Alpine Volks Fair returns to Helen, GA!
If you are not aware of what the Alpine Volks Fair is, imagine the following. Thousands of Volkswagens, Audis, Porsches and so on. Dozens of meetups and hangouts. Not just for one day, but for 5. Regular traffic begins to look like a neo-modern VW dealership parking lot. Every establishment is packed to the gills with Euro car enthusiasts. Everyone having a good time. – If this doesn’t make you the least bit excited, get your pulse checked.
This was my first time attending this event. I learned quite a bit, like you need to stay for more than one day, after the fact. Regardless, here was my experience:
9:00am – Somewhere between Ocoee & Helen
Since I do not have any European vehicles in my stable, I took my Honda Orthia on this road trip. It definitely did not fit in, as you will soon see. However, the drive up was uneventful and offered some gorgeous views.
10:00am – The Wagon Meet
When I made it to Helen, the first meet I attended was wagon themed. My long roof managed to fit in quite well here.
I especially loved this Audi. Everything about it is right up my alley.
Here’s a good look at what traffic looked like the entire time I was there.
This Cayenne was an absolute UNIT.
No, your eyes do not deceive you. That is a 4 door Rabbit truck. The guy did it all himself. The bed is from a Ford Ranger. The rear windows are from a Jeep Wrangler. The whole thing looked factory. Such a well done car.
This Martini liveried GTI was one of the stars of the show. The Rubystone Golf behind it was also quite good looking.
These are starting to become more common and I’m here for it.
This RS6 was one of my top 10 favorite vehicles at the show. I’m a huge fan of OEM+ and this car ticked all of the right boxes.
This G60 Wagon was so incredibly unique. A lot of original and period correct goodies.
Some friends of mine from Wheelprice showed up in a Ferrari and a couple Hondas – including this RHD Prelude. Finally, the Orthia was not the odd one out.
11:00am – VW Mk5 Meet
I was incredibly impressed by the diversity of this platform. I say that as I put up a photo of two nearly identical cars. Still!
I didn’t get too many photos of this meet as I was primarily hanging out in the shade for a bit. The temps got up to about 85 degrees and it was pretty brutal.
1:00pm – VW Mk6 Meet
After a quick lunch, I headed to the mini golf course for the Mk6 meet. It was pretty packed out!
Jamie Orr was there with Black Forest Industries saying hi to folks, signing autographs and talking VW’s. I didn’t stay too long because I wanted to catch the end of the next meet…
1:30pm – Pre-2k Meet
Not naming any names, but I was not allowed anywhere near this parking lot with my Orthia. Even though I just wanted to snap a few pics and head back to town, it was a no go. Still, I parked off-site and made my way back down to document a few notable cars.
I bet a lot of you have never seen one of these. Golf Country. Factory lift & AWD. Ready to go into the woods.
Speaking of going into the woods, these Safari Porsches were amazing to see side by side.
Wooley, Mike and I saw this thing at SEMA last year (which if you haven’t heard yet, is losing vendors left and right as of late). An amazing car nonetheless & possibly the best example for this platform I’ve ever seen. If you went to Alpine Volks Fair and did NOT see this car, I’m sorry – you missed out.
Wouldn’t quite be a VW show without a Harlequin, right?
IDK why, but I loved these shirts. They speak to me.
2:00pm – Caddy Meet
Some friends of mine from Quick Everett’s were there. It turned out to be one of my favorites!
I saw some friends while I was there and had a great time. Rob’s truck was looking pristine!
3:30pm – VW Mk7/MQB Meet
In the same parking lot, there was a Mk7 meet happening towards the end of the Caddy meet.
That blue Passat hanging out back there is arguably the fastest and quickest for the B7 platform. Manual swapped car with the Votex lip kit. VW nerds (like me) freak out over stuff like this.
Miscellaneous
There was a good amount of time that I spent down by the tubing parking lot. It was constantly full of amazing cars. Like these overland setup cars. Fun fact, that Touareg has a V10 TDI.
So many cars to see, it’s nearly impossible to see them all and truly appreciate them.
I can’t quite figure out what this meet was – but it was one of the biggest & had some of the most diversity.
I got to see my favorite Tiguan! Cool guy owns it, he bought an old set of Bentley wheels off of me years ago.
Mr. Ludwick rolled up in his freshly bagged Mercedes sedan. Such an amazing vehicle to see in person.
4:00PM – Beetle Meet
By the time I showed up, most of the Beetle guys had already left, unfortunately. I was pretty late.
Still, got to see a few cool Beetles, so there’s that!
I decided to go back to the tubing parking lot after that. I was not disappointed.
Got to catch up with a few friends and make new ones.
Even parked the Orthia next to one of my favorite Jettas. This photo really showcases how much I had been driving around Alpine Volks Fair & Helen. It was relatively clean when I left the house at like 7am.
5:00pm – VW Mk8 Meet
I decided to catch the end of the Mk8 meet – and I’m glad I did!
As I rolled up, everyone was getting ready to roll out to the Humble Mechanic meet.
Speaking of, here is his Golf R. Pretty sure this is this cars THIRD appearance on S3… Last time was WITW and the time before that was IA!
6:30pm – Humble Mechanic / DAP Meet
Here we are, folks. The last meet of the day – and what a turnout!
The road leading to the parking lot reminded me a lot of the Tail of the Dragon. This photo pretty much solidifies that.
I was having fun just watching the cars roll in.
There are 3 wagons in this photo. I really regret not getting a good one of the silver car on the end. Believe it or not, that car was swapped with an Audi V10. Sounds like a Gallardo, no joke.
It wasn’t long before parking became very limited!
This VW Quantum showed up – the nicest guy owns this. We’ve spoken at multiple VW events and he’s always great to hang with.
Overall an amazing crowd and hosts. Thank you to Charles the Humble Mechanic and Paul from Deutsche Auto Parts for the amazing hospitality. For the record, I got to park the Orthia in the very parking lot I was denied earlier in the day… so, ha.
Speaking of the Orthia, I took it off-road for this amazing golden hour shot to end the day. What an event! If you’re keeping score, I went to NINE meets in one day. Crazy… and I’d do it all over again. Can’t wait til next year’s Alpine Volks Fair!
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Text & Photos by Ben Battles
