The advent of Ultimate Dubs signifies the start of show season in the UK, and for a lot of people, the start of the social calendar as well.

After all, most of us spend an embarrassingly large amount of time in, under, or looking at cars. It’s only natural then that cars would become part of the very fabric of our social lives, and therefore can make (or break) friendships.

There aren’t many occasions where likeminded people have a reason to travel from all over the country, so for us car enthusiasts the first big show of the year provides a perfect opportunity to leave behind those winter blues and catch up with some old faces.

I’ve not been to Ultimate Dubs since I was there in my Audi back in 2018, but as with many shows, I find the most interesting time is set-up night.

See, a car show is all well and good when there are pretty cars parked up, but the energy of the setup is unbeatable. At first you’ll have the early arrivals, keen to get polishing as soon as they can for max shine by the time the show is on.

Then you have the traders arriving in droves, with their convoys of van/trailer combos and stressed organisers directing them here, there and everywhere to fill the halls as efficiently as possible.

I drove up from London with my friend and fellow Speedhunter Mike Fidowicz, ironically both of us in BMWs to a VW-oriented show. We’d not seen each other in a while, so even we took the opportunity to meet up and grab breakfast before the long drive.

I could have said the same for almost everyone I saw at the show, however. Groups of mates were congregating around cars that had either changed over winter, or that had not been seen for a few years.

Owners were getting into their detailing trances as friends were making beelines from across the hall to catch up, or to see the latest modifications that had been made.

Seeing as Ultimate Dubs had not run in 2021 due to Covid restrictions, it felt as though there were a lot of people who were eager to make an extra effort this year to celebrate the show’s return.

Personally, you can’t beat the night before the show itself. There’s just something fun about the anticipation, what with the knowledge that thousands of people will be flooding in the next day to look at your pride and joy.

Partly that, and of course there’s always an almighty night out before any car show. After all, there’s only so much polishing and cleaning that can be done before you need to blow off some steam.

On that note, I’m off to join my friends, but I can assure you there is some very special metal in the show the year which I cannot wait to show you. Stay tuned.

Mario Christou
Instagram: mcwpn