Every item has an amazing story behind it
An illustration on the wall in his bar says, "Wees geduldig. Alles gebeur op sy tyd. Die windpomp gaan soek nie die wind nie."
Whether he refers to it as his man cave or bar, I do not know. One thing I do know, though, is that Wimpie Steyn’s happy place in White River offers a space that encourages relaxation, long and deep meaningful talks about cars and things, and, of course, enjoying a good cuppa or something even stronger.
Our first contact was at Cars on the Plot where Wimpie displayed his beautiful 1968 (Type 2) Volkswagen Kombi. “I have owned some 60 plus cars throughout my life. I love American muscle cars, English and German cars, but currently only have the Kombis, a 1951 Austin A55 called Noag and then the modern cars we drive daily.”
Wimpie was born in Vereenig, matriculated in Rustenburg, completed military training, and, short story, retired from the Super Group due to ill health. He now lives in White River. His favourite vehicle brands are Volvo and Volkswagen, but anything related to the nostalgy of the ’50s to ’70s will put him in storytelling mode, and boy, does he have many stories and interesting collectables!
Bikes? “My favorite is Triumph – best quality and ride ever. My Triumph’s name is Budapest.”
He had a custom-made Volkswagen Beetle bakkie with the name of Bakgat, and from the story Pappa Lap one of his two Kombis (a 1968 single-cab pickup) got the name Niggie and the other, a bus, was named Neef.
The bar at his house is built from what, in the past, has been called a Gary – a 110 Land Rover Defender bought from a scrapyard owner in 2017. “It was repurposed and installed over one weekend and the next we built and installed the cupboards.” The bar counter sports a little island with small items which, you better believe it, each comes with its own story. “Building this was really good for the soul and stocking the exhibition cupboard with its current display, even better. I prefer my cars and everything I collect to be original and authentic.”
A Land Cruiser tailgate was repurposed to be a two-seater bench, and yes, of course it has a story. But for the purpose of this article, I cannot relate all these stories. “Other than to live with purpose, we want to visit the Cape and Prince Albert in particular. En route, a visit to every bar in every town to listen to the stories, and then, I want to learn to play the guitar – properly.”
Well, dear reader, Wimpie loves cars and music, and listening to him telling stories is an engaging experience. And this place, I think, makes for the perfect chat studio. Also for video, petrolhead or no petrolhead. I trust the pictures will confirm these sentiments.
