Sure, the West Indies knows how to play cricket, offers some of the finest beaches in the world and brags about knowing a thing or two about brewing quality beer. But, do the islanders know anything about building imports? It seemed unlikely. A phone call from Skyy Promotions, one of the islands most notable event coordinators, convinced us the scene there might be worth checking out. At the very least, we were in need of a break and a tropical island sounded a lot more enticing than a booze-free shit hole surrounded by trailer parks somewhere out in the sticks. So, with visions of white sand beaches and bikini-clad women everywhere, we decided the least we could do was pack our bags and head out yet again. Only this time, to be completely honest, the recent avalanche in the office meant that a piece of us (or at least me) hoped that just for once a small, disappointing scene might allow us to relive the vision. We requested a red eye flight, figurign that plenty of drinks and less-frantic airports would take the sting out of another half day's worth of travel. It did. In no time we opened the balcony doors of the hotel room and, well... white sands and green sea. Everything was going according to my plan anyway.
I should have seen it coming. We dropped the bags and commenced the customary bar-scouting tour of surrounding streets within staggering distance. Things were still looking good. The island's biggest nightclub, which we'd already been informed of, happened to be directly across the street. As traffic passed, the sub-conscious radar honed in on a black blur whizzing past and the familiar sound in tow. EVO VI. "Shit!" I thought, "Nightclub? EVO? Nightclub? EVO?" It was only three in the afternoon, so we knew where we were headed the first night, but with EVOs roaming the island at will, we might not be partying all weekend long.
The longer we cruised around, the more that appeared. EVOs from all generations: Sylvias, Civic Type-Rs and even four-wheel-drive Swift GTis. Barbados had platforms we can only dream of. We just wondered if they knew what to with them. At any rate, if the Barbadians knew just what privileges they'd been blessed with, then chances were good that we were in for more of a working weekend that I'd hoped for.
A couple of dinner meetings with our Skyy Promotions host, several local enthusiasts and attendees from surrounding islands and it was obvious: the West Indies had an import scene. Showtime on the Sunday backed up what was now the obvious. An impressive turnout of enthusiastic show goers experienced plenty of tasteful creations. A blue-blooded Sylvia flexing a Skyline powerplant, quality paint and an abundance of aftermarket necessities impressed us the most. But there was plenty to go around. On hand was one of the largest gatherings of various EVOs we'd seen in a long time including a pure rally-bred version gearing up for an upcoming annual island rally event. Other notable creations included a turbo-charged IS; several pure show-only rides, heavily-modified inside and out and an impressive line up of sound-off competitors that kept the crowd entertained throughout the day. No show is complete without minimally dressed women and we were pleasantly entertained throughout the day, thanks to a very fine assortment.
So with envious platforms roaming around and an enthusiasm that exemplifies the very meaning of it, Barbados has an import scene. Hardcore enthusiasts ship in parts from the states due to a lack of tuner outlets on the islands, and judging from the number of onlookers, it's infancy is about to grow up in a big way.