MILE HIGH CLUB

Set in the Western Cape, the annual Cape 1000 is fast becoming a go-to event on the international motoring calendar. We borrowed an appropriate set of wheels and tagged along on this year’s instalment

- Alex Shahini

Welcome to the thousand” were the first words my navigator, Sam, and I heard upon entering the parking lot of the Cape Town Hotel School Restaurant. The registration point for the annual Cape 1000 rally, Sunday's Show & Shine gathering represents one of the most spectacular collections of rare automotive machinery in South Africa. Although this Western Cape-based rally may still be in its infancy, it has grown in popularity and proudly claims to be “South Africa’s most beautiful drive’.

“My husband, Ross, started the Round Table Cannonball Run Africa in 2003, which brought about the establishment of the Super Car Lifestyle events company,” says Cape 1000 co-founder Vanessa Crichton. “He conceptualised the Concours South Africa and many supercar tours before he was involved in an accident in December 2014, which prompted me to join him in his passion for bringing like-minded car enthusiasts together.

“Having researched overseas regularity rallies like Italy's famous Mille Miglia (Thousand Miles), and appreciating the spectacular scenery the Western Cape has to offer, we came up with the concept of Cape 1000. We had no idea it would explode like it has,” continues Crichton.

The inaugural Cape 1000 in 2022 saw 40 classic and exotic cars navigate a 1 000-mile (1 600 km) route, taking in some of the Western Cape's finest roads, mountain passes and destinations. The four-day event quickly drew the attention of excited onlookers and included several timed events in the interest of friendly competition.