A Horse, A Harley & Sangoma

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The Dealership is known as Gold Rand Harley Davidson and is owned by two black dudes by name of Aubrey and Sean.  Which is the reason, I have to say,  for the style of this  "how do you do".  Goodness me. The Dealership is a veritable oasis in the middle of this dodgy area.  And I say dodgy with good reason.

Last week I was reminded of a poignant moment that took place many years ago. And this reminder came to me at the most unrelated gathering.  Or was it..... unrelated...?

Let's see.

 

 

The moment is etched in my mind with visual emphasis of just how wonderful this country of ours is. It was a public holiday, the sky was an uninterrupted blue and I and three others were picking our way through a mealie field. Or rather our horses were stepping gently through the field, allowing us the liberty of absorbing  the beauty of the day, and the pure African-ness of our surroundings.  We had just left the stables which were poised at the top of a hill that looked down on the Umgeni River far below. The Valley of A Thousand Hills was to our left. It was so quiet we could hear our hearts beating and the soft snorting of the horses breath.  Imperceptibly, becoming gently louder I heard a song that has haunted me till this day. It epitomised Africa for me.  We got closer to the source of this music and there in the dust was a little boy playing with his home-made motor bike. An uncle, or father, had made it out of wire. A man was sitting against the wall of a Zulu hut and a transistor radio sat on a wooden crate next to him.  A few chickens were pecking around... but otherwise, nothing but this tableau and this song.  Which song was BURN OUT, by Sipho Hotstix Mabuse. It was a moment in time that will stay with me forever. Those who share my love for this song, and for Africa and for horses will understand exactly what I mean.  For as I said to a friend recently when we were talking about Paris...if you have to explain why it is you like Paris, you have to know that the person on the listening end will never understand.  The same applies here.

So that is the poignant.   Here is the Un-related.

Last week I was invited to a launch function that was sophisticated to the nth degree.  That it was in Boksburg, slap in the middle of a light industrial area made the sophistication even more surprising.  And even more surprising (to me) was the purpose of the launch.  A Harley Davidson Dealership opened its doors in May this year and this was the "how do you do" function.  Ever been to a biker's do?  Well try grubby white marquee, standard rock band, boerewors rolls and curry rice?  The "decor" is usually the bikers and their bikes.  And in this instance the latter wins hands down. Those bikes are pristine. Chrome masterpieces. And I am no biker.   If you have galloped a horse full speed though a sugar cane field with your heart sitting firmly in your mouth, no bike ride on this earth can match it.  Or so say I, but a Harley?  Well one must appreciate the beauty of such a machine.  No doubt about it.

 

 

On to Sangoma and how it all relates?

The Dealership is known as Gold Rand Harley Davidson and is owned by two black dudes by name of Aubrey and Sean.  Which is the reason, I have to say,  for the style of this  "how do you do".  Goodness me. The Dealership is a veritable oasis in the middle of this dodgy area.  And I say dodgy with good reason.  You have to dodge the concrete road markers on the N12 before picking your way (same word as above, but believe me the mealie field had more charm) onto one of three off ramps to North Rand Road.  You miss the one, look out for the next and finally manage the third.  All the while with lunatic Toyota drivers and monster trucks up your bum.  (In the olden days it was an Opel Monza not a Toyota that was driven as though it were on a formula one track)

OK, Ok, so let's get on with it.  Sangoma? Sangoma is the energetic, charismatic lead singer of an awesome band known as Tokyo Groove.  My goodness, but I had fun.  I was an alien in this environment and just as a horse might turn tail and run at the sight of a studded personage with leather tassels, so too did the bikers turn disdainfully away as I approached.  But all to the good, all to the good. I positioned myself equi-distance between the kitchen and one of the three bars (the grub was divine and the Cap Classique and red wine equally so) and weaved rhythmically to the music that emitted from the stage in front of me.  By the end of the evening I am told the weaving had become lurching, but really who cares?  One does not often enjoy oneself without interruption!

And then the climax. The Piece d' Resistance. The Cherry on the Bike....  Burn Out!.

Which has inspired me to give the dealership in North Rand Road, known as Gold Rand Harley Davidson, a plug.  That song, played by Tokyo Groove and sung by Sangoma at the launch of a Harley Davidson Dealership?  Well the bike may not be African Inspired and the dealership may be a far  cry from the homestead looking down at the Umgeni river, but Sean and Aubrey's love for Harley Davidson motor cycles and the lifestyle that goes with it is every bit as passionate as that moment in time when I heard Burn Out, by Sipho Hotstix Mabuse, for the first time.

Good luck guys!  Your How do you Do was tops, and your dealership even better!

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