Hi all,

After almost 30 years and a long time laying down, Mid North Coast Dub Club has taken it's last formal breath and is dead according to the rules and regulations of the Department of Fair Trading. The club was formed as Hastings District VW Owners Club Inc in February 1984 and re-named several years ago in an attempt to freshen it up and gain wider appeal. This attempt breathed life into the old girl for a while but peoples lives continued to get busier and the internet became an easier way to find info and parts than club membership.

It's continuing unofficial website http://portvwforum.freeforums.org was a result of the clubs slow demise, a way to keep in touch without attending meetings etc.

Many thanks to the founding members and ongoing committed members over the years, especially those who stepped up and gave their time and experience for the club in recent times, such as the Walsh family, Howard Mitchell and Roweena Meers.

Have a look here: http://portvwforum.freeforums.org/a-little-bit-of-club-history-t277.html (Hastings Happening in the year 1994)

I'm sure the club will live on informally, through it's defacto website and whenever some of us gather with our VW's

Here are some pics from our heydays: (Hastings Happening in the year 2000)





Regards,

Matt.

Sorry to hear, I remember when the Hastings District club was formed, just before the first Valla Park VW show. I think it was Bret Crothers who posted me down the info.

There have been a few other VW clubs to have bitten the dust over the last few years. Demographics change; people's lives become busier with children and grandchildren, and the number of air-cooled VWs left on our roads shrinks every year. In 1984, when HDVWC was formed (and Club Veedub Sydney in 1985), air-cooled VWs were still common on our roads and in the classifieds. Now, I can drive to and from work and not see a single one.

Plus nowadays the younger generation prefer to talk VW on their iPads and smartphones etc, not get out to meetings and runs - let alone put their hand up to organise anything. There are exceptions, but I'm talking generally. For example, at yesterday's giant Cops n Rodders car show in Sydney's Engadine, there were over 500 classic and modified cars, hot rods, racing cars and big rigs. How many VWs? Just THREE - including mine, and the other two Club Veedub members who go to most events. We are lucky to still have over 350 members, but only 10-20 of them regularly support the club by attending meetings, runs and events. The rest are happy to get their magazine once a month, maybe go to the VW Nationals once a year, and usually the club Xmas party where there is free food and beer.

I don't know what the future holds but it seems certain we have to keep engaging with the new generation watercooled VW fans and get them on board.

How many NSW clubs are left?

What happened to;

Central Coast?

Illawarra?

Flat 4?

Southern Highlands?

NSW?

VW Historical Society?

VW Classic and ?

I think Illawarra + Southern Highlands = Canberra chapter of Club Veedub.

Regards,

Matt.

Not quite Matt - Illawarra morphed into Shoalhaven VW Club (still active and going, they organise the excellent Berry show day), while Southern Highlands and the old Canberra club are now the ACT branch of Club VW Sydney. http://www.clubvw.org.au/canberrachapter 

Central Coast - folded some time in the 1990s, not sure exactly. When did Peter Korsch retire?
The old NSW VW Club (formed 1955) was about to fold in 2008 but agreed to be taken over by Club VW Sydney (ie. all six of their members). We took over their CAMS licence and now hold their trademarks etc.
VW Historical Society folded in 2012 but had not been active for many years. I think they had three or four remaining members, and they have joined Club VW Sydney.
Vintage and Classic are still going but don't have regular meetings or a magazine. Their website http://www.netro.com.au/~vwcc/  has not been updated since 2005.
Flat Four is still going too but not nearly as active as they used to be. I miss their excellent cruises, although it looks like they have a night at Blacktown Drive-in THIS SATURDAY. http://www.flatfour.org/ 

While Club VW Sydney is fit and healthy with an excellent website, magazine, book, DVD (thanks Phill) and tool library and a full calendar of events, it's very hard to get people to want to get involved in the running. The current team works well but it's always the same few that do all the work. But it's the same in cricket, football and social clubs.

Is the VW Pen Friends club still going?

Pen Friends ???

Ill write you Dave!
Mitchell

We had a lot of good times with our club.

A number of us are now CVD members, but being quite a way from Sydney, can only attend outings down there occasionally. We mostly attend anything on the Mid North Coast, and often get a group of us at car shows around the area.

This will continue. :-)

I havent been to a Club VW meeting for a while as I now do track racing (running) on Thursdays. But then I only ever got one a year because I'd get back home after midnight.

Illawarra was very strong when I first joined. The drunken nights at LogBridge Farm pre Volksday were awesome. The uninsured paddock bashing would be crazy talk in this day and age.

I think the beginning of the end was Wayne's rotary beetle. I'm not pointing the finger at anyone at all, especially Wayne but it set up a rift in the club as at the time non VW powered cars werent allowed. And it was a bit silly because its not like it was his only car but thats how it went.

I suspect there may have been other personal factional issues that I wasnt privvy to at the time. Anyway long term people who had worked hard on the committee left. And so it went into gradual decline with people only turning up for free food. I did a short stint as president before I got shits with doing a lot of work for no gain and I spat my dummy and left to join Wollongong Sporting Car Club.

I've been on that committee for 20 years and have life membership in a 60 year old club with only 8 or so lifers so I dont take full responsibility for the decline in that time. I dont know how he did it, (and cant remember his name) but the guy who followed me did a fantastic job reviving Volksday and moving it to Bulli.

Sadly it didnt last. It never had a web presence which wouldnt have helped. I wasnt aware of any link to Shoalhaven. Learn something every day.

Yes Chris, same story with every social club / organisation that depends on volunteers. Car clubs, cricket clubs, kids footy clubs, model train clubs, etc. You get a few keen ones that do all the work, and the rest don't. And when the keen ones leave, for whatever reason, the club usually folds - unless you can somehow get a 'critical mass'. Little local VW clubs are great, and work well while the initial enthusiam lasts. But after that - well...

You are more than welcome to come up for a Club VW meeting in Sydney anytime, as is any other VW fan reading this. Especially the Xmas party meeting on Thursday 19th Dec - when there will be free food. And free drink coupons if you bring a wrapped present to the value of $5 or so.

I remember Dave Cameron Rogers was one of the driving forces behind Illawarra, at least in the early years (late '80s, early '90s). Great guy, don't know what happened to him. As for Shoalhaven, I know south coast guys like Dave Becker and Paul Wright went along, plus ex-Sydney people like Bill Moore. Glad that one's going well.

Is the Nambucca VW Club still going?

"" At work I'd be just happy with a pen ""


didnt i gve you 6 pens the other day

Just a correction, Shoalhaven VW came about by Peter Bone. est 2001 from what i remember, no association to Illawarra.

Quote:

Originally posted by Super1302 Just a correction, Shoalhaven VW came about by Peter Bone. est 2001 from what i remember, no association to Illawarra.