October 13, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,

Have you ever noticed that thing's don't quite work out the way that you expect them to? Our vacation started on Saturday, and we had our plan's all laid out.

On Saturday, we went to one of our friend's annual Pig Picking event. The weather was cool and cloudy, but it wasn't raining! This event draw's quite a local crowd, as well as a bunch of family, and friend's. There's plenty to eat, with drink's and dessert taken care of too. Just a lot of "good ole folks", if you catch my drift. The event went as planned, with everyone getting their fill of the food, and some good visiting going on. And we got to see our previous dog Purty! That's a story for another day however!

On Sunday, we had our GOV Pancake/Pancake Cruise planned. We had my Squareback already packed with thing's, on Saturday, anxiously anticipating the cruise on Sunday. We woke up to rain and cloud's on Sunday morning, and I knew that the cruise was in for trouble. After calling Lee & Sheari, to find out that Quigley wouldn't be going out to play, I called James & Leah, who were leading this cruise, only to have James tell me that he was sick, and wouldn't be able to attend either. And then, after calling Steve, who called several other's, I knew that there would be no GOV Parkway/Pancake Cruise on Sunday. You can read about Dave & Bev's solo Parkway trip to the pancake breakfast, and Parkway cruise on Bug Bites. It seems that they decided to have their own Parkway/Pancake Cruise. As for Susan & me..........we left a day early and headed for Myrtle Beach for the rest of our vacation. I'll have you know, that it rained the entire trip down to the beach. As a matter of fact, the closer that we got to the beach, the harder it rained. But that was OK, because we were there to relax, and that we did. Would you like to guess what I came back from the beach with? Oh, come on..........take a guess! I did pick up the new set of "DUB CITY" VW's.......2 Bug's and 2 Bus Crew cab's........which is really neat, AND bronchitis. Yeah, I coughed my head off the entire time, and just spent the day going to the doctor, and the drugstore, and I didn't even get to visit my GOV friend's at Herbie's Place tonight due to the fact! I am with y'all in spirit though! Again, I ask you.............have you ever noticed that thing's don't quite work out the way that you expect them too?

Now.....for something a little more humbling! I got a note from Bill Hampton yesterday, informing me that Harold Stepp had passed, and his obituary was in the paper. This is all late news, but the family received friend's last night, and his funeral was at 11:00AM this morning. I was saddened by this information. Bill had just introduced me to Harold at one of our GOV gathering's last year, and I really enjoyed hearing him talk about his life and time's. He could talk to you about thing's forever, without getting tired, and most of the time, he had some great stories, as well as some good information too. He was a "font of information" about so many thing's, and I will miss him a lot. He had been coming to Herbie's Place on Thursday night's, and his health had been declining. He was 61! I will miss him!

For one last gasp.............on Saturday October 28, 2006, I could use some help from the Good Ole Volks. Quite a few month's ago, a manager from one of our local Biscuitville restaurant's came up with an idea. She had seen Susan and me come into the restaurant on quite a few occasion's to have breakfast, and had noticed our VW show event t-shirt's. Then she had a brainstorm! She wanted to have a "human interest event" and she wanted "us" to be the interest getter. You know how it is, when we are on one of our GOV cruise's, and it seems like everyone is checking out all of our VW's going down the road! Well......that's what she's counting on! People just seem drawn to our little "people's car's" for whatever reason you can come up with.......nostalgia, history, etc! Anyway, she is having a small VW show, and it's to be called "PAWS & CLAWS CAUSE"! The money generated by this event will benefit the local animal shelter's. There is to be a $5.00 entry fee for us VW owner's, as well as event fee's for the other activities as well. Like the costume contest.....gospel singing contest.....pumpkin decorating contest (this is to be a pumpkin DECORATING contest, not pumpkin carving), as well as face painting, fortune telling, kid's racing, and much more. There will be award plaque's to be given out to the top three money getter's in the VW show, costume contest, gospel singing contest, and pumpkin decorating contest. This is a family oriented event, so bring the kid's to have some fun as we VW people show the people some nice car's. I hope that I can count on you to make this an event to remember, and I would really like to show off our GOV VW Club to the people of Danville, VA.

Finally..........the last VW show of the year is scheduled for Sunday October 22,2006 at Farmington Dragway. There is usually a good size crowd of VW minded people at this event, so make sure that you are there for the fun. Till then..................................

Have a VW day,
Bobby

October 8, 2006 

After checking the oil level and the fan belt tension, we were ready to go. It was a dark and stormy night (sorry Snoopy – actually morning) that the Green Hornet headed towards the Meadows of Dan, VA for a GOV ride. Even though it was misty and gray, the weatherman had promised a 30% chance of rain, which I took to be a 70% chance of sun!

Living far away from Herbie's, Bev and I planned to meet the group at the fire station in the Meadows of Dan for the annual Meadows of Dan Fire Department “Pancake Days.” This was a first for us. We went up Rt. #52 to Mt. Airy and then east on Rt. #103 towards VA. The sun popped out on the mountains ahead of us and cheered us up. So far, we have seen no other VWs on the road. We turned left onto Squirrel Spur Rd. Wow! What a great twisty road! If only the Green Hornet had a little more power going up the mountain. As we climbed, the mist became heavier and heavier. Squirrel Spur Rd. brought us right to the Blue Ridge Parkway. Now it started to really rain. Not good for old VWs! However, the tree colors were still quite beautiful, in a soggy sort of way.

The now- damp Green Hornet swam towards the Meadows of Dan exit and onto Rt. 58. We easily found the fire station with the PANCAKE signs. Next door was the tractor dealer where we were to meet all the other VWs. Hmmmmm! No VWs seen yet! We parked among the giant tractors at about 10:20 and waited in the car for others. Wow, did the Green Hornet look small compared to the other vehicles in the lot.

After waiting a few minutes, we called Leah Parks to find out where the group was. Bad news! James was sick so they weren’t coming. Leah told us that she had gone to Herbie's but no one showed up there, so she went to the Rt. 220 meeting spot and no one was there, either, so she returned home. Now that we were fairly sure of being the only ones to hold up the GOV honor, we headed into the fire station.

There was quite a line - however, at least we were inside, as it was blowing and misting heavily outside. As we waited for our turn, we looked around for anyone we knew. We had been guaranteed by Leah that we would see at least one person we knew – I wonder what the guarantee is good for as we didn’t see a soul we knew.

At last, we are in! The food was delicious. We had pancakes & sausage and more pancakes and more pancakes. We tried, but they were making them faster than we could eat them! On the advice of some GOV members, we did avoid the buckwheat pancakes.

All filled up, we left and drove about ¼ mile to the candy shop. Big mistake for dieters! The candy store would also be a good destination ride for a GOV ride. After inhaling all the wonderful smells we headed south on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Beautiful tree leaves, and sights of the valleys with fog drifting up.

The weather became sunnier as we got closer to Fancy Gap. From there we headed down Rt. 52. As we descended the mountain, it got warmer and the sun came out. There was a pumpkin store that we really had to stop at and buy a Jack-O-Lantern. You know how hard it is to find pumpkins this time of year!

From there, it was a nice ride home, mostly in sunshine. Unfortunately, no other VWS were seen all day, but we had fun. The Green Hornet held up the club’s honor as it paraded around the mountains. Maybe another VW day this fall?

Dave Tosi

September 24, 2006 

Hey Good Ole Volks,

We were up bright and early this morning! Getting the last minute preparations out of the way, before hitting the road, heading to the Rockingham Dragway, in Rockingham, NC for the "North VS South Shootout"! Our morning started out with a cruise to Asheboro, NC, where we were to meet up with some other member's, for a caravan to the event. The weather was cool, with some cloud's, but overall, other than a few low hanging cloud's, there wasn't much to worry about as far as getting any rain! We did run into a drizzle about the time we passed the Brown Summit exit on #29, but that lasted all of 45 second's, and then it was over!

When we got to Asheboro, I took a wrong turn, and got to experience a ride through one of their cemetery's. Even though the VW's were in view just across the street at Biscuitville, and even though the other guy's seen us from where they were at, we had to do a little backtracking to reach our group. This took about 2 minute's! We got us a quick bite to eat at Biscuitville, then joined our little caravan on a cruise towards the track! Our group this time consisted on Gary Glass leading the pack in his red Bug, David Stultz in his burgundy Bug, Tommy Joyce & Bobby Salisbury in his brown Bug, Tommy Davidson was pulling his yellow & white Bus in his trailer, and Annessa was driving Tommy's green Thing, and Derrick Allen was driving Tommy's Notchback, and then us in my blue Squareback. And, let's not forget Luke! He was with us too! Then it was onto that back roads route that Gary likes to travel so well. The route with all of those long needled pine tree's, peach orchard's, and field's of hay bale's! These back roads are made for some serious cruising too! After a nice cruise, we turned into the Rockingham Dragway for the "North VS South Shootout"!

We got registered, and cleaned the trips worth of bug's off our car's, and settled in for what turned out to be a pretty neat show. In addition to our group, we were joined by Phillip Waugh & Janie in his white Oval Bug, Jeremy Coble in his burgundy Bug, Chan Cassell in his blue Bug, and then Ian with his "Rat rod", which had a Ford engine in it this time. Tommy Fletcher and Chad Hicks arrived with a group of their friend's in their Sand rails, and there were quite a few more VW's to show up too.

After a while, when everyone had finished polishing on their VW's, or settled down in a chair with a cold drink, or sat down on the bleacher's to check out the Drag Bug's making some impressive run's, or just to meet some other person and have a conversation about this part, or that addition, or whatever.............here came the rain! The next few minute's were a madhouse dash with all of the people closing up their VW's, and heading for the various shelter's. And then..........monsoon season hit in full force, with the wind and the horizontal rain. Then the sun came back out, along with the drying towel's, and thing's went back to normal again.

After a while longer, when the judging was finished, and we got to repack and close our VW's up, we had one more sprinkle of rain, and then the award's were handed out. The award winner's were..........Phillip Waugh, Tommy Joyce, Jeremy Coble, Gary Glass, Tommy Davidson, David Stultz, Ian, and Bobby McDowell. Then 3 of the 5 "Best Of" trophies went to our member's. Gary for his red Bug, Tommy for his green Thing, and Tommy for his yellow and white Bus. Make sure to congratulate our member's on their award's!

Then, after a stop at the BP station to top off our gas tanks, it was a cruise back home on those same back road's. We didn't run into any problem's, or anymore rain either, and we were glad to get home when we did. After a good meal, and a hot shower, it was an evening for relaxing, and getting ready for the start to a new week.

OK............. the next show is scheduled on the same weekend as our Parkway/Pancake Cruise, so this will definitely be a busy weekend. The next show will be the "Circle Yer Wagens" show at Sevierville, TN on October 7-8 2006, and the Parkway/Pancake Cruise is scheduled for Sunday October 8,2006. I know of quite a few member's that will be attending the show, and quite a few more will be joining us for the cruise, so be sure to participate in at least one of these event's for a great fun filled VW weekend. Then there's the last Farmington show on Sunday October 22,2006, and the "Paws & Claws Cause" Fundraiser in Danville, VA on Saturday October 28, 2006 to finish up the month of October. Till later..................................

Have a VW day,
Bobby

September 17, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,

Ohhh, I do like the month of September! The end of summer, and the beginning of the fall season. Cooler temperature's, the leave's turning on the color's, and ideal weather for us VW driver's to do what we like to do best! Driving our VW's!

OK........we have a few thing's to talk about here, concerning some upcoming event's! This coming Sunday, September 24,2006, we have the "NORTH VS SOUTH SHOOTOUT" in Rockingham, NC at the Rockingham Dragway. This will be their first show of the year, since the last show was rained out. I hope that the GOV will have a good group of us attending this event.

Then......2 week's later we have a couple of event's that will run the same weekend. The "CIRCLE YER WAGENS" event will be held on October 7 & 8, 2006 in Sevierville, TN at the Sevier County Fairground's. Even though we are taking a hiatus from this show this year, I know that this is one of our favorite VW show's. This event actually turn's into a 3 day VW weekend of sort's. It is a 2 day show for Saturday & Sunday, but we have always went out there on a Friday, for an extra day of fun. I know of quite a few GOV member's that have already made plan's to attend this event, and several other's that are considering it. If you would like to know about this event, or thing's like where to stay, and what all's involved in this trip, just ask! I can guarantee, that anyone that attends one of these "CIRCLE YER WAGENS" event's, will want to go back. A 2 day VW show, on the bank of the Little Pigeon River, in a field of cool grass, and in the Smokey Mountains too! It just makes for a really great weekend.....count on it!

And then........we have our annual "GOV Parkway/Pancake Cruise" on Sunday October 8, 2006! The GOV group is planning on leaving Herbie's Place on Sunday, Oct.8, 2006 at 8:00AM, and heading to Meadows Of Dan, VA for a Pancake Breakfast at the Fire Station, and then, we'll be taking us a cruise on the Blue Ridge Parkway, to see how much attention that we can get from our VW's. This is one of our GOV most popular club cruise's, so make sure to attend if you get the chance.

And also.......hot off the presses! The Biscuitville manager in Danville, VA has gave me the rough draft of her flyer for the "PAWS & CLAWS CAUSE"! This is to be a "Fundraiser For The Danville/Pittsylvania County Area Animal Shelter's", to be held on Saturday, October 28, 2006 from 11:00AM - 5:00PM! There will be a Volkswagen Car Show Contest, Costume Contest, Gospel Singing Competition, & a Pumpkin Decorating Contest (decorate pumpkin with anything, without carving it). There's to be fun for all ages with, face painting, fortune teller's, kid's racing, and much more. This is the event that I mentioned before, and I hope that I can count on the member's of Good Ole Volks to attend this event. It doesn't cost anything, and there will be 3 trophies given out to the best money maker's. And....it gives us a chance to show off our GOV VW Club to the people of Danville! Till later.......................

Have a VW day,
Bobby

September 9, 2006 

You missed a great drive in the country, and some excellent Bar B Que. There were six VWs from GoodOleVolks that attended the annual UMC Mission Festival at Brown Summit. And the weather could not have been 'more perfect'. We had a chance to see old steam engines, old tractors, and al the VWs lined up. Make a point to mark this event on your calendar for next year.  Lee

September 6, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,
What a great weekend we had. Dry and cool for a change. I hope that all of you had a wonderful Labor Day weekend. The only thing that could have made our weekend any better, was if we could have been with our GOV group in Manassas, VA for the BUGOUT 60. But, due to circumstances beyond our control, we had to sit this one out. I did get the scoop from Bill Hampton however, and this is how he described the GOV trip to BUGOUT 60.

It started early Saturday morning with our group meeting at the intersection of Hwy.#150 and Hwy.#29 North. The group consisted of Bill in his black '69 Bug, Chan Cassell, with his wife Kim, and daughter Caley, in his blue '69 Bug, Tommy Davidson drove his green '73 Thing, and his friend Junior Faulkner, drove Tommy's yellow '63 Bug, Phillip Waugh & Jeanie were in his white '56 Oval Bug, Stevie, Matt Thompson, and friend were in their silver Corrado, Stephanie & Doug Scott, and Matt & Elizabeth Lindsey were in their new grey Rabbit, and Billy Dye, with his son Daniel were driving a Chevy Van full of part's to sell at the swap meet.

As with our other BUGOUT trip's, there is the "must" stop's that we are familiar with. We stopped at the Golden Corral in Lynchburg for a well deserved breakfast, and we even had a visitor while eating breakfast. We were joined by April Dye, who is Billy Dye's daughter. She pulled up in her orange Thing, "George", to take a little time away from her studies at Liberty University, and to hang around with our GOV group. She wasn't able to go with the group to the BUGOUT, but she was nice enough to come meet with us for awhile.

Then it was onto the Crossroad Mart, just before we got to Charlottesville, to top off our gas tank's, and take a break. And then, it was back on the road, and we didn't stop till we got to Manassas, VA, and checked into the Quality Inn! Craig Walker did join the group a couple hour's later, after taking care of a shifter problem.

We had a wonderful trip, with no mishap's, but we did take a misguided turn around Lynchburg, that cost us a few mile's. No one complained, because the rain was over, the sky was blue, and the temperature was about 65 degree's. Just perfect for a cruise in our VW's.

After settling in and getting relaxed, a group of us went to another of our favorite eating spot's, Logan's Steakhouse, and the food was great as always. Then it was back to the motel for some parking lot conversation's.

We were up early Sunday morning, and waiting at the gate to Old Dominion Speedway at opening time, for BUGOUT 60, and seeing what the swap meet had to offer. The weather was a little overcast, nice and cool, and very pleasant.

As usual, the crowd was a little smaller at the Labor day show, than the Memorial Day show, but a grand time was had by all, and the Good Ole Volks did very well.

Tommy Davidson got 1st Place for his '63 Bug, and 2nd Place for his '73 Thing! Stevie Thompson got 3rd Place for his Corrado! Stephanie Scott got 3rd Place for her grey Rabbit! And Billy Dye had a good day selling his part's at the swap meet. And yes, he was smiling too!

After the award's were given out, we gassed up our VW's, and headed south. We all stopped in Charlottesville, for a good meal at Damon's restaurant, which was right on time. Then most of the group went on back home from there, but Bill, Chan, Kim, and Caley stayed overnight in Charlottesville. They got up the next morning, packed up, and went to a white country store for breakfast, and then headed to the Walton's Museum (from the TV show The Walton's), and had a good time viewing all of the memorabilia that they have there.

Then it was time to head south on Hwy.#29 again towards home. We did run into some rain for awhile, but by the time we got back to North Carolina, the rain had stopped, and the rest of the ride home had nice weather.

They have announced that the BUGOUT show's will be in Manassas for another year, so let's start making plan's to go back next May for the Memorial Day show. I promise that you will make memories and friend's, that will last a lifetime.

As you can tell, we didn't have the crowd that we had at the last show. But, we did have some new member's to go with us this time, and all that you have to do is to ask these people.........will you go to another BUGOUT? I know that they will say.......Yeah, I will!

Make sure to congratulate our GOV member's for their award's! Till later................

Have a VW day,
Bobby

August 27, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,
Well..........we done it up right! We went out and broke our previous record of 67 VW's at a gathering. We had an impressive 92 VW's at our annual Break The Record Night this past Thursday at Herbie's Place. This is quite an accomplishment for us, don't you think! That's 25 more VW's that our record last year. You should pat yourself on the back, for making this the event that it was. Lee put pictures of Thursday night in the 'Activities' section of our website.

I knew that the night was destined to be a memorable one as soon as we left Danville on HWY.29, heading to Herbie's Place, and come up on Pete & Pam Shelton in his 1960 Bug. This is the first time that they have joined us GOV for any activities or event's since going with us to that Parkway Cruise a couple year's back. He has gotten him a new engine for his Bug, and it was good to have him join us again. We just cruised on into Greensboro together and joined the crowd already gathered at Herbie's. The parking lot was alive with all type's of activities going on. Alan & Jan were offering everyone hot dog's with the trimming's........and cookies. We had several other people with snacks and dessert's too! Leah had a great peanut butter cup pie, that I got to sample. We had Steve trying out his new remote controlled Bug while passing the time. And it seemed like everyone was taking picture's of all the great looking VW's that joined our event. Tommy Fletcher brought a group of friend's from Durham, in some of the impressive sand rails that he has built. We seen some of our friend's, that we haven't seen for sometime, and that was great. The only drawback to that, was that we didn't have enough time to talk to everyone like we would have liked to. But........what a great night it was..........just wait till next year!

We have quite a few thing's on the agenda, over the next few week's, that I would like to mention! But first, let's recognize our GOV member's that won award's at the SEVWA Big Bug Shootout at Piedmont Dragway last Sunday. These were the winner's! Bill Hampton.....Jeremy Coble.....Bunk Parrish.....James Parks.....David Reed.....April Dye.....Steve Hunt! Make sure that you congratulate them on their award!

This coming weekend is Labor Day weekend, and what some like to call "the end of summer"! As I walked among our friend's at Herbie's Place Thursday, we talked to quite a few member's that are going to the BUGOUT 60 show in Manassas, VA. We had to disappoint a few of them, by telling them that we wouldn't be making this BUGOUT due to various reason's. I even had one of our member's to tell me that they would pay for our trip if we did go. And as much as I appreciated the gesture, and would have liked to have accepted the offer, I just wouldn't have felt right about that. But, we do have quite a few member's that will be going to this event.......they already have room's reserved......and if you would like to be one of the Good Ole Volks that can say, "Hey", I had the honor and the pleasure to join these GOV member's on one of their BUGOUT trip's", then you have a chance to do it, and that is this coming weekend. We leave on Saturday morning on September 2, 2006, heading for Manassas, VA, and we go to the BUGOUT 60 on Sunday, September 3, 2006. According to the BUGOUT website, they will have the BUGOUT show's through 2007, and that may be the last of them due to the track being sold. I for one, highly recommend these BUGOUT trip's. We had 18 VW's that joined our caravan to BUGOUT 59 for our largest GOV caravan ever, and I can say that we were proud to have been a part of that. You can be part of these great trip's as well. Just join the GOV caravan to the BUGOUT 60, and make yourself some great memories. If you need some info on who to contact, let me know!

The next event on our schedule is the UMC Mission Festival in Brown Summit, NC. We went to this event a couple of years ago with our group, and we really enjoyed it. If you like the family atmosphere, with a lot of good food, live music, nice people, and all kinds of various activities, then I would suggest that you check out this event on Saturday September 9,2006. We will be meeting at Herbie's and traveling to this event.

Finally..........we have the "North VS South Shootout" scheduled for Sunday, September 24,2006 at Rockingham Dragway. Plan's will be made between now and then about going to this show, so stay tuned!

I also want to make you aware of our upcoming "Parkway/Pancake Cruise" in October. This has always been one of our most popular GOV club cruise's for a lot of reason's. We had 17 VW's on last year's cruise, and we looked mighty impressive on the Parkway. We definitely got the attention with all of those VW's cruising up the Parkway, and I think that if we added a few more to our group, it would only look more impressive. Our Parkway/Pancake Cruise is scheduled for Sunday, October 2006. Come on and join us!

For one final item.............There is a woman in Danville, VA that wants to have a VW show as a human interest event. She is the manager of one of our local Biscuitville restaurant's, and she has been wanting to do this for several month's now. She has asked me if I could get some of our Good Ole Volks member's to participate in this for her. All of the proceeds would go to a local charity........it wouldn't cost us anything........and there will be a 1st, 2nd, & 3rd Place trophy given out to the 3 top money getter's. This would be kind of like our previous American Heart Association show's, and the Habitat Restore show's, where the most money gets the biggest award. This event is scheduled for Saturday, October 28,2006 from 11:00AM to 5:00PM, and I hope that I can count on the GOV to join me for this. I would love to show off my Good Ole Volks VW Club to the people of Danville, and show them what can be done with a VW. When I get any additional info, you will get it next! Till later..........

Have a VW day,
Bobby

August 10, 2006 

Our very own Dennis Vierling recently had an article published in a national Volkswagen magazine about his VW named 'Ludwig'. 

Click here to read about his experiences with this vehicle. Thanks Dennis for the great article.

August 7, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,

How have you been enjoying this heat wave that we've been having the last couple of weeks? It has put a damper on a lot of the thing's, or activities that we've been wanting to do, I know! We had actually made plan's to cruise to Herbie's on Thursday, but that was before it turned out to be 96 degrees, and humidity of 96%. We really missed seeing the GOV, but it looks as if we weren't the only one's staying out of the heat last week! We have also lost a few family member's this month too. My mama has lost a brother, and then a sister, in the last 3 week's, and you know what comes from event's like that.........funeral home's, family get together's, and funeral's. And.......all of this being done in this heat! Man, it sure has been hot. Anyway, let's get some of the latest happening's mentioned here!

Gary Glass has his red Bug featured in the current issue of Hot VW's. It's an interesting feature, and I learned a few thing's about him, that I didn't know till this article came out, and he does mention that he really enjoys hanging out with his friend's in the Good Ole Volks VW Club. We were in Sevierville, TN for the CIRCLE YER WAGENS show, when the magazine took the photo's for this feature. It make's for some great conversation to know that 2 of our member's had their VW's featured, 2 other's had their VW's pictured after winning their class, and the Good Ole Volks even got a mention with the "Club Participation Award"............all at the same show, and then featured in a national magazine for all to see! Make sure to congratulate Gary for his accomplishment.

Also in this same current issue of Hot VW's magazine, they have the coverage of the last BUGOUT in Manassas, VA back on Memorial Day weekend. They have Tommy Davidson's Thing as the Thing Class Winner, as well as another picture of Tommy's and April Dye's Thing's, with Tommy, Mickey, and Craig pictured behind their VW's. It also mentions that there were 358 VW show car's, 170 drag car's, and 3700+ spectator's at this event. As you know.....we had some great GOV club participation at this show, and we all came back with some fond memories of being there.

Speaking of Tommy.......he's just back from Georgia, where he went and bought him a 1965 Notchback. I know that his wife, Annessa, has been wanting a Notch for awhile now, and it looks as if she has finally got her one. I'm a firm believer that everyone needs at least 1 Type 3 in their VW stable. (Note: This Notchback will be the car of the Month for September 2006 here on GOV)

As for the VW show's.........the" VW's At The Rock/Bugmania#5" was held this past Sunday at the Rockingham Dragway. On Saturday, I had my Squareback cleaned, packed, and gassed up, for our trip to Rockingham on Sunday. We got ready on Sunday, had our breakfast at Biscuitville, and headed to Rockingham under partly cloudy skies, and cooler temperature's. We knew that there were some member's planning on going to this show. I talked to Tommy, who said that he might go later, and that Craig, Tommy Joyce, and some other's might be there too. But, when we got to Reidsville, the sky got dark, and here came the rain. Now, to me, this is a bad omen, so we turned around and came back home. Yeah.....I really wanted to go to this show, but I hate to clean on a car any more than I have to as well.

I did receive an e-mail from Dave Reid this morning, that he won 1st in the BUG 68& up, Stock/Modified Class, and Betty won 2nd in the Super Beetle Class, as well as the Best Interior Award. Now if any other member's were there, and won their class, but I don't know about them.......let me know, and I'll be sure to post it on BUG BITES. Everyone likes a little recognition, and I want to make sure that you get what you deserve. Congratulation's to Dave and Betty for their win's!

The next VW Show is scheduled at Piedmont Dragway in Greensboro on Sunday August 20, 2006, and I hope that since this is in Greensboro, we can have a great group of GOV member's to show up. Once again, Kathy Jacobs of the SEVWA (South Eastern Volkswagen Association), is asking for volunteer's to help with running this show. She is offering free admission for anyone that may be interested in helping, but she will need to know ahead of time, to make sure that your name gets on the list. She wanted to know if the GOV would like to host this show, due to it being in Greensboro. It's not a bad idea, but she will need some volunteer's. If you're interested in this, you can let me know, and I'll let Kathy know!

There is also the Labor Day weekend's BUGOUT coming the first weekend in September, on September 3, 2006. Will the GOV break our caravan record of 18 VW's this time? Let's see if we can get together & do it! You know that it will be a fun & interesting event! Just ask the member's that have been on one of these event's, and they will tell you quite a bit about our BUGOUT trip's!

Now, onto more important thing's! Thursday, August 24, 2006 is an important date that you need to remember. This is our annual Good Ole Volks / Break The Record Night at Herbie's Place. I know that we had 67 VW's at last year's event, and this was really impressive to see, but.......could we have 70.....or 80......or maybe even reach the 100 mark! This, of course, would be up to the us GOV and our effort's to let it be known, that we are out to break our previous record! So.....let's roll up our sleeve's, and do what we can to make this a memorable event. How many of us has family member's that own VW's? How about neighbor's? How about friend's? What about people that you go to church with.......or people that you work with? How about that person that you met at the grocery store, or the person that you met at the VW show? All of these people add up! I know that we will be there, and we'll be looking for all of our friend's. Till then.........................

Have a VW day,
Bobby

July 17, 2006 

A lot of us are traveling this summer.  And here at GoodOleVolks we welcome all travel reports from our members.  Click here to read a report from club member April on her trip to Ethiopia.  Welcome home April, and thanks for the report.

Lee

July 17, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,
I hope that everyone is enjoying this heat wave that we seem to be having. As I'm sure that some of you have heard me say, "I'll be glad when it warms up!"

Well........once again, I waited till Saturday to clean on my Squareback! And this was after mowing grass, and a few other things, on my "honey do list" of thing's to do! I got my car washed and armoralled, and that was it for Saturday. I was up early on Sunday, to do the vacuuming and window's, and just a little polishing. By then.....Susan had breakfast for us, and I even had time for an extra shower after the cleaning was done. Then, it was a trip to pick up my friend Rodney, and head to Roxboro, NC for the 1st Annual, BUGWILD, at Roxboro Motorsports Dragway. Susan just doesn't like the heat at the show's these day's, and I don't want her to be having any heat strokes, if you know what I mean! So, my friend Rodney said that he'd like to go, and I took him along to check it out.

The ride down to Roxboro was a good one, and we didn't have any problem at all in finding the Dragway. As a matter of fact.......when we stopped at the BP station in Roxboro to fill up on gas, we had some other people ask us if we were going to the VW show. We said yes, and they wanted to follow us to the show, if that was alright. We went right to it, and they thanked us when we got there.

I was a little concerned about this inaugural event when we first arrived. There weren't as many VW's as I would have expected. Especially for an event as close to Greensboro as it was and all! After a few minute's, here came a large crowd of sand rail's. I would say that the sand rail's had the largest number of VW's in any category at the show. This crowd had Chad Hick's, Tommy Fletcher, and a large group of fellow sand rail driver's from Durham, NC. Tommy has his new business, East Coast Sand Rails, going strong these day's, and if any GOV member ever considers getting them one of these sand rails, Tommy has built some really impressive rail's. He builds the 2 seaters as well as the 4 seaters, and he is talking about bringing a group of the guy's to our Break The Record Night on August 24,2006!

After setting up my shelter, and getting my Squareback ready for the judge's, we went out to survey the show. Even though this was another small show, and some of the people were slow to arrive, it ended up being a decent VW show. The guy's that put on the VW Invasion show in Mooresville, NC 2 week's ago, is the same guy's that put on this show, and the way that I understand it, will be putting on the BUGMANIA show in Rockingham, NC on August 6,2006.

The GOV member's that attended this show were Craig Walker, Phillip Parker, Dave & Syndi Reid, Betty & Alfonso, and me. The member's that showed their VW's were Dave, Betty, and me. I was really impressed with the way that Betty has continued to fix and clean up her Super Beetle. She just finished having a guy to rebuild her engine, and says that her VW is running great. Dave's Bug is still as impressive as ever, and he is our current Car Of The Month as well.

Once again, heat was a factor at the event. As well as the humidity! But, there was some wind blowing pretty much all day, and as long as you were sweating, the wind kept us cool. Now.... for the day's excitement! As I'm sitting under my shelter, drinking my ice cold Diet Pepsi, relaxing in my lounge chair, a strong gust of wind actually lifted up the shelter, of the guy behind me, and blew it onto the top of my Squareback. Yeah.....the foot of this thing actually went right across the roof of my car. All that I can say about this, is I'm glad it was a cheap shelter! If it would have been as heavy as my shelter, it would have left a scratch all the way across the roof of my Squareback. I was lucky on this, because it wasn't a scratch anywhere that I could see. After the guy came back to his site, I told him about this happening, and he anchored it to the ground then. But, another strong gust came by, and this time it actually bent the legs of the shelter back under itself. The guy left the show, with that shelter at the trash barrel.

There were some really fast drag car's making some impressive run's. I know that at least one of them was running 114 MPH on the 1/8 mile track. Man, I would love to be driving, or at least riding in that VW, as it made its run down that track. The drag car's were low in attendance as well, but there were some nice one's running.

After it was all over and done with, this was our GOV winner's! Dave won 1st in his class, as well as the Best Interior Award, Betty got 2nd in her class, and I got 1st in my class. Bunk Parrish & his son won award's too. This all made for an entertaining day of VW fun & excitement. Rodney enjoyed his first ever VW event, and said he would like to do it again sometime. I got to see a lot of my other VW friend's that I have met over the year's, but I still would have liked to see more of our GOV member's there.

I did have a few of my friend's, that was telling me that I needed to go with them to the KNOXVILLE EXPO in Knoxville, TN this coming weekend. Yeah, it's a 2 day show in Tennessee, by the same people that put on the CIRCLE YER WAGENS show's in Sevierville, TN, but I had to disappoint them. I do have to work unfortunately. We do have the some other show's coming up pretty soon though! VW'S AT THE ROCK/BUGMANIA#5 at Rockingham Dragstrip will be on Sunday August 6,2006.......BIG BUG SHOOTOUT#2 will be at Piedmont Dragstrip on Sunday August 20,2006 in Greensboro, NC...... and then, there's our GOV BREAK THE RECORD NIGHT on Thursday August 24,2006 at Herbie's Place. Now this is a BIG deal for the Good Ole Volks VW Club. We have consistently broken our previous record for the number of VW's attending this event, and lets make sure that we keep up this trend. Call all of your friend's that drive VW's......talk to the people on the street.......get your friend's to help spread the word, and let's fill up the parking lot's with more than 67 VW's this year. Till then................

Have a VW day,
Bobby

July 4, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,
Well, our July 4th weekend started on Thursday, with our joining of the gathering at Herbie's Place. It was really nice to visit with our friend's again, and to talk about things in general. A lot of the talk was about the "cruise in" in Kannapolis, NC on Saturday. I knew that a few of our GOV member's were talking about attending this event, and we made some plan's to meet Lee & Sheari, after I left work. I was under the impression that there would be some VW's joining this cruise-in, and was anxious to see what might show up.

I washed my Squareback on Saturday morning, and we left for Greensboro as soon as I left work. We met Lee & Sheari at McDonald's, and we were off towards Kannapolis. The ride went well for both of us, and in no time, we were in Kannapolis. I like those 70 MPH speed limit's on I-85. It gave me a chance to let my Squareback run some. I had a heck of a time keeping it at 70. Every since I had it up to 80, while going to one of our "Circle Yer Wagens" shows in Tennessee, it has always liked to run. That's my story anyway, and I'm sticking to it!

We pulled into Kannapolis, and found the downtown area easy enough. Kannapolis, NC is the home of Dale Earnhardt, and they even erected a statue of him in the main square. We had no sooner spotted the statue, than we seen the car's. All shiny and bright........there were all kind's of car's. There were a lot of these car's that brought back fond memories. Chevy's, Ford's, Mercury's, Pontiac's, Oldsmobile's, Pick-ups, Hot Rod's, Motorcycle's, etc.........!
But the VW's were limited! Bill had his red convertible Bug there! Chan had his blue Bug there! I had my Squareback there! There was one other red Bug that I seen, and then there was that red Bug with the V-8 in it. That one sounded pretty good, but it wasn't a VW....if you know what I mean! That was about the extent of it as far as the VW's went! But, we checked things out.......visited with our GOV member's......talked to the owner's of some of those amazing car's......and got us a bite to eat, as the car's continued to arrive. I heard that this cruise-in would last to around 10:00PM, but we left early, because we had a good little ride back home, and I don't like riding in the dark if I don't have to. The ride back home went well too. I'll have to admit...... I was hoping that there would be more VW's at this show, and that more GOV member's would have joined us, but we still enjoyed ourselves, and got to visit another North Carolina city.

As you know, July has arrived, and the 4th is here. I hope that all of you have a great July 4th celebration, and by all means, stay safe at whatever you do! There is the 1st Annual "Bugwild" show coming up on Sunday July 16,2006 at the Roxboro Motorsports Dragway in Roxboro, NC, and I know of several GOV member's that are planning on attending this inaugural event. How about joining us for a day of VW fun. Till then........have a great 4th of July!

Have a VW day,
Bobby

June 26, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,

This weekend turned out to be a first, in a lot of matter's. #1 first......I didn't wax my Squareback before the show! #2 first......Susan didn't go with me to this show! #3 first......I took a buddy of mine to the show! #4 first.....I went to this show while it was raining!

As I told my friend Wesley, as we were heading to Mooresville Dragway, in Mooresville, NC, for the VW Invasion........."Man, I must want to go to this show pretty bad, considering that it's raining, and looking like more rain". As it ended up, it mainly just misted some, and sprinkled some on the way to the show, and that really wasn't enough to worry about. My thinking was......it's cool & overcast, so I'll just polish my VW when I get to the show, and everything will be OK! As soon as we got to the show however, the sun popped out, and with it, came the heat and humidity. This went on for about half of the show, and then the cloud's moved back in, and it was a race to finish the judging before the rain came back. There was a nice breeze blowing all day at the track, and as long as you were in the shade, it wasn't so bad.

This was the first time that I had been to Mooresville, as well as the Mooresville Dragway. This was also a first ever "VW Invasion"! I believe that this was the same group that put on the "BUGMANIA" show in Fayetteville, NC the year before last, and the "VW'S AT THE ROCK" in Rockingham, NC last year. And then there was the "VW INVASION" this year.

According to the map, we were to get off of HWY.#29, onto I-85, then get on HWY.#150 in Salisbury, NC, then on down into Mooresville, NC for the show. I don't know if any of our GOV member's have ever been through these area's, but they have some amazing old building's in these cities, as well as some historical significance. We could have gone a little further down I-85 and took another route to HWY.#150, but we would have missed the trip through these downtown area's which was really neat. I'm glad that I was unsure of which road to take, for that very reason. There is also a lot of farming activity going on around these area's. I don't believe that I have ever seen so much corn being grown before. There were acre's and acre's of it, and just when you thought that this was a corn growing area, we seen a field of just tomatoes. Now, I know that I have never seen a field of tomatoes this large. But, I will say this......if there's anyone that enjoys getting out and driving through some old historical town's and cities, I would definitely recommend checking out these two area's. Yeah.......this trip to a new VW show, was also a pleasant cruise. As a matter of fact, other than getting a little wet, the only negative thing that happened on this trip, was that I lost another beauty band off of my right rear wheel! But.... I have another one that I can put on my wheel, so that's not that big of a deal.

The trip went fine till we got to Mooresville. We just followed the map directions, till we got there, but didn't know the way to the track. Then we met Craig in his white Bug, and Derrick in his blue convertible New Beetle heading in the opposite direction, sooooooo, I just whipped around in the road, and got in behind them. Lo and behold, they knew the way to the track.

This was another small VW show, but there were still more VW's than was at the "NORTHERN CHALLENGE #1" at Radford, VA a couple of weeks back. There were quite a few nice VW's that I hadn't seen before. And guess who the only GOV member was, that was showing their VW?

The one's that I know attended this inaugural event was Craig, Derrick, Stick, Pete, Teresa, Alex, and of course, me!
I took my friend Wesley, to his first ever VW show, and he really liked it. He has a red convertible Rabbit, that he's been cruising around in for about a year now, and he's been involved with VW's for awhile. But, this was his first show, and he say's that he is hooked.

There were some really impressive run's being made on the dragstrip, with a couple of VW's making run's of 110 - 111 MPH on a 1/8 mile strip. I will say this....they were hauling! They looked pretty good doing it too. A couple of them pulled some really good looking wheelie's as well.

Then there was this "brand new" white Golf GTI which arrived after we did, and when he pulled in to the show car area, both Wesley & me were eyeballing this ride. All white.....lowered.....nice ground effect styling kit.....well placed carbon fiber piece's..... this car was amazing. It won the Water Cooled "Best Of Show", as well as, Water Cooled "Best Interior", which was money award's too. The only GOV award winner this time was me, with a 1st place in the Type3/Type4 class. No sooner had the award's been given out, and I got Wesley to take a picture of me with my award, and here came the rain.

It rained on us till we got to Greensboro, and as soon as we got to the other side of Greensboro, it started again, and lasted all the way back to Danville. All & all though, I enjoyed the show, and would consider going to the show again next year. Till next time..........

Have a VW day,
Bobby

June 21, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,
Well.......today is the first day of summer. I hope that everyone is ready for a hot one. It looks like it will cool off some by this weekend.....down to the low 80's, and chance's for thunderstorm's the entire weekend. I don't know if this will affect the VW Invasion in Mooresville, NC this Sunday or not, but at this time, I am planning on attending this show. It will be the first show for these people, and I hope that it turns out well. This is to be one of those money show's. If you win any of the "best of's", you get a cash prize. I noticed, when we were coming back from the Northern Challenge, that I felt a wheel bearing wanting to act up, so I have to take care of that before heading to any show. But, at this time, I am planning on attending this first ever event. Have y'all noticed that we're having quite a few of the "first ever" VW show's this year. This makes for an interesting season to us show goer's. I know that a lot of our member's, that went to the BUGOUT show, seemed to be wore out from that long trip, and I can understand not wanting to take another long trip to a VW show so soon. But this VW Invasion is actually closer to y'all that the Rockingham show's. So...... let's have another caravan to this show. We need about 30-40 member's, and their VW's, to caravan to the show. We could look really impressive, you know!

On another note......I joined a couple of friend's of mine, and went to the TOY SHOW & SUPER FLEA at the Greensboro Coliseum this past Sunday. Man.....you should have seen the VW toy's at this show. I brought back a rather large bag filled with VW goodies. I was a little surprised that I didn't see any GOV member's there. I did have a" VW day" that day. Yeah, I completed a couple of set's at the show, and picked up a few other goodies too. It was a fun day. Friend's and VW's! Does it get any better than that?

Well.....I hope each & everyone of our GOV member's has a great start to summer, and gets the chance to join us at the VW Invasion in Mooresville this Sunday. Providing that it isn't raining, I know that I will be there, and would love to have all of the GOV's to join me! Till then.............

Have a VW day,
Bobby

June 12, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,
My weekend started with me taking my time for a change. On Friday, I washed my Squareback, placed it in the carport, and covered it with a cover for the evening. We had a nice supper, and I was off to visit a friend that I haven't seen for awhile. I had to work half a day at the office on Saturday, but after I got off work, and had lunch, it was back to polishing my Squareback. I noticed that it was a lot more easier, and I got more done, if I split up the workload of cleaning my VW up for a show. After finishing the clean up, I still had time for a good supper, and a cruise in at one of our local restaurant's. The parking lot was filled with all kinds of great looking ride's, but..........then I pulled my VW into the parking lot......moved slowly on through the crowd of driver's, as well as spectator's, till I found me a vacant parking spot close to a buddy of mine. I had no sooner parked, and made it over to my buddy, and here came the rain. Well........the next thing you know, the parking lot started clearing out..........including us! Then, back to the carport for another drying.

Early Sunday morning, we were waken with loud thunder boomer's, and heavy downpour's! I got up a short time later, and noticed that the rain had stopped, but the skies were still overcast, and the street was still wet with standing puddle's. I was beginning to think that another VW show was about to be rained out.

After calling Tommy Davidson, who was already en-route to the show, and said that it wasn't raining on him yet........and then calling Kathy Jacobs, who said that they didn't even know if the show was going to happen, due to the rain, we got return call's from the both of them that the show was a go. As for us......we left Danville with drizzle and wet street's, and headed to Radford, VA for the SEVWA Northern Challenge#1.

The ride to the show wasn't bad at all. I got to see some country that I hadn't seen before, as well as taking a different route than I usually would. There was fog rising from out of the tree's, as we came up those mountain roads, and the whole time we were wondering........is there going to be more rain? It was like the ground had been saturated, and it was just waiting for some more rain. I guess that since we were traveling solo on this trip, we noticed more thing's going on outside as we cruised to the show. That was me anyway! Susan was sitting over in her seat, knitting as usual. Then, we pulled into the entrance of the Motormile Speedway, and I started thinking, "I don't know about this now!" The road going to the track was dirt.........and wet! It turned out not being as bad as it looked, and once you got down to the track, the thing's looked better. When we got to the show, Tommy had saved us a spot next to them, and we just backed up right beside them, and set up our shelter next to theirs.

The Good Ole Volks member's that attended this inaugural event was Tommy, Annessa,& Luke Davidson, with both his Bus & Thing, Dean Underwood with his white convertible Bug, and Susan & me in my blue Squareback.

One thing that we noticed right off, was that there was a low turnout of not only VW's, but also people. As far as the weather went.......it actually turned out in our favor. There was a breeze blowing pretty much all day.......the clouds were in and out, which kept the sun to a minimum, and there were cooler temperature's as well. And, under the shade of our shelter's, in our chair's, with some good people, having some good conversation's, it doesn't get much better than that. There wasn't a lot of vendor's, or many people with stuff at the swap meet either. There were a couple of thing's that I was looking for, and nobody there had them. There was a lot of drag racing going on however, and some of them was making some decent run's. On this show, it was hosted by the Roanoke Valley Volkswagen Club, and quite a few of their member's were there, then there was Ralph "Sonny" Brooks, from our GOV, Kingsport, TN chapter, who was there too. I definitely remember him! He was the fellow from the October 2005 Circle Yer Wagens show that gave us the "club participation award" plaque, which I presented to Lee & Shearin last year.

While there.....Annessa hung up a lot of her tie dyed VW shirt's around the edge's of our shelter's, and Susan called them "wind catcher's", due to the fact that we had such a good breeze blowing all day. Susan & me each got us one of those shirt's too. If you are into some neat VW shirt's, you need to check out these shirt's.

As for the award's........Tommy got 1st in the Bus class, 1st in the Thing Class, and Promoters Choice for his Thing, Dean got 1st in the Convertible Bug class, and I got 1st in the Type 3 class. Sonny Brooks got himself a 1st class award for his Bug too.

After the award's were given out, we went back to the VW's, took down our shelter's, loaded up our VW's, then left the show, stopped at the BP station to fill our gas tank's, said our goodbye's, and then left for our trip back home. Our trip back home went fine, till we hit the outskirts of Danville. There had just been a major downpour, with puddles everywhere, and it was still drizzling some as well, but what else is new, huh! All & all, the show ended up being a decent show. Even though the weather might have discouraged some that would have come, the one's that did make it enjoyed the event. I think that anyone, that wanted to check out this show in the future, would really like this show too!

Alright....the next VW show is going to be the VW Invasion-The Big Show on June 25,2006 at Mooresville Dragway, in Mooresville, NC. I know of some people that are talking about attending this show, and if you're interested in checking this show out, there should be someone you could ask about it. In the meantime.................

Have a VW day,
Bobby

June 3, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,
Well, the weekend has arrived, and it's just next week till the SEVWA has its 1st ever, NORTHERN CHALLENGE#1, in Radford, VA. I have never been to Radford before, but I heard that it's about 2 1/2 hours from Danville. If some of our GOV member's would like to attend this event, I believe that the best route would be to just head on up Hwy.#220 North, and then meet us somewhere up past Martinsville, and we can caravan on to the show. It would be nice to have the turnout that we had for the BUGOUT show, or maybe even more member's, since this would be a shorter trip. When I get some definite info, I will try to get it to you before to late. Till then........

Have a VW day,
Bobby

May 30, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,
Have you ever had one of those weekend's, where thing's just seem to end up different from what you expect? Well, my weekend started out with me washing my car, packing it with the thing's that we always need on one of our road trip's, and letting Susan give me one of her special haircut's. Nice and short! After talking to, and e-mailing quite a few of our member's, I knew that we had several of our regular group that would be going to BUGOUT 59 this weekend. It was suggested that we get us a set of those walkie talkie's with a 10 mile range, so that we could pass them out to the group, to keep up with the various road situation's, and keep our caravan safe, informed, and together. Plan's were made..... and then they changed, and made again.......and then changed again, but after it was all over and done with, we decided to have the rest of our caravan meet us at the Kangaroo station in Danville, as they passed through on the way. As it ended up, we had some member's to arrive later than planned, but when we got everyone together, all that I can say is "WOW"! When I seen the last group of VW's pull into the Kangaroo station, all that I could say was, ''Man, we have got us a convoy!"

This is the one's that I know participated in our caravan to the BUGOUT 59! Billy, April, Daniel, & Matt were pulling their orange Thing, Betty in her black Super Beetle, and her friend Alfonso driving her pickup truck to haul their things, Bill in his black Bug, Alan & Jan in his bronze Baja Bug, Chan in his blue Bug, Steve & Betty in their blue New Beetle, Jeremy in his maroon Bug, Tommy in his green Thing, Mickey in his blue Ghia, Ian & Mitchell in his orange Volksrod, Craig & Elliott in his white Bug, Carl & Tami in their red convertible Bug, Derrick & Yvonne in their blue convertible New Beetle, Jordan in his red Golf, Stevie in his Yellow Bug, Eric in his red Jetta, Darrell in his black Jetta, and Susan & me in my blue Squareback. Now, some of these person's had friend's with them also. So, we had a really good size group of people with us on our caravan this time, but the main thing that was sooooooo impressive, was the number of VW's that we had heading up the road.......18! That is a record number for any caravan that I have ever been in, and if you want to talk about getting some attention from the people that we passed, well......we got plenty of it. Someone suggested that I lead our group on up the road, so off we went, with a slew of VW's behind me. The weather was working out for our trip, with it starting off kind of cool, but warming up right quickly. The first stop of the trip was at the Golden Corral in Lynchburg for an "all you can eat" buffet, and we definitely ate our fill. Ummmmm! With our belly's full, we settled in for a good cruise on up towards Charlottesville. You could tell that the group was feeling anxious too. It didn't too long at all before Steve decided to mosey up to the front to lead us for awhile. And then Mickey & Tommy came to the front to lead us on a spirited run, and I just fell in behind them, and told them to let it roll. That's exactly what they did too. Things were going along great, till we came into a curve, and who was setting there but the State Trooper. And this happened when we were all running 70 MPH. We were on the radio's.......BACK IT DOWN.....BACK IT DOWN! They never did bother us though! We seen the Trooper's out in mass this weekend. We even had one of them cruise up the side of our caravan checking out every VW as he cruised by us. We had a line of VW's so long, that we couldn't see the end of the line as we went through some of the turns. I kind of wish that I had went to the back of the pack, to watch the people's reaction as our group passed them. I will have to say this......... If we continue to increase the number of GOV member's, that go to these show's, like we have had here lately, they're going to have to shut the motel down for our group.

On the way up, Ian had an oil leak that required him to put in 2 "gallons" of oil. He said that he needed to get him a nut to take care of the situation, and I heard that he took care of that, and fixed the oil leak. Other than that, the trip up went great for all of us.

We stopped at out usual watering hole, at the bottom of the hill before we got to Charlottesville, to top off our gas tank's and take a break. Then we headed onto Manassas, and our usual stop at VW Customs & Restorations, but unfortunately, they were closed when we got there. We went on ahead to our motel. The motel that we usually stay at has had a name change. It is no longer a Day's Inn........it's now a Quality Inn. After getting situated in out rooms and all, quite a few of us headed onto the carwash to remove some bug's and road dust, or off to grab a bite to eat, and then we ended up back in the hotel parking lot, carrying on conversations about this or that, meeting other VW owner's, polishing VW's, and we even had a few people that decided to take in a game of bowling at the bowling alley behind our motel. It turned out to be an interesting day.

We all got up fairly early on Sunday morning to get ready for the show at BUGOUT 59. We started off at McDonald's for an early breakfast with Carl & Tami, then visited Wal-Mart for some more water & Diet Pepsi, and checked out the toy section while we were there. Then it was off to one of the east coast largest VW show's. Several of us set up our E-Z UP shelter's, which was a life saver to most of us. Ask the member's how hot it was! Even though we all got a chance to search for that special item or part, as well as check out all of those great looking VW's, we tried to stay in the shade and hydrated all during the show. There were over 330 VW's at the show, and I'm sure that I didn't get to see them all. Tommy got a lot of our group together at their site for a hot dog lunch, which was right on time, as well as tasty. Yeah, all of our group just kind of went from one member's shelter to the other's, and then took short trip's out to check things out. We had discussion's with a lot of our member's during these times, which was great for the friendship's that are made during these trips. Another thing that made this trip special was meeting Betty's friend, Alfonso! This guy is a celebrity in a way. He is kind of like a "roving reporter" for a news station, for a Spanish speaking crowd down in Mexico, and also in the USA. He was actually under our shelter, calling in a report on his cell phone while we were at the show. And.......he done the entire report in Spanish. This is about the time that we had an incident. A young black bird just happened to fly under our shelter, clipped Alfonso on his shoulder, then flew into the side of Jarrett Imports trailer, before falling down to the ground. We also found out.......that before the bird flew over to our shelter, it left a deposit on Mickey's Ghia. Mickey didn't care too much for that! After that, Susan placed a container of water under the trailer for the little bird, and the next thing you know, it was drinking the water and even took a bath in it. Susan has a video of this too! This was so cool!

Anyway....back to the show! After tolerating all of the heat & humidity, it took the judging crew till after 5:30 PM to hand out the award's. That's right......5:30PM! The award winner's were Tommy, Mickey, April, Jeremy, & Betty. Afterwards.......everybody but Carl & Tami, Alan & Jan, Betty & Alfonso, and Susan & me, left for home. We just decided to stay an extra day, so that we could drive home during the daylight hour's. And that evening shower, was a welcomed relief, after that heat all day at the show. Then, we had supper with Carl, Tami, Alan, & Jan at the Shoney's in front of the motel, and then crashed for the night.

Up early on Monday.........breakfast for us at McDonald's......and then, on back down the road for Carl & Tami, Alan & Jan, and us. Betty was going to stop by and visit one of her friend's on the way home, so she didn't ride back with us. It was right hot coming home yesterday too. My left elbow is really sunburned, and I even tried to keep my arm inside my window coming home. Oh well!!!!! The only situation that we had coming home was that I hit a bump in the road, and one of my beauty rims popped off. After retrieving that, the rest of the ride went great. We told the rest of the crew where to get something to eat at Tightsqueeze, since there wouldn't be any other eating places on the road during the rest of their trip home, said our good bye's, and came on home.

We did get a phone call from Tommy, as we had just started down Hwy.#28, to tell us that they had a couple of situation's when they left Sunday night. It seems that Ian's Volksrod blew up going back, and Stevie's Bug was having generator problem's too. That ended up putting them getting home around 3:30AM in the morning, and he had to be at work at 6:00AM. Tommy.....I know that you felt rough buddy! I don't know what happened to Ian's Volksrod at this time though.

All and all though, this turned out to be an amazing trip for our Good Ole Volks. It's been awhile since we had this type of turnout, and I for one, was proud to be a part of it!

Now, I know that we have our next scheduled VW show coming up on June 11,2006 at the Northern Challenge#1, at Motor Mile Dragway, in Radford, VA. There is also the Flight VW #5 scheduled for Sunday, June 4,2006 in Bealeton, VA, which is back up towards Manassas, VA, but I wont be going to that one I know. Then....there is a new VW show starting up in Roxboro, NC. On Sunday, July 16,2006, they will have the 1st Annual BUGWILD. That's a nice change for me! A VW show that isn't but 45 minute's away from Danville. There are already some member's that I've talked to that are planning on cruising up to the show in Radford, VA. I will see about making some plan's with these person's, and then see if we can get some kind of caravan going with all of the interested individual's. Till then.........

Have a VW day,
Bobby

May 21, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,
Well.....it's hot off of the presses. The info that I needed to update you on our GOV caravan to the BUGOUT 59 in Manassas, VA has arrived. We are supposed to meet at the Kangaroo Station on Hwy.29 outside of Danville, VA. at 6:30 AM on Saturday May 27,2006. And then, it's a cruise towards Manassas. Yeah, I realize that the time is a little early, but if you have ever tried to keep a caravan together going through Charlottesville, during the morning rush, then you would understand why. We always look forward to our club trips to the BUGOUT show's. We get to hang out with each other, as well as all kinds of other VW minded person's, and it always makes for an interesting trip. Yeah.....the trips that memories are made of. I look forward to seeing all of you who join us. Till then...........

Have a VW day,
Bobby

May 18, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,
I hope that everyone has been doing good these day's! We have been wanting to get to Herbie's Place for the last 2 weekly gathering's, but the weather hasn't been wanting to cooperate with us. Rain.....rain.....and, more rain. Now, I'm not going to complain about the rain, due to the fact that we need it, but it does make for an inconvenience, when we want to hook up with the member's at our Thursday gathering. Anyway, you haven't been forgotten.

Then, we have our GOV cruise to the BUGOUT 59 this coming Saturday. Now, I know that there are quite a few of us going to this event, but I'm still waiting for the plans from someone. We are always ready to meet the other member's at the Kangaroo Station on HWY.#29N like we always have in the past. It's only a matter of figuring out the time to start. Our trip usually starts with the member's meeting at Herbie's Place to start, and then meeting us as they pass through Danville. I hope that we have a big caravan this trip, and we are looking forward to the trip. As soon as I get the info, I will pass it on to y'all, so pay attention to the website for the next few days. Till then........

Have a VW day,
Bobby

May 7, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,
I got home from work Saturday, and I had my work already planned out........cleaning up my Squareback for the NORTH VS SOUTH SHOOTOUT #15 on Sunday. Yeah, it was a wash, dry, polish, armor all kind of day. But when it was all over and done with, I was ready for the show. I went ahead and loaded the necessary stuff that we would need like the chair's, and the E-Z Up, and the cooler's, etc.......... and all that we would have to do is get in the car and head to Asheboro to meet up with the other member's that were going to caravan to the show.

Well, we got up this morning, got in the car, and headed towards Asheboro. The first thing that we noticed, besides the overcast skies, was the cooler temperature, and I even turned on that wonderful VW heater to take the chill out of the car. We hadn't even gotten to Reidsville before the rain started, and the closer that we got to Greensboro, the harder it rained. We got to the far side of Reidsville, and called Tommy to see what they were planning........only to find out that they were predicting a 90% chance of rain in the area. So, we turned my rained on Squareback around, and headed back to Danville. It's been raining ever since. I did find out that Tommy called the people that were holding the show, and they had cancelled the show due to the rain, and they were not going to reschedule the show. Well, at least we got the chance to have a little cruise to Reidsville and back, and we do need the rain too, so I reckon that we'll just have to start getting excited about our caravan to Manassas, VA, which is scheduled for May 27 & 28, 2006.

I have an update on the Biscuitville show that was scheduled for June 4,2006. The event has been postponed till a later date due to some unforeseen circumstances. I will keep you informed of the changes.

We have always had a good time on our BUG OUT trips with the GOV and this time shouldn't be any different. We always look forward to spending a weekend together, and doing those VW related activities. If there are any other member's that are planning on joining us, and haven't made plan's yet, we will be staying at the Day's Inn on Balls Ford Rd. in Manassas, VA, and the phone # is (703)368-2800. Be sure to mention the Good Ole Volks VW Club to let them know that you are with our group. Till then.......I reckon that we will be seeing y'all this Thursday at Herbie's Place.

Have a VW day,
Bobby

May 3, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,
Just a reminder of the North VS South Shootout show in Rockingham, NC this Sunday May 7,2006. Plan's have been made to meet up with our Asheboro member's in Asheboro at the Biscuitville on #64 like we done last year. It always helps to start off with a good breakfast before a cruise. If you're interested in joining the caravan, here are the direction's. Take #220 South out of Greensboro........it's 20 mile's or so to Asheboro........take #64 east towards Raleigh off of #220.......Biscuitville is on the right about a quarter of a mile after you get on #64. We will be meeting there between 7:00 & 7:30 AM on Sunday, and leaving around 8:00 AM to head to Rockingham. I hope that you can join us. Till then........
Have a VW day,
Bobby

April 29, 2006 

Saturday, April 29th, 2006. What a wonderful day! The sky was Carolina Blue and the air clean and crisp. It was a beautiful day for VW driving. We all met at Billy Bob’s Silver Dollar Diner in Winston-Salem at about 9:30. A hearty and satisfying breakfast was had by all. The waitress was great and kept the coffee cups full. The sound level was fairly high (until the food was served) as people talked excitedly about their VWs and of course, where were we going? Stories were told at the table that were hard to believe: Tammy, did you really do a hostile take-over of the red ‘vert? One of our attendees was even from up near Elkin.

After stuffing our tummies, we mounted up in the bugs (or did we stuff the bugs?) and started the spring cruise. Each car was given a set of emergency directions in case the leader (me) couldn’t keep everyone together. A few lefts and rights later and we were in Lewisville and on the small curvy roads that VWs love. Traveling along we observed all the beautiful azaleas in gorgeous bloom. Many places had flowers blooming that were not even near a garden – just growing wild.

It is always a great sight to look behind the Green Hornet and see the brightly colored line of VWs. From a distance it looks like a bunch of Hot Wheels cars sparkling away. It is great how people take care of these old cars. One of the best things about a caravan is watching people on the side of the road look at us. They see the first VW and it gets their attention. Then a second VW goes by, and they look surprised, and by the time the third VW goes by, they are just standing there with their mouth open looking at us. It is really humorous. We crossed over the Yadkin River (on the bridge, of course) and it was flowing along quickly due to the recent welcome rains. The roads became twisty-err and more hilly. Out here the views are great. Oh, there is Pilot Mountain! On the other side are the foothills! Oh there are some goats! Wow, smell the great country smell (manure) and see the lush green hay fields

All of a sudden, grape vines started to appear along the side of the road. Lots of grape vines! We must be getting close. Sorry! It was the wrong winery! Fooled ya! The lead VW continued on looking for the right winery. Some more lefts and rights and there was the little white sign that led to the parking lot of Rag Apple Lassie Winery. We made it all together! We all parked next to each other and had a view of the bugs and Pilot Mountain in the background.

We started with the wine tasting – 6 different types. I preferred the wonderful dry red wine called Syrah. The fellow behind the bar was also a VW owner. He had a triple white, 1991 Cabriolet, and loved it. It was the happiest wine tasting I ever participated in. We were all laughing and joking while tasting the wine. It was great! We then took the short tour with the same guy giving us the information. They have 30 acres of vineyards and have the capacity of 10,000 cases per season. They have been in business since 2000 and the winery is named after a cow. They also make some wines for other wineries that don’t have their own fermenting machines. After the tour, we moseyed back to the bugs and spent some time socializing in the parking lot. Bev and I then headed home, leading Tammy and Carl and another couple in a Jeep that we had met during the tasting. I took pictures of all the cars and people (except me behind the camera) and will have Lee post them on the website

Bev and I had a fantastic day! We also managed to bring some of the wine home with us some of it for wedding presents. Ya, right! Thanks to all who attended. Keep on fweeming!

Dave Tosi

April 28, 2006 

Hello Good Ole Volks,

I hope that everyone has been enjoying this weird weather that we've been having here lately. Hot one day.....and cold the next. When will it ever end. We had a mild winter, and then a chilly spring????????? If we're to believe all of the hype that's coming across the air wave's, global warming, or the greenhouse affect is the culprit. My advice is for everyone to drive VW's, and the situation should correct itself.

Let's not forget the "Whine About Winter" club cruise this Saturday. It sounds like an interesting cruise, and I wish that we could join all of the GOV for this event, but yours truly has to work! The fun starts at Herbie's Place at 8:30AM on Saturday Apr.29,2006.

We also have the "North vs. South Shootout" in Rockingham, NC next Sunday May 7,2006, as well as the "Circle Yer Wagons" on Sat/Sun May 6-7,2006 in Sevierville, TN. I know of certain GOV member's that are going to one or the other of these VW show's, but it should make for an interesting weekend. I know, that I wish I could attend both of these event's, but that would be kind of hard to do, so I reckon that I'll have to attend the closest to us this time around. Let's see about having another GOV caravan going to Rockingham! The detail's will be coming.

While I'm at it......have y'all been noticing the "Car Of The Month" site lately? The first 4 car's featured this year have been member car's that have been redone into some really clean VW's. All of them sporting, at least, new paintjobs, and most of them more that that. You can tell that our member's are proud of their VW's. And then Lee has came up with the bright idea of having people send in picture's of their VW's themselves, so that he can just pick one of these beauties to put on the website each month. This seems to be working out for all of us.......including myself. You know how it is when you are taking picture's of your own car. You get the chance to take the shot's that show's your car off in the best way! Well...... I recently decided to do this myself. I sent Lee an e-mail that I would be sending him some picture's of my Squareback. All that I had to do was to follow his guideline's, which he has posted on the website. I sent him the information required, with a few picture's that I took of my car myself. Now, all I have to do is wait till he has a month that he has open, and he will put it up as "Car Of The Month". Now, what could be easier that that? I'll admit that I may have to wait a month or two, but, I will get to have my VW featured on our website.

Hey.......am I the only one that likes VW toy's? This is something that I have been doing for quite sometime. There are the standard Matchbox and Hot Wheels version's of our car's, and then there are some new style version's that have come out lately from Maisto and Dub City. These latest one's have some really awesome looks. Maisto "E Rides" has 4 different color Chopped Bug's & 2 different color Notchback's, and Dub City "Old Skool" has 2 different color Bus's and 2 different Bug's. These car's are bad! They are slammed, with the large diameter wheels, suicde door's, and the big stereo's. Just awesome! I guess that I'm just a Toys-R-Us kid! But....I like my VW toy's!

I also have some other interesting news for all of you Good Ole Volks. Has anyone ever had some of those great biscuit's that are made fresh at Biscuitville? Well. it just so happens that I make a trip to Biscuitville quite often for breakfast, and the manager of one of our local restaurant's has taken notice of us and our enthusiasm for all things VW, as well as talked to us about our Good Ole Volks VW Club. Is it a coincidence that she has a sister that actually uses VW Bug's (that's right.....Bug's) as rolling billboards for their exterminating business? Anyway, she is planning a VW show at her Biscuitville as a "human interest event" to raise money for our local Dove's Inc. This is an organization which helps battered and abused women. At this point, the event is scheduled for Sunday June 4,2006, starting at 3:00PM. We are supposed to meet her, and the director of Dove's Inc. this coming Wednesday to see what the plans will be, and she is having her marketing person draw up a flier for this event as I right this. So, I hope to have all of the info soon. But in the meantime, I sure would appreciate your consideration to attend this event. It never hurts to bring the public's awareness to our GOV VW Club, and it gives us another reason for a cruise. I will keep y'all up to date on the info as it comes around. Till later.............

Have a VW day,
Bobby

April 15, 2006 

A special thanks to Kathy Jacobs from SEVWA (K&L Motorsports LLC), for posting all the winners on their website ( www.sevwa.com ). These are the GoodOleVolks show winners from Farmington, Sunday, April 2, 2006.

Best of Show: Tommy Davidson (66 Bus)

Promoters Choice: Tommy Davidson (73 Thing)

Beetle (pre-67): 1st: Bunk Parish 2nd: Bunk Parish

Beetle Modified (pre-67): 2nd: Tommy Joyce 62 Beetle

Beetle Modified (68 & up): 1st: Gary Glass 76 Beetle

Beetle Convertible All years stock: 2nd: Tami Bowman 73 Super Beetle

Type II Stock: