Shoreditch is an interesting place. On the cusp of Hackney and Tower Hamlets, it’s a five-minute walk from Liverpool Street, the epicentre of the London Rat Race. A place where grey suits and financed Swiss watches go out the window, and where the diversity and creativity that defines London really emerges.
Shoreditch is a neighbourhood where almost every subculture in our beautiful city can thrive. However, that never included car culture – until Vengaworld.
Being the second time running this event, we knew what we were up against. It’s one of those ‘ask for forgiveness, not permission’ situations. The area isn’t exactly ‘car-friendly,’ so bringing the best cars in London to its heart creates quite the shock to the residents and passersby.
Shoreditch is historically famous for grime artists hosting pop-up concerts, only found out by word of mouth and wheat paste posters. Staying true to the culture, that’s exactly what we did: 200 posters pasted up around Brick Lane, Bethnal Green Road, and the arches. QR codes protected with a password, found on the bright yellow stickers slapped next to the posters that read “VENGA4MAYOR”.
Word spread quickly; Vengaworld was hosting the second iteration of Shoreditch Showdown. Think hundreds of incredible pre-selected cars, and thousands of people in a space normally reserved for Network Rail’s works vehicles.
Right in front of Shoreditch High Street Station, Shoreditch Showdown had a car for everyone – from a street-legal WTCC Touring BMW E91 (all the way from the Netherlands), to James’ Amuse GT1 Honda S2000 on RAYS Volk Racing TE37SL wheels.
Vengaworld is one of those things built by and protected by its own community. The whole ethos of what we do is to change the public’s perception of car culture in London. Far removed from the antisocial behaviour found in supermarket car parks, Vengaworld creates a safe space for people with genuine enthusiasm to share their passion and artistic expressions through cars. Oh, and it’s always free.
As the public flooded into the venue, I could hear the awe in stunned voices: “I didn’t realise cars could be quite so incredible”. That’s exactly what it was: the community coming together to celebrate our incredible culture with the world.
Any event producer will tell you, no matter how many times you do it, you always feel like you didn’t get to experience it. It’s like planning your own birthday party. The whole thing rushes by so quickly as you’re running around making sure everything’s perfect.
That certainly was the case until I was stopped in my tracks.
Right in front of the station, and displaying a massive Vengaworld banner, Nick and Louie Pelosi’s car loader pulled up. Sat on the back: an Alfa 1600 Junior, a Mercedes-Benz AMG C124, a Honda-K-series-swapped AE86 competition car, and George Barclay’s ‘Eurofighter’ 2JZ BMW F22. I couldn’t believe it.
It was something we had planned for a while, yet every time we had the discussion, I thought, “This might be a bit too mad.” It was perfect.
Never has London seen such automotive juxtaposition. A lorry with four incredible machines on it, parked on a road that’s normally reserved for council vehicles and black cabs. Walking out of the station, it hit you in the face. You’re now in Vengaworld.
Throughout the evening, more and more people moved through the event, grabbed a Monster, ate food, and immersed themselves in the contrast of cars against the grey pillars and the graffiti-covered walls. As the sun began to set, the green and purple lighting came on, subtly illuminating the arches.
Throughout the evening, the scenes resembled something out of a movie.
I stood atop the lorry and watched this sea of people appreciating something they’d never seen. The atmosphere was buzzing; people were laughing, and the public leaving the station was in awe of what they walked into.
The roll-out was next level. It’s always an incredible by-product of any car event, but this one felt particularly special.
The slow drive out through the gates of the venue, in front of the station, and under the light box of the train bridge. Every single car at Shoreditch Showdown had its own moment under the limelight orange light.
After the last few cars rolled out, we wrapped up. I sat down on the curb and just thought to myself, holy sh*t, it worked.
The team and I started the teardown and the litter pick-up. It’s amazing how much heavier the banners felt at 1:00am. We finished up, and of course, we had to head over to Brick Lane Beigel Bake for a celebratory salt beef beigel.
Occasionally, you hear people online in the UK talk about how the scene in our country is dead. I’m not here for any of that. London’s car culture is one of the most vibrant in the world, and I’ll stand on that all day long.
None of this would have been possible without the Vengaworld team. A group of some of the most amazing people in the world who work tirelessly to keep the culture alive. Thank you to everyone at Vengaworld, Tacos El Pap, Kokorozashi Sushi, and Powerleague Shoreditch. And a special thank you to Monster Energy for continuing to believe in what we do.
Shoreditch Showdown was genuinely a dream come true.
