West Wittering VW meet at the beach

Whilst browsing Facebook a few weeks ago I noticed a post from my mate that was a link to a VW show being organised at West Wittering beach on Sunday 17th April. I have visited West Wittering on several occasions and I just love the place. It is a beach that has been deemed an A.N.O.B. (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty) and is located just to the East of Portsmouth in Hampshire on the south coast of England. It has a glorious huge sandy beach that is child friendly and it's suitable for canoes and kayaks, and it is also dog friendly. When the tide goes out the sandy pebble free beach seems to go on forever. The main reason I like West Wittering so much is that you will not find any tacky souvenir shops or noisy arcades. It does have one cafeteria where you can purchase food and drinks but that is it. You visit West Wittering for the safe sandy beach and of course the scenery and surroundings. The post I saw was from Sam Halson who was advertising her 4th annual VW dub meet at the beach....Whoa! hang on! 4th annual event?? why hadn't I heard about this event before?? As soon I had read about the event I decided I was going, even though it's a bit of a trek, as West Wittering is around 115 miles from my hometown of Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire. The event was open to all types and models of Volkswagen so hopefully there would be a good turn out. I re-posted the link about the event on my facebook page but it didn't generate much interest, I'm not sure why??. Having missed the first 3 annual events I wasn't sure what to expect, I thought that maybe there would be 30 - 40 Volkswagen's that turn up which would be great, but how wrong could I be?, I think the count was well over 200 air-cooled and water cooled vehicles all gathered at one location by the beach. You can check out the official West Wittering website by clicking the link here: http://www.westwitteringbeach.co.uk/ 

My 1969 VW microbus parked up at the West
Wittering VW show. I was lucky to find a parking
spot in front of the cafeteria just off the main
 road through the beach site. It did get very warm
during the day down on the South coast, and this
 photo shows my bus is bathed in glorious sun-
shine, but it wasn't so warm when we left.

In fact before I left at 08.30am I had to scrape
the ice off the windows! It is still spring over
here in the U.K. and that means we still have
cold frosty nights, and sometimes days too!

I did re-post the link to this VW meet on my
Facebook page but none of my VW friends
seemed interested in attending so it was just
me and my dog, Boobie. She does like to ride
shotgun in my early bay, and loves to look out 
of the window to see where we're going.

Approaching the Hindhead tunnel on the A3
southbound. The sky looks a gorgeous deep
blue colour with white fluffy clouds. This isn't
any photographic trickery but looking at the
sky through my green top tint windscreen
which enhances the blue sky colour.

As soon as I paid my £6.50 entry fee and started
to drive in I noticed Volkswagen's of all makes
and models parked up, I thought to myself "this is 
going to be a good day"

 This cool blue 1969 fastback was cruising down
the main road next to the beach, this really was
a nice solid looking car. 

The old fastback looked fantastic just slowly
cruising past in the bright spring sunshine. This
'69 looked pretty much stock and was so clean.

A few mates and your buses at the beach on a
sunny Sunday afternoon just chilling out that's
 what life is all about, wouldn't you agree?

This 1975 bay window had the brightest green
paint that almost glowed in the sunshine. This
really was a very clean and straight bus.

Another late bay at West Wittering was this
white over turquoise bus. I did like the standard
ride height on this bus, I know the 'in thing' is to
have your bus lowered but riding high is much 
more practical and far more comfortable.

This baby blue 1971 early bay looked nice
with it's white pop top. These buses are just
made for a stop over at the beach.

The sheer number of Volkswagen's of all
descriptions that attended this great VW
meet at the beach was truly amazing.

These guy's were all from the same club and 
were parked up together, again the variety of 
VW's just in this small group was fantastic.

I did like the look of this 1967 blue beetle. It
looked so clean and that chrome towel rail
bumper against the dark blue paint makes the 
front of this early bug look so cool.

This stunning 1963 split screen was totally
immaculate and like new. Finished is white over 
light green with colour matched steel wheels this 
old bus really stood out.

This really was an amazingly straight and
solid looking split screen that looked right at
home parked up at the beach.

I did like this all white 1970 Westfalia. This bus
looked as though it was an American import
and still had what looked like the original 
Westy interior. The white wall tyres were a
nice authentic touch.

Volkswagen's everywhere at the West Wittering
VW meet by the beach. A lovely looking red 
1968 beetle that looked pretty much stock and
 a bright orange 1978 late bay that gave off an 
orange glow in the spring sunshine.

This 1972 red and white high top late bay stood
out amongst the other camper vans parked up
due to it's high top roof. These high top buses
are so much more practical than tin top buses
and give so much more room inside. and they
also look so cool. The truck mirrors and visor 
were both nice accessories.

The West Wittering site wasn't exclusively for
VW's, it was open to the public as usual but
it was nice to see that virtually every other car 
was a Volkswagen of some description. This 
1971 white over sky blue early bay looked nice 
and clean with it's matching garland in the
windscreen.

This immaculate 1972 squareback was one of
my favourite classic VW's at the meet. It really
was amazingly clean and straight  and looked
like it could has just been driven off the
 production line. 

You can see just how clean and straight this
old '72 really is in this photo. This really was
a very desirable car.

Another all white classic parked up was this
 lovely white 1970 beetle complete with the
period painted steel wheels and roof rack.

Apart from those cool chrome headlight peaks
this old bug looked pretty much original, and in
such a nice condition.

It was fantastic to see so many camper vans 
parked up at the beach on a warm sunny 
Sunday afternoon on the south coast.

The colour of this Herbie themed 1969 beetle
was gorgeous and it suited the car perfectly.
This really was a nice looking bug, I did like
the colour coded banded steel wheels and the
period looking roof rack.

This photo shows off the deepness of the rear
banded wheels. The deck lid rack was another
neat period accessory that looked perfect.

This stunning 1973 late bay looked fantastic
in the glorious spring sunshine. This bus was
another original looking vehicle that was, as
so many were, so clean and straight.

I did like the contrasting green colour of the
pop top canvas and the cool screen visor.

Everywhere I looked I saw lovely old classic
Volkswagen's parked up. Here a late bay and
an early bay are parked up side by side next
to the beach.

This baby blue 1964, 15 window deluxe split 
screen caught my eye with it's full length roof rack
and solid looking body.

This 52 year old bus really did look nice, I do
those corner windows the deluxe buses had it
seems to finish off the look of the bus nicely.

This lovely 1966 split screen was parked up and
looked fantastic. I did like the colour combination
on this lowered splitty.

This really was a nice straight bus as you can
see from this photo.

This lovely light blue early bay was parked up
close to the beach and it's owners were just
chilling out in the sunshine. This really was a
laid back Volkswagen gathering.

There was a vast array of different models of
Volkswagen's on show at West Wittering. They
all looked great parked up together in a lovely
setting with glorious spring weather.

This white T25 doka looked great parked up
amongst all the modern T4 / T5's. I did like the
canvas cover over the rear bed.

Another stock looking bus was this lovely red 
and white 1970 early bay. The stock ride height
and the stock looking body helped to make
this lovely old imported bus stand out. 

Looking in between two beach huts from the
show area at the lovely sandy dog friendly
beach, I will definitely have to take Boobie
dog on the beach later.

Sam Halson and her daughters (I think) went
around the show taking lots of photos of all the
VW's that attended. They took this cool photo
of me and Boobie as we drove into the VW
meet at West Wittering in the sunshine. 

Another photo of Fiona (my microbus) parked
up at this fantastic location again taken by
Sam Halson.

And from the rear.. These are really good
photos of my bus so thanks Sam! In fact the
one of me driving into the venue I have used
for my Facebook profile picture.

Having looked around the show and had a chat
to various owners I decided to take Boobie on
the beach for a good run. This was her first
time at the beach and she loved it. You can
see how nice this beach is, when the tide goes
 out the beach seems to go on forever. 

Boobie dog looks a bit lost on this amazing
beach. This has to be the perfect location for
a VW meet. I have since read on Facebook
that Sam is organising another VW meet at
the same location in September, count me
in Sam!  And well done Sam for organising an 
amazing VW meet in an amazing location.  As I 
mentioned earlier Sam Halson and her daughters
 took lots of photos (about 290 in total !!) of most 
of the Volkswagen's that attended this fantastic 
beach meet. To see all Sam's photos of the 
event copy and paste the link below:
https://www.facebook.com/sam.flynn21/media_set?set=a.10154038775562332.1073741962.697932331&type=3&pnref=story

Volksworld Show 2016 (part 3 of 3)

Welcome to part 3 of 3 of my review of the Volksworld show. In case you missed the first two instalments you can find them to the top left of this page in 'My blog Archive'. The 2016 U.K. Volkswagen show season in the kicked off in style over the weekend of 1st  - 3rd April with the Volksworld Show at Sandown Park Racecourse, in Esher, Surrey KT10 9AJ. This annual show is organised by the Volksworld magazine (www.volksworld.com/) and it attracts entrants and visitors not only from the U.K. but also across the whole of Europe, and the U.S.A. Due to the excellent venue this show boasts two floors of top quality show cars, plus hundreds more quality vehicles on display outside in the show and shine arena and at the club stands, and you will even find plenty of quality Volkswagen's of all descriptions in the public car park. There are numerous traders selling everything Volkswagen, from curtains and cushions to wipers and wheels, and yet a another floor dedicated to an auto jumble, which is a good place to source those hard to find original items. There are numerous catering vendors where you can get some hot food and hot / cold drinks, but beware they are expensive (£5 for a bacon bap !), and of course the show has the very attractive Volksworld girls.! There is also provision available for overnight camping for the hard core campers who want to spend all weekend at the show. Visitor numbers at the show each day run into the thousands and the day visitor car park gets full up very quickly so I decided to get an early start, I had arranged to take some friends of mine, Dave and Angela down to the show so they collect their 'Comic Relief' Beetle that they had on show outside the main entrance, as they have done every year for the past 21 years! The blog continues as I wander around the show halls, and outside admiring all the top quality vehicles.
To see all my other blog entries, go to ‘My Blog Archive’ to the left of the page. Simply click on an arrow for a particular year, then click on an arrow for a particular month, this will then give you a drop down menu for all the blog entries for that month.

This gorgeous cherry red 1973 volksrod was the
first vehicle I saw as I entered the lower show
hall. It has had an 8" roof chop, and the body has
 been shortened by 4". It also has had a 3" tub
chop and features suicide doors.

The standard front beam has been retained with
Porsche centerline wheels with Porsche adaptors
fitted to each corner.

The interior is in keeping with the exterior and
features a smoothed dash, alloy bucket seats
with army tarp cushions and that cool chrome
chain link steering wheel and that massive
gear lever.

This cool looking volksrod gets pushed along
by a 1641cc type 1 engine with twin 40 Empi
carbs. The stopping power is via the Porsche 
944 discs at each corner.

This stunning 1966 green over white split screen
was riding on a Creative Engineering air ride
suspension with Accuair e-level management
system. This show bus had safari screens and
polished alloy door tops.

The interior was also to a very high standard and
featured custom built seating, 32" TV on an
electric lift and overhead storage.

The standard throughout this '66 was amazing,
and the attention to detail was incredible.

The power for this '66 comes via a 2.0 litre
Subaru conversion that is as clean and detailed
 the rest of the bus.

This lovely early beetle looked great slammed
on the deck. This bug had the RAT look going
on and with that front opening screen, and those
BRM wheels this was one cool looking car.

You can see just how low this beetle sits, it
must be on some sort of air ride suspension.
The pop out rear windows and the all red rear
lights complimented the look of this old bug.

This 1967 split screen looked like a nice solid
 bus. It wasn't flash or fancy, it was just a stock
looking bus that for 49 years old looked amazing.

Just a very small selection of the beach buggies
that were on display outside at Volksworld.
There were numerous body styles and various
years of manufacture but they all looked great.

A pair of gorgeous cal-look beetles parked up
in the spring sunshine. You will be hard pushed
to fine more variety of vehicles at any other show.

A pair of RAT look early bay window buses.
A blue 1970 bay and a, white 1971, both buses 
sat so low and both had narrowed front beams.

This pair of original looking pre 58 oval window
 beetles were parked up outside the venue and 
looked great. I do like to see an original looking
Volkswagen and these two fitted the bill perfectly.

The light grey beetle had plenty of 'real' patina
over the whole body. This look is very sought
after here in the U.K., although it's not to every-
ones taste. 

Whether you like the patina look or not, I think
you'll agree these two beetles did look nice.

This lovely sun burnt 1966 13 window deluxe split
screen was one of the vehicles up for sale at the
Volksworld show, This could be yours for the
grand sum of £28,000 ($39.970 approx)

This super low mango and white split screen
bus was just oozing patina from every panel.

This RAT looking split screen looked great
from every angle. The opening rear screen was
a neat addition that suited the bus.  

Just one of the lines of cars on show, there is
always so much variety at the Volksworld show
it doesn't matter what VW you prefer, you'll be
sure to find it here.

Spilt screen and bay window buses parked up
side by side at hte Volksworld show.

This 1973 blue late bay has one of the smoothest
front clips I have ever seen, check out that super
straight reflection!

This 1971 pop top early bay looked great with
it's high ride height and those huge off road
tyres. I do like the syncro look on buses and
this one was no different. 

Beetle's galore, various years and styles but
all as good as the next in it's own right. I did
like the opening front screen on the baby blue
beetle on the left.

If you like your beetle's slammed on the deck
with the RAT look, you'll love this late 1940's
split oval bug. The super narrow front beam
enhanced the low stance of this car. 

You can see just how low this lovely old bug
sits by how far those rear tyres are tucked up
inside the wheel arch. I hope this beetle never
gets painted as I think it looks just right as it is.

Another slammed RAT look vehicle parked up
was this pastel yellow Karmann Ghia circa
1955 - 1959. I did like the narrowed front beam
and the yellow headlights. 

This Karmann has been featured a few times
on my blog and it always looks so nice.  The
whole car sits so low as this photo shows.

An unusual colour combination on this 1971
type 3 'notchback' but it works really well.
These type 3's were made from 1961 - 1973
and came in 3 body styles, the Notchback,
a squareback and a fastback.

This lovely notch looked tough with it's twin
exhausts and the boot spoiler. I'm not sure
what wheels they are but they did suit this
old notchback's overall look.

This type 2 single cab flat bed pick up was
really nice. It virtually sat on the ground so I'm
guessing it had some sort of air ride suspension.
The super narrow front beam, and original
canvas over the bed helped make this bus
stand out. 

The single cab had what looked like the original
paint, which is always nice to see and it also
had some really neat old skool pinstriping
 around the headlights. 

Another old RATTY split screen that just looked
great with it's OG paint and patina. I did like the
narrowed front beam and the overall stance of
this old bus.

There is something about an old split screen
with what looks like original paint that just
right. The contrasting yellow headlights were
a nice addition that were keeping with the look.

Another 1960's split screen single cab pick up
in amazing condition. This SC looked really
solid and straight. I did like the grey over beige
paint and the sign written cab doors. The stock
wheels with painted hubcaps with the VW logo
on them looked just about perfect.

This gorgeous 1968 early bay caught my eye,
It sat perfectly with a slight rack towards the
front and those red painted 5 spoke wheels
looked a perfect choice for this bay window.
I did like the side window configuration of the
quarter light windows on both side windows.

This super low 1972 squareback looked great
in it's two tone paint, and unusually the darker
colour is on top but it works really well. The
narrowed front beam looked great and added
to the overall low look.

Not only was this type 3 super low it was also
super straight. That really is a nice straight
reflection that olive green paint is giving off.

Looking to the right from the main grandstand
at Sandown Park at the outside vehicle display.
The weekend camping area is in the distance
on the other side of the race track.

And looking to the left, the amount of people
that camped out for the whole weekend was
quite impressive considering the overnight
low temperatures at night in early spring.

Whilst wandering around the vehicles parked
up outside I spotted a trio of cars that had the
pure race look. The first was this blue beetle,
and judging by the lack of lights, I'd say this is
probably a track car. 

The Empi air scoops and centerline wheels
can only mean one thing, performance.

I didn't find out about the size of the motor, but
it looked impressive and if it goes as fast as
the car looks, then it'll be pretty quick.  

The second was this light turquoise 1973
Karmann Ghia, named Shiftin Ghia. 

This '73 had a lovely stance that made it look
ready to race anyone, the alloy rear spoiler and 
that stinger looking exhaust helped the look.

Another race themed car was the pumped up
Beetle with a 'Herbie' style paint scheme. The
nose down stance made this old bug look tough.

I didn't find out what cc the motor was but I'm
guessing it's not stock! The rear fenders are
attached with quick release Dzus fasteners
and the big stinger exhaust was so big it didn't
fit into the photo!

This stunning 1971 beetle had been deseamed
and had those crazy suicide doors created. This
bug also had very unique 1939 Ford deluxe head
lights, that looked really good. It also had a 5"
narrowed front beam with 15 x 5" chrome
smoothie wheels. 

More modifications include the 1959 Cadillac
frenched rear lights and the smoothed deck lid
with frenched number plate. The body is painted in
Porsche polar silver and the whole car sits on
air suspension. The motor is a 1600tp with
Kadron carbs Pertonix dizzy.

So that was the third instalment on my review
of the Volksworld show. I hope my blog reviews
have given you an insight into this fantastic
weekend show. There were so many quality
vehicles at the show, I couldn't photograph
them all, having said that I do have plenty
of photos left that I took both inside the show  
and in the public car park to write another
blog so maybe I'll post a bonus review 
sometime in the future. If you haven't been 
to this show, I strongly suggest you go in 
the future as you will not disappointed.