Juli 2021 – I’m happy UK specialist magazine Mercedes Enthusiast likes my stories. Since the August/September 2021 issue ME published five of my articles. Top notch photography is by either Noortje Blokland or Casper Heij.
How things started
Between 2001 and 2003 I met the online Pistonheads community. I started to post in the forums from October 2002 and ran homepage topics about a year later. A long list of photoblogs can be found on my Pistonheads profile page.
Between 2003 and 2006 I sourced subjects for their daily news feed. Long story short: I met 1,001 car dealers and collectors, racing teams, got invited by Lola, made stills for the GT Racer Algarve Special episode and so on. Although I’m a Dutch native my focus is international. And for a reason: passion for classic cars has no boundaries.
As a communications professional I am used to write text, from vast amounts to compact social posts. By chance from 2017 to 2019 I became lead-editor of Dutch RS Porsche Magazine and classic car enthusiast magazine Onschatbare Klassieker. I also contributed to SL Mercedes Magazine. After 2.5 years I took a different turn.
Autumn 2020 I wrote a story about ‘A real Peaky Blinder’s gang car’. Just for fun and because a UK Bentley dealer offered me the high res images of the car the recently sold. Spring 2021 I investigated if international magazines would be interested in publishing my stories. A handful responded and Mercedes Enthusiast offered to try an article.
So far five reportages are published in the 2021 and 2022 issues. Let’s have a look:
Article 01 – The Reinier Groenveld collection
ME August / September 2021, pages 44-48
Reinier Groenveld opens the doors to his 57-piece Benz collection. I brought photographer Casper Heij to inspect the stock in Reinier’s vault-like shed and wrote the words for a 5 page article.
Article 02 – Monceau Automobiles eSLC #001
ME October / November 2021, pages 56-60
My first ever drive in the all electric Monceau Automobiles eSLC. And it is a revelation. Some say it drives even better than a contemporary EV… Photographer Noortje Blokland did a great job capturing the beauty of this gem. Check this Belgium company out: more E-classics soon!
Snapshots kindly provided by photographer Noortje Blokland.
Article 03 – Review E50 AMG and SL60 AMG
ME October / November 2021 , pages 42-45
Brutal AMG road warriors still offer huge value for money. Both cars are made to eat miles, either in four-seater or two-seater guise. Hard to pick my favorite: E50 is a practical fast family hack and the SL60 V8 is just awesome. Better than the V12 6 litre? Yes!
Article 04 – Review W114 and 123
ME February / March 2022, pages 34-40
Fantastic coverage of 70s Das Haus workhorse w114 and successor w123. Start reading from page 34 and enjoy the ace photography by Noortje Blokland.
Article 05 – Review 450SEL 6.9
ME June / July 2022, pages 38-43
The best car ever built? Photographer Noortje Blokland and I found out: start reading from page 38. And also enjoy the SLC special – my favorite Benz – and consider a subscription.
Article 06 – Review W110 Heckflosse Binz 190Dc & S123 300D Combi
(to be published)
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