city slickers, small-town folk and farmers from around the country. With a national footprint of close to 180 stores, Hi-Q has all their motoring interests at heart. The festival was an ideal opportunity, for our Vaal Triangle dealers especially, to meet people who are interested in cars and to share their combined expertise with visitors to their stall,” said Wynand Loubser, Hi-Q Business Development Manager of the area.
Hi-Q, the trusted brand in tyre retail, is a complete undercarriage service provider that offers not only quality high performance, ultra-high performance and 4x4 tyres, but also alloy wheels, brakes, shocks, exhausts, batteries, tow bars and wheel alignment and balancing.
“Aside from the fascinating displays of everything old – and modern - on wheels, the festival uniquely offers a warm reminder of dying cultural practices, such as threshing corn to make porridge and plucking feathers to fill eiderdowns. The funds generated from the festival will be used to support needy North-West University students, as well as to establish a heritage museum in Vanderbijlpark.
“These timeless family values of trust and caring – also lie at the heart of the Hi-Q brand, which is another reason why we were happy to put Hi-Q’s weight behind Wheels on the Vaal.”
Certainly, nostalgia ruled as festival visitors strolled the University’s beautiful nature reserve campus, with its plentiful trees, lawns, safe picnic spots and the shy presence of blou wildebeest, blesbuck, gemsbuck and springbuck. Alongside the fleet of antique cars were curious farming tools, a pack of thundering stationary engines, and a specially-built 4x4 track on which off-road enthusiasts could test their skills.
A highly educational BKB-sponsored farmyard was kept busy churning cream to make butter, roasting beans to brew coffee, preparing skins to plait whips and make leather ‘vellies’ and even distilling mampoer for those hardy enough to knock back a glass.
Lucky ticket winner Mr R de Jongh was beaming as he drove home in the red 1991 Honda sports car originally owned by legendary movie prankster Leon Schuster. With the sounds of Radio Hi-Q playing well into the night, the delicious aromas of fun fair foods, Gabriel Aeroplanes showing off above and a feast of other activites below, the successful Hi-Q Wheels at the Vaal should be diarised as a must-do ‘hi’-light for next year too.
