Bug Bites   2011 

by Bobby

 

 

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Bug Bites - 2006 Bug Bites - 2005 Bug Bites - 2004 Bug Bites - 2003

 

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

 

 
 

 

08/20/2011