August 20, 2011
Hello Good Ole Volks,
Let me see if I can catch up on some of the thing's and event's that has
been happening lately. We have been right busy with getting one or the
other of our VW's worked on lately, and it seems as there is always
something that can be done to them as well. My Squareback is still
sitting around waiting for it's new engine and a few other "new'
goodies, and I'm more than ready to have it back for some upcoming
cruises or show's. I am glad to report that Susan finally got her Bug
back from the upholstery shop with the new headliner installed. We did
have to take it to an "out of town" upholstery shop due to wanting it to
be done right, and our local shop wasn't meeting our expectations.
So....let me give y'all a heads up for a great upholstery shop if you
need some work done! Go see JB at JB Auto Upholstery, 200C Trade Street,
Raleigh,NC,(919)772-4099. He has 25+ years experience in doing
headliners,vinyl tops,convertible tops,seat covers, carpets, truck
seats.....and specializes in original & custom work in leather and
original ostrich.
We heard about a cruise-in that the Martinsville Volkswagen Club was
having via Facebook. Come to find out that Tim Conner, the owner of the
restaurant Fenderz, had also posted on Facebook, that he was having an
All VW Cruise In at his place on July 30,2011. So even though it was
right hot, we climbed in Susan's Bug and went to see what was happening
at this event. We met up with Mark Alley and the rest of the bunch at
Sonic, and then cruised to Fenderz. The owner was really receptive of
our VW's, and had some great food there as well. There was a total of 13
VW's at this event and Tim may see about making his All VW Cruise In a
regular event. One of the main topics of conversation at this cruise in
was people getting excited about our GOV Break The Record Night and
looking forward to joining us on our annual event.
During the next couple of weeks, we had Jimmy Jarrett to do a 12 volt
conversion on Susan's Bug, and then my brother and me lined her interior
with a type of dyna mat to get it prepped for her new carpet to be
installed next....along with some other new goodies that will follow.
Isn't it just great to own a VW! Always something to do with it!
Now...let's get on to the more exciting things! Our annual Good Ole
Volks Break The Record Night! August 18, 2011 started with me giving the
Bug a good washing, and calling one of my buddies to see if he would be
joining us for the event in his brand new 2012 VW Golf GTI. A short
while later, we pull into Herbies Place parking lot, already almost full
of VW's. There was Sheari......counting the VW's as they came in, and
she placed the smiley face on our windshield to let us know that we were
officially counted. Then, there was Jack......the official parking
director, and he found us a great parking spot. And then....there was my
Danville buddy, parked right across from us and waiting for us to
arrive. After some small talk with my buddy (John Wilkerson) and saying
hello to quite a few more people, we had to visit Herbies for a bite to
eat before joining the crowd!
One of the first people that we talked with was David Boone, who was one
of the 3 people that drove in on a Bahama Blue 1966 Bug. We were
another, and I didn't get to meet the other driver, but we were well
represented on this evening. I got to see so many friends that I haven't
seen in quite a while, and met a lot of new people as well. And
then....how about all of those nice looking VW's! There was Steve &
Betty selling some GOV t-shirts.....and we had to get us one of those!
And then there was Billy selling some different GOV t-shirts.....and we
got us one of those too. We had Jimmy Jarrett to bring his trailer to
our event again this year, and we can always pick up something that we
need from him......so we did! Let's not forget about Lee who was taking
care of the 50/50 raffle drawing, which was something new this year, and
the people all seemed to like that pretty well! I did see quite a few
member's from the Martinsville VW Club were in attendance too. There was
so many people at Herbies that I didn't even get to say hello to all of
them. Conversations about VW's filled the air as we walked from from
place to place......people talked about what they had done to their
rides since last year, or what new VW they had gotten, or maybe what
they had planned for the future. But all in all, we had a super great
crowd that had gathered in Herbies parking lot to help try and beat last
years record of 153. We managed to get 114 VW's this year which is still
a great number. I can still remember when we thought that having 47 VW's
at a gathering was something to celebrate, and just for the
record.......we have had over 90 VW's for this annual event in the last
5 years, and over 100 VW's in 2 of those. I have personally been to VW
carshows that didn't have anywhere near that number of VW's in it, so
I'm proud to have been here to represent our GOV in our attempt to
increase our number again. I want to thank each & every person that did
show up for the event and look forward to doing it again next year. And
for your info.....the 50/50 was won by Boyd Higgs this
time.....congratulations Boyd!
Let's not forget that the GOV cruise to the BUGOUT show in Manassas, VA
is in a couple weeks.....the SEVWA Northern Challenge is in Radford this
Sunday August 21,2011.......the Circle Yer Wagens and Fast Times At
Farmington shows are scheduled for later in October 2011.
Till
later...........................................................................
Have a VW day,
Bobby
June 1, 2011
Hello Good Ole Volks,
Happy Memorial Day to everybody. It's always nice to get an extra day off
for a long weekend isn't it! I'm here to tell you, that we have been
extremely busy for this past week with VW happening's, and lets get started
shall we!
On May 21,2011, I got my Squareback cleaned up, gassed up, and packed up so
we could check out the Big Bug Shootout at the Piedmont Dragway on Sunday
May 22,2011. It didn't take us long to get there and even though the weather
guys were forecasting a sunny day, I had no idea how hot it was going to be.
Man....it was a scorcher, and I even brought me a sunburn home to prove it.
As we pulled into the track, there were VW's on both sides of the parking
area......show car's on the right, and the non show VW's on the left. There
were a lot of VW's there alright, but only about 39 were showing at this
show. But, there was a great crowd of people here with the swap meet, the
dealer's, and a bunch of spectator's taking advantage of the scenery and the
deal's thay could get for their pride & joys!
There were quite a few GOV member's in attendance too! Let's see....there
was Deb & Jack, Billy & Jonathan Dye, Dean Underwood, Mickey Shaw & his son,
Steve French & his daughter, Chan, Bill, Tony, Stick. Pete, and a few
others. The only member's that were showing their VW's, I believe, were Deb
and myself. It just so happened that when we pulled into our parking spot,
Jack had already set up a spot for Deb right in front of us. So, after a
little last minute detailing to remove some bugs from the front of my car,
we headed out to see what we could get for Susan's newest VW. We went to see
Jimmy Jarrett for quite a few item's like door panels, door panel clips &
boots, emergency brake boot, wiper arms, & a sunroof window crank. Then some
new sunvisor's and window crank's from another dealer. We looked all over
the place trying to find her a new Bosche 6 volt voltage regulator, which
was recommended by our mechanic, but the only luck we had with that was
Billy Dye had a used one that he said he might could hook us up with. We
visited Tommy & Debbie Fletcher at their booth to chat and pick me up one of
their new t-shirts, and then went to check out some the drag racing for a
little excitement. Some of our VW buddy's from Lynchburg were there too, and
one of them had brought me the glue I needed to install the carpet kit in
Susan's Bug. Plus....his Dad races a drag bug, who was the runner up in his
class! Then it was back to our shelter for some shade, a cold beverage, and
some lunch.
Since the showcar turnout was as low as it was, the awards were given out
about an hour early, and I believe that the only GOV member that won an
award was myself. The only one that I know anyway. If there were other GOV
award recepient's, please accept my congratulations and apology for not
mentioning you. Then, it was time to head back home in the heat, and
everything was great till we were about 20 minutes from home. That's when it
happened! We were just cruising down the highway, when we heard a
noise.....Susan said "what was that?", and "I said I'm not sure, but there's
smoke coming from the rear!". And then my Squareback is on the side of the
highway, not going anywhere. It's always great to have AAA when you drive
your VW on trip's, and this was one of those times. After our call to AAA,
it took 45 minute's till a guy from Burlington arrived with an air
conditioned rollback to take us and my Squareback home. That a/c sure was
great after waiting in that heat. Sooooo....I reckon that I will be getting
me that 1776cc engine that I have been wanting for awhile, but I don't know
how long it will be till that happens. Also....while at the show, quite a
few member's were asking if we would be joining the GOV BUGOUT cruise the
following weekend, and at that time we had said no. That was until this past
Friday.........
We have been doing quite a bit of running, calling, checking, and talking to
several people about getting a headliner installed in Susan's 1966 Sunroof
Bug. When we bought the car, there was a guy that was supposed to be putting
one in the car. He had the car in his shop for 2 month's before we bought
the car, and 5 week's after we bought the car. We still didn't have a
headliner in the car, and the work that had been done, if that's what you
would call it, was not meeting our approval. So we went and picked her Bug
up, and this past Saturday, took her Bug to JB Auto Upholstery in Raleigh,NC
to have her a headliner installed. We should be picking it up in a couple of
weeks. During Friday and Saturday, Susan was saying that we should get up
early on Sunday morning and drive to the BUGOUT show in Manassas, VA to see
about getting somemore things for her car, and of course to see our GOV
member's while there. Would you like to guess what we done?
The alarm went off at 3:30AM! The trucks gas tank had been filled Saturday
night! The cooler had been filled with water, drinks, and ice! By 4:15AM we
were headed north on Hwy.29! At 8:30AM, we had the pickup parked in a shady
spot inside Old Dominion Speedway and were busy looking for some great
deals. We needed a tire for her spare tire, and got 2 for less than 1 would
cost back home. We did find serveral 6 volt voltage regulator's too. As a
matter of fact, we got several great deal's. While there, we seen Chan,
Bill, Jonathan, Jack & Deb! We heard that Linda, Kim, and Betty were also
there, but didn't get to see them due to them shopping or getting to the
show later. Another familiar face was Don Kirby from Danville, who some of
you may remember his "hybrid" VW from a few years back. The front end of a
Bug and rear of a Squareback. Well, after getting our goodies, checking out
the show car's, and getting us a bite to eat, the heat & humidity started
getting to us. So we got back in the pickup where the a/c was and headed
back home. We even got home in time enough to get us a shower and have
dinner with my family. I will have to admit that the long trip there and
back was tiring, and we missed being able to join the GOV on the cruise up
on Saturday, but it's still one of the best VW show's that you will ever go
to. There's the next BUGOUT show coming up for the Labor Day weekend, and we
would be glad to have a lot of extra GOV member's to join us for this
cruise! Till later.........................................................
Have a VW day,
Bobby
May 5, 2011
Hello Good Ole Volks,
I was informed that Martinsville VW Club was having their 1st Cruise-In of
the year this past Saturday and decided to check it out. So, I had Susan to
join me for a leisurely ride in my Squareback. After a quick run through the
carwash to wash the pollen off of my car, and the BP station to top off the
gas tank, we headed out Hwy.58 West towards Martinsville. In hardly no time
at all, we pulled up into the Sonic parking lot in Collinsville for the
Martinsville VW Club Cruise-In. As usual, we were greeted by their member's
that were already there, and proceded to talk VW's, as well as meeting some
of the member's that we hadn't met before. Mark was there as usual, as well
as Benny and Hamp, who we met at the Parkway Cruise, and quite a few more.
And, after a few minute's, we were surprised when Alan & Jan Tickle came
pulling in on his Baja Bug. Of course the GOV was well represented with 4
people wearing our GOV shirt's, and the cruise-in went well for everyone it
seemed. There was a total of 12 VW's to show up for this cruise in, which
included a kit car, a Ghia straight from California, my Squareback, and a
bunch of Bug's. Let's hope that their number's will continue to rise. After
our visiting and conversing with the group, we joined Alan & Jan for some
dinner at Captain Tom's Seafood Restaurant for a good ending to a nice
evening, and then we headed back home. Till
later......................................................................
Have a VW day,
Bobby
April 14, 2011
Hey Good Ole Volks,
The weekend leading up to the first major VW show of the year was
interesting to say the least. It all started on us picking up my Squareback
from the shop late Saturday afternoon, and still having to get it ready for
the show. It was right cool on Saturday, so a jacket was in order while I
got my Squareback washed, and then parked in the carport for some armor all
and a good polishing. This is when the rain started, and I'm here to tell
you, it rained! But....I was under shelter, with the tunes playing and a few
cold beer's, so life was good! Sure.... it rained on Saturday, but all of
the weather guy's were saying that Sunday was going to be great, and I was
going to be ready for it. After all of the cleaning was done, it was time to
load up what I could for our trip and get some rest.
There were plan's made with our GOV, Martinsville VW Club, and some of my
friend's from Lynchburg, VA, to meet at Herbie's Place on Sunday morning and
caravan to the show. So we're up early to finish packing, and guess what!
Yep....it's still misting rain. Kind of like walking around inside a
cloud...if you can imagine that! But, my spirits wasn't dampened! We met my
friend's from Lynchburg at the Kangaroo Station, where our GOV always meet
us for our Manassas cruise's. It was Blake in his white Bug, Kevin in his
green Westfalia Bus, and their significant other's. After a short discussion
on the "great" weather, we were heading down the bypass towards Greensboro.
When we pulled into Herbie's Place parking lot, we were the only VW's there,
and it was still misting rain. Uh-huh! About 4 minutes later, here came the
guy's from Matinsville VW Club. It was Mark in his creme ragtop Bug, Kermit
in his black ragtop Bug, Frances in his turquoise Bug, Sterling in his blue
Dune Buggy, and Rebecca in her blue&white Bug. After a few minutes of meet &
greet we were off and heading towards the show, and just as we were about to
get on Bryan Blvd, I noticed that we were 4 VW's short. I found out that one
of the Martinsville guys had a technical glitch. After checking with Mark
about whether to hang around with them till thing's got worked out, he told
me that he had GPS and didn't know how long it would take, so for us to go
ahead, and they would see us at the show. So.....we headed on down Bryan
Blvd. to I-40, and then Fast Times At Farmington.
When we pulled into the show...it was still misting, but it was easing up
just a bit. This didn't seem to deter quite a few people however.
Man....this place was hopping with numerous show car's and one of the
largest swap meets I have ever seen. We were directed to our parking spots,
then set up our shelter, and got the last minute detailing done. And
then........time to have some fun! Even though it was still right cool, and
the majority of the people had some type of jacket on, this place was wide
open. We headed down to Stick's group site to take some of Susans "world
famous" spaghetti to put in his Bug Grill, and have us a nice visit. There
was Stick, Pete, Teresa, Wylie, and some other's. He had already got the
coals going on his grill, and as always, it seems that his grill is a major
conversation piece among the huge VW crowd that was there!
Some other GOV member's that I seen there were, Tony, Elliott, Chan, and at
least one other guy, who I cannot ever seem to remember his name. Chan said
that Bill had been there, but I didn't see him. Billy and Jonathan Dye were
there selling parts. A lot of people were there selling part's. And since we
have went out and gotten Susan a 1966 Bug, we just had to get her some
"things" for her Bug. I got her whatever she wanted....like the bamboo shelf
for under her dash. We looked for this, and looked for that....we seen this
and that....then we bought what we could. Then we checked out all of the
great looking show car's, and walked all over the place to make sure we
hadn't missed anything. Then we got hungry....so we went back to visit Stick
again, and ate some lunch. Man....I can see why Susans spaghetti is world
famous.....yum-yum! Afterwards....we got to see the Fisher Buggies drag car
set a world record run at better that 163 MPH! Man...that guy lit that thing
up, and was gone. I can see why it is called "the worlds fastest VW"!
The sun did eventually pop out of the haze, and the jacket's had to come
off. Yep...it got right warm then! We walked around somemore....seeing some
people, and checking out some of the show car's a little better. Then we
rested under our shelter some, and were off to rest under Sticks shelter
too. And then it was time for the awards presentation, which got held up
some due to an auction that was being held for a benefit. After it was over
and done, I did get a 1st Place award in my class, but I didn't see any
other GOV member that had a car in the show car section. Just in case there
was any member that was there that I missed, and you got an
award.....congratulations! There was a huge crowd at this show, and it would
be easy to miss some of you due to that fact. After the award's were given
out, we said our goodbye's, finished loading up our VW and headed towards
home. But....we couldn't miss stopping in at Cracker Barrel for a bite to
eat first. Then...we headed home with a smile on our face, our appetite
sated, and our sunburned face & neck to deal with......hey, I'm ready to do
it again. OK....the next show will be the SEVWA's Big Bug Shootout#7 at
Piedmont Dragway in Greensboro, NC on May 22,2011, and then the BUGOUT#69
show in Manassas,VA on May 29,2011, and there is GOV member's that are
already making plan's for this show, which is one of our favorite cruise's.
The motel's fill up fast, so if you are planning on joining us for our
cruise to the show, make your reservations quickly, and get ready for a
great time. Till
then......................................................................................
Have a VW day,
Bobby
April 7, 2011
Hello Good Ole Volks,
Well....It looks like Spring is finally upon us and it's time to get
your VW's out of hibernation. Yep, let's dust our rides off, give them a
good bath, and get them ready for some great times. Some of us have
already got a good start with our GOV Run To The Sun Cruise. This was
something that I have been wanting to do for quite awhile now.....have
us a GOV cruise to the beach, and it was finally given some serious
thought and planning. I have been trying to find the time to write my
report about this trip for a few weeks now, and I am just now getting to
it. So here we go!
Back in November 2010, the day after Thanksgiving, I took my Squareback
to the paint & body shop to have some rust removed. While this was being
done, I ordered those wheel's that I have been wanting forever.....some
fully chromed Porshe 2 liter beauties. Then I got the e-mail from Jack
about the planned GOV Run To The Sun Cruise, and got excited. The shop
had my car all of this time....had to paint the thing 3 times before
they got the paint to match right, and even though they didn't get
everything that I wanted done, they had the painting finished and knew
that I wanted to join our cruise, so I told them that I would let them
finish the rest later. I took my car and the wheel's to the shop and had
them mounted. All that I had to do then was give my Squareback a good
cleaning, pack up a few thing's and meet up with the rest of the group.
We got up early on Friday, March 18,2011, and headed to the American
Classic Motorcycle Museum in Asheboro,NC to meet up with the rest of our
group. Of course we got there quite early, so we had time to grab us
some breakfast, check out the museum, and get my brother a t-shirt
before the rest arrived. Robert arrived with his red Firebug, and then
here comes Deb & Jack in her white Bug. We stood around and chatted for
awhile till 11:00AM, and then waited a few extra minutes, just in case
we had any late arrivals, and then us 3 were off to the beach.
We stopped at Bennettsville for a break, and then was on the road again.
Things were going good till we got to Aynor,SC, when I noticed that my
generator light had came on, and the idle had slowed down. Uh-Oh!
Well...we found us a NAPA Auto Parts store with some really helpful
guy's that fixed me up with a new battery, and directions to the Auto
Electric Exchange in Conway, SC, and a really great guy, Wilbur Huggins!
After a few minutes, Wilbur found out that I needed a voltage regulator,
ordered it, installed it, and had us on our way. And the generator light
was out, so I was happy! A few minutes later and we pulled up in front
of the Landmark Resort to check into our rooms. Then, we took our VW's
to the parking center across the street, and while parking my car, I
noticed that the generator light had came on again. The car still ran ok
and all that, but I couldn't help but be concerned, and I just had the
feeling that everything would work out anyway. After relaxing in our
rooms for awhile, and getting a short nap, our appetites set in and we
ended up at Damon's for some great food and conversation.
Saturday started with us having the breakfast buffet at the motel, and
then heading to the Run To The Sun Carshow. I will have to admit that I
have never been to a carshow this large....wow! It would be nice to have
the number of dealer's at our VW show's that was at this show! We got to
see some very unique vehicles, and a few VW's too. I met a couple of
guy's from Roanoke,VA that had driven down in their VW's. Curt was at
the show with his VW powered Porshe Roadster, and his buddy had a
sandrail! We seen quite a few other nice VW's too. After awhile in the
sun, heat, and crowd, it was time to relax some, so we went to Subway
for some lunch, and then back to the motel for some pool time. I did
make a call to Wilbur Huggins and left a message about the situation.
We have some friend's that are living in Conway,SC and we gave them a
call to make some plans to meet them for dinner. They came by to pick us
up in their new car, then took me by Advance Auto to leave one of my
batteries for recharging, and then had some great food at River City.
Then they drove us around to show us some sites, took me back to pick up
my newly charged battery, and then loaned me his battery charger to
charge my other battery over night. And then....Wilbur Huggins called me
back right when we pulled in the motel parking lot, and made plans to
meet us back at his shop on Sunday morning to see what he could do and
make sure that we got back home. This guy was just great....and if you
ever go to the beach and have trouble like we did, you will not go wrong
dealing with him.
Sunday morning had us repacking our VW's, checking out of the motel,
grabbing a bite to eat, and then heading back to Auto Electric Exchange,
for Wilbur to see what he could do for me. He tweeked a few things here
& there, and got the generator to charging again.....BUT, he tells me
not to turn the car off because it may trigger something back to what it
was doing and stop charging. So we took us a few picture's of Wilbur,
shook his hand and thanked him again, and I gave him a Good Ole Volks
window sticker to remember us by. On the road again.............anyone
ever dealt with beach traffic leaving the beach on the way home? We had
to deal with it! We stopped at Bennettsville for a break again, and even
though I didn't turn my car off, the generator light was back on. But my
Squareback stayed up to speed the whole way back home. We stopped once
more in Asheboro,NC to say our goodbye's, top off my gas tank and then
head home. Even though I had the situation I did, I plan on doing it all
over again when I get the chance. It was a great cruise and a great
time!
Well, now I have my Squareback in the shop getting the generator
rebuilt, and getting ready fot Fast Times At Farmington Dragway this
coming Sunday April 10,2011. I have some friend's from Lynchburg that
are meeting us as they come through Danville, and then we are meeting
Mark Alley and his group from the Martinsville VW Club at Herbie's Place
at 9:00AM for a group caravan to the Farmington show. If any other GOV
member's would like to join us....the more the merrier! Till
later...............
Have a VW day,
Bobby
January 23, 2011
Hello Good Ole Volks,
Well.....the first VW show of 2011 had arrived. I, as well as quite a
few other's, had been anxiously looking forward to attending the
Shriners Volksfest put on by the SEVWA. As you know, this show is held
indoors at the Greensboro Coliseum. We had gotten up, had our breakfast,
climbed into the pickup with a few essentials, and headed to Greensboro.
As soon as we crossed the VA/NC border we noticed that the road crews
had been out spraying the liquid salt on both lanes of HWY.29, north and
south, from Danville to Reidsville. I didn't even know that bad weather
was expected. On top of that....the stuff was still wet!
Messy...messy...messy! I'm glad that I hadn't cleaned on my Squareback
and drove to the show on this mess like some of the other driver's had.
I have my Squareback in the paint & body shop right now to repair the
rust in both front fender's and driver's door, so I didn't have that to
worry about!
As soon as we got to the coliseum and was about to turn into the parking
lot, I seen a disturbing sign. It said "Parking $7.00"and both Susan &
me shared a look of disbelief. Man...the last time we went to this show
it wasn't but $3.00! It turned out that an Ice Skating Competition was
also being held at the coliseum, and this gave them a reason to jack up
the rates. We did find out however, that if you showed the people at the
registration table your parking stub, you got a $3.00 refund which made
it somewhat easier to take. The place was crowded with a long line of
spectator's heading into the complex, and as we got into the line
heading inside, I couldn't wait to get inside to see the big number of
showcar's that was said to be at the show!
After we came through the door into the show, I was disappointed to see
that there wasn't as many VW's as there had been on the previous show's.
I wasn't the only one that noticed this! AND, to top that off, someone
decided to add a Scion class to the event as well. The number of
dealer's and swap meet vendor's were low as well. We did enjoy getting
the chance to see some of our friend's......Jonathan was there with his
blue convertible Ghia, Mark Alley had his tan Bug there, and he said it
was fun cleaning all of that salt off of his Bug! We seen Billy,
Jonathan, and Daniel Dye there spectating. There was a few of my buddies
from Lynchburg, VA there spectating and searching for some part's. There
was a few more member's of the Martinsville VW Club there too. But that
was about it for our GOV member's. I mean some of our member's that are
usually at every VW show didn't even show up. The main word of just
about everyone we talked to was......disappointing! I don't know what
the circumstances were for this low turnout, and the addition of non VW
vehicles in a VW show, but the show this time wasn't worth the money
that we spent to see it.
I would like to let you know that I finally went out and bought the
wheels that I've been wanting to put on my Squareback for awhile now,
and as soon as I get it back from the p&b shop, and Spring arrives, it
will be sporting those bad boys. I hope that I have it back in time to
check out our GOV cruise to Myrtle Beach on March 17 - 19, 2011, and I
am also looking forward to Fast Times At Farmington #14 on April 10,
2011! So till
then..............................................................
Have a VW day,
Bobby
