Pippa’s USC Diary

Dotz Mods Live at USC!

By Pippa

When I knew that the team were all going to be working at USC – I was pretty excited. It’s always a great atmosphere, and after a hard day on the stand, there’s always plenty to do in the evenings with decent acts and DJs – and plenty of room to dance!

Thankfully, regular readers will be glad to learn that I turned up on time and with no wardrobe malfunctions this time. Which, to be fair, is more than could be said for our mechanical ace Paul Cooper, who had decided to take the (very) scenic route from Cornwall and managed to miss the entire first day of the build! Oops!

Joining me as my partner in crime for the entire three days was my good friend Abbey. We kind of figured, one blonde, one brunette. Something for everyone!

The first day was busy, with the lads setting up a superb VIP area, complete with DOTZ beanbags, and Cristal chilling in the fridge.. or it may have been Cava. We keep it real.. MD Kev was using the whole thing as one big excuse just to break out his decks and blow the dust off some very choice vinyl. I can think of worse ways to spend a working day! What with a few bubbles in the fridge, and even the occasional blast from the smoke machine – at least they assured us that’s what it was – the lads kept us all entertained us for hours, while we got on with the serious business of handing out the DOTZ mags and freebie bags. Somebody had to do some proper work – and you can’t leave it up to the fellas..

This point was well proven later in the weekend when Kev decided to demonstrate his ‘hands-on’ management style by joining in the product throw out into the crowd. A good idea you might think, with the T-shirts and hats going down an absolute storm. Unfortunately, Kev decided to throw a few DOTZ bottle openers out there too … and in a Ninja-esque moment actually managed to draw blood from some unlucky guest! Luckily he was an understanding sort and the doctors say it won’t scar…

As well as the usual DOTZ goodness on site, we also had the added attraction of our 3 day live Fiesta ST build which was keeping us all entertained. Not only did techy Paul put in an epic performance once he finally did grace us with his presence, but we also had to be on best behaviour all day, thanks to the semi-permanent residency of the Motors/Eurosport crew on hand at all times. If you haven’t seen the show already, watch out for it on both of those channels. Who knows?. you might even see me!

So after a long few days of talking wheels, rides and endless photos, it was good to kick back for a meal out with the team. After building a superb boot install in our build Fiesta, we thought it rude not to take the boys from Huets Car Audio out as well, so as you can imagine, many tall tales were told over a cold one or five.

We even managed to catch a bit of the USC nightlife in there somewhere! DJ Luck and MC Neat and Chart-toppers ‘Roll Deep’, no less. Providing a perfect soundtrack to round out a busy old weekend. If you came up to the stand, thanks for stopping by! I hope to catch you all at our next gig!

See you soon

Pippa x

Modified Nationals.. It’s What Bank Holidays Were Made For…

Aaah, the fabled second May Bank Holiday weekend. Question is, what are you gonna do? There’s a trip out to Skeg.. A couple of pints in an anonymous boozer with some buddies – or, if you have even an ounce of petrol in your veins, you should get you, your mates and your motors down to the Modified Nationals over the weeeeeeeeeeekend of the 28^th to 30^th of May. Believe me, it’s this last option that ticks all the boxes. Stick it in your phone now. Peterborough Showground. Miss it.. Miss out..

Mod Nats is one of those truly epic ‘must do’ shows, like Fast Show, ISTS or USC. You can’t really count yourself as a true enthusiast until you’ve been there, sampled the atmosphere, done the shots and slept in the same t-shirt for the whole three days. It’s mental, mental, chicken oriental and the true believers will be there from early doors on the 28^th to pack in every precious party moment. Some of them will even get a couple of hours sleep!! The lightweights!

Naturally the Dotz massive will be there with bells on. Not only are we sponsoring Miss Max Power (hey, it’s a tough job.. but somebody has to do it!) but we’re also the official wheel sponsor of the whole shooting match, which means basically we’re there to party for the whole three days… and possibly longer, if boss Kev will let us all take the Tuesday off. So, what can you expect? Girls figure very highly I’m delighted to announce – but don’t think that’s all this show is about.. There are both indoor and outdoor show car areas, a live action arena, show and shine, Kiss live stage, Car Clinic, Max Power stage – and best bit of all, a full-on nightclub after dark which means you can be making shapes into the wee-smalls and practising your best chat-up lines with the many models getting down!

But, I digress.. the main reason to Mod Nats is the cars. Very few shows manage the eclectic mix that this show does with Old-Skool classics rubbing arches with the latest and greatest New-wave machinery and OEM+ masterpieces. I guarantee that no matter which church of modifying you pray to, there’s bound to be a near-religious experience in terms of quality and quantity of metal. If you can’t find at least one truly inspirational ride on site, I will personally refund your entrance fee.. so there!

Whether you make it just for the day, or better still, manage to blitz the entire three glorious days, just remember the essentials. Car. Cash. Mates. Cleaning Kit. Better still, park up for the whole three days and get seriously shipwrecked with us. With banging tuneage on the Dotz stand all weekend and some seriously eye-friendly staff (no, I don’t mean Dave and Kev) plus of course, some of the freshest rims on the planet, I guarantee that it’s a very pleasant place to while away an hour or two – and we promise not to try and sell you any wheels whilst your there. OK, that last bit was a lie, but the rest is gospel…..

So, fill up your tanks, empty your bank account and charge up your party power… We’ll see you there. Check it all out at www.modifiednationals.co.uk

We’re proud to be the sponsor of Miss Max Power for this year’s contest! Last year, Miss Max Power was a massive success and this year should be even bigger.

Max Power are looking for a babe to take the prestigious title of Max Power Babe 2010, who will give her career the ultimate boost with a feature in Max Power and ZOO, as well as a year’s modelling contract with N20 and receive a set of professional photos!

If you’re interested or know anyone that would be, you can find out all about it (including how to enter) here.