MPH: Play by Play
The day had finally come… MPH! Now as any Jo’burger knows, traffic can make or break you. Bearing this in mind I allowed myself ample time to ‘race’ from work to the show.
Little did I know there would be MPH traffic. It was crazy, chaos everywhere, roads blocked and parking full, but I was determined. And I had to prove to Jeremy that driveRSA was not “a rubbish paper.” After all, I brought a better camera this time.
Finally I made it inside; the auditorium pulsating with an electric buzz as Clarkson, May and that radio guy were on stage already.
I settled into my seat not knowing what to expect, hoping for the total Top Gear experience.
And it was exactly that… a live version of the Top Gear show we all know and love; the usual showcases took place as well as the return of the cool wall.
Jeremy offered a typically objective opinion on which cars belong where on the cool wall. The fiat 500 for example according to him defined the cool wall. Not fast, not spacious, made in Italy and therefore not very well made but just oozes cool.
After Jeremy and James had agreed, or argued as the case might be, their way to the final standings of the cool wall, the stunts began.
The Subaru Impreza STI and Nissan 350z were used to showcase some amazing drifting, finishing off with doughnuts on one spot.
Then my personal favourite, a motorbike cage stunt with up to 4 bikes in the cage. May even stood in the cage of death, with two bikes.
A virtual race, where lap times around the world was kept, and will be posted on the top gear live website. Cape Town led the board, with a time of 1:23:5.
An old Top Gear favourite car soccer game was a crowd pleaser – 2010 style. Apparently the word to use is “Ayoba,” with South Africa taking on England. An interesting match indeed, with plenty of foul play, but hey that’s soccer.
All this built up to the main event – a supercar showdown. Enter the Audi R8 V10, Aston martin V8 Vantage, Pagani Zonda F, Lamborghini Murcielago, Ferrari California, McLaren SLR, Ferrari 599, Koenigsegg CCX and Aston Martin DBS.
If you missed out this year be sure to catch the show next year and experience the world wide phenomenon that is Top Gear.
Hope you like the photos Jeremy.
David Abbey