MUSTANGMANIA INVADED MUSTANG FEVER 2019
I have been invite from the Organizer, Adelbert Engler, to this event for few years. This year i decided to take a flight, and see what is going on in Belgium.
DAY 1: ITALY TO BELGIUM, MUSTANG & CO.
The only flight with an acceptable price, was at 07:00 a.m., from Milan Linate to Bruxelles, with Alitalia. This meant a wake up around 04:00 a.m.. In the morning i am the slowest person of the planet, so i need some extra time to be 100% ready. My taxi rang my bell at 5:00 a.m., and i was damn ready.
I was barely able to sat in the car, and i felt alseep like a baby, with the camera on. The taxi driver woke me up in front of the airport, an hour later.
Linate is an airport that still gave you the feeling of the era between the ‘80s and the ‘90s, when the glory days where on in Italy. Nowadays is more for domestic(and few internationals) flights. The refurb works done in the last years updated the interiors in a good way.
Quick security checks, a bottle of water and a sandwich, and i was on the plane. Again, after maybe 2 seconds, i felt asleep again. The Hostess woke me up at Bruxelles Airport. Nice, clean,well served and busy, as usual. A Couple of guys stopped me for a Selfie. They explained that they follow regularly my page. I was surprised, i tought i was doing this stuff for me and my friends( believe it or not, i don’t watch the likes, the interaction, the statistics. I just do things when i want to do them).
A quick run to the train station undertneath the airport, where i met another Mustangmania Follower( a Lady, that has the age of my mother..and has a mustang!) and i was seated on the train to Halle. And you know what? I felt asleep Again. Mr. Sleeping eveywhere. My noisy snoring woke me up 2 stops before Halle( with a lot of people around me laughing..), where my friend Anthony was waiting for me.
Anthony Opened with his brother Mustang & Co., a mechanical shop specialized in Vintage ford Mustangs in 2013. With a lot of work and efforts they grew up their business till what is today. Nowadays there are 5 people working in the company, with more than 30 cars for sale, and a brand new location ( with a coffee shop, a barber shop, a merchandise and spare parts corner..) 45% completed. The most crazy thing is they rent 3 vintage mustangs: two 6 cylinder and a V8. That V8, a red convertible, with white stripes and automatic transmission( that i will call later on, Claire) came to pick up a 35 years old Italian blonde guy, that felt like a Baby in front of an Ice cream.
With the top down, a nice weather, a V8 roaring, Anthony drove to our first stop: the Shop actual location. On our way to his shop, just outside Halle, i was impressed by the number of new and vintage american cars i saw around; It is something you don’t expect in a small city in Belgium.
The shop is easy recognizable, with mustangs in the front, and a pretty Big Sign. Inside looks like the mancave of your dreams, with beers, mustang models and neons, a coffee machine, a huge flat screen tv, a sofa, and a Mustang Flipper. On the side there is the repair shop, with the true love of Anthony ( a 1968 Eleanor Clone that he made for himself) shiny, in the middle.
After a coffee and a quick chat, we moved to the second stop: another storage, with more cars in. I admit i was starting to getting jealous, because, as you surely know, mustang are never enough.
The last stop, before my hotel check in, was the location where the new shop will be. We had a walk around in this construction site, and than anthony said: “ I will show you something. This is our private collection”. He opened two old, scratched,half painted,old metal doors, and then….THE HEAVEN.
20 Mustangs, from different years, fully restored, some orginals (like a 2.000 miles GT350 2016), some restomods. I was almost cry due to this beatiful view. In that exact moment i have been gealous, i have to admit it. What a view, what a collection. Something you don’t expect to see in a small city in Belgium.
Still shocked, we left the location, chatting about the story of the cars.
I forgot to mention that i booked the hotel only for the Saturday night..i completely forgot Friday night. The wifi in Anthony’s shop helped me to book an Hotel, Martin’s Red Hotel in Tublize. I had no idea that was literally in the front of the Belgian Football Centre, where the national teams usually trains.
After a shower, another Nap and a glass of wine, i was ready for my dinner with Anthony. Going around a small city, in a vintage mustang(this time a 1966 6 cylinder coupè), is always a good experience. Having a dinner with a Mustang Enthusiast, chatting about cars till midnight is even better.
I reached the hotel at 10 past midnight, happy and extremly tired and the same time. It was time to rest. I had no idea what i had to expect from the days after.
