2002 Charity Cruise

When VW Trends' staff showed up early in the morning at SCAT Enterprises, on Saturday October 19, 2002, we weren't quite sure what to expect as far as participation. After all, our annual Charity Cruise--so called because all proceeds go to the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Ana--was supposed to be rather long compared to the '01 happening. This would potentially draw some people away... To our relief, enthusiasts came en masse however and quickly filled SCAT's parking lot to capacity.

The vehicles on hand certainly showed the variety of our hobby, from restored Westfalias to high-performance Bugs. As a matter of fact, we counted close to half a dozen turbocharged beasts, including a yellow mid-11-second Oval that made the trek to the 2002 Las Vegas Bug-In and back. Speaking of long distance, an Austrian couple and their three kids showed up in a '72 camper, shipped from Europe and outfitted with a host of traveling supplies. They have been visiting our continent for a few months now... and what a trip! Southern California was actually one of their many stops, while driving from Canada to Chile. (You can check www.alptoalp.com to find out more about their amazing journey). This crew of five quickly hooked up with a gang of Bay Window camper owners, and you could see them cruising together for the rest of the day.

For a mere $15 ($20 if you weren't pre-registered), participants received a terrific goody-bag before leaving SCAT's premises. When digging inside, they found a T-shirt, a Wahoos Fish Taco lunch-ticket, and much much more. A nice way to start the morning, isn't it? A Poker Run was organized as well, with more prizes to win in the afternoon. By 8am sharp, driving directions in hand, all cruisers finally hit the road. The sun wasn't all that shiny yet, but we knew it was only a matter of time. The first leg of this excursion led everybody to West Coast Metric in Harbor City, one of the world's largest suppliers of vintage Volkswagen rubber products. The hosts of the place, Loren Pearson and his sons, left the doors wide open for all visitors, so they could take a look at the company's private VW museum in particular. It includes an eclectic selection of rides, displayed with great care and taste: Schwimmwagen, Kuebelwagen, '49 Bug, '51 Barn Door, ultra-low mileage Super Beetle, off-road racers, etc. It doesn't get any better than this! After the tour, it was time once again to jump in our VWs, and drive towards Orange County.

This stretch proved to be the longest--close to an hour. Was it too long? Not according to the partakers, who had a ball driving on Pacific Coast Highway! But then again and as stated earlier, some "potential cruisers" may have been intimidated by the distance traveled... We will consequently think about them this year, i.e., the 2003 VW Trends Cruise will be shorter.

In any case, the long caravan of vintage tin definitely impressed more than one onlooker while on its way to Kymco Motorsport. The scenic route included driving over the Vincent Thomas bridge (located next to what used to be Terminal Island Raceway), through downtown Long Beach (they run the Long Beach Grand Prix every year about a block away from our trek), before going through Huntington Beach, a.k.a. Surf City.

Once in Newport Beach, it didn't take long for Kymco's parking lot to be maxed out. Jeff Bancroft, the main person behind the company, displayed a few high-quality cars he has been wrenching on--among else, his own Cal Look Sedan powered by a 2332cc, soon to be featured in VW Trends. More chatting, more browsing, and the cruise was once again on the move! This shorter leg directed drivers and passengers to a concert theater named Galaxy, the final destination of our journey. On site, participants couldn't have been busier, and for most, the first item on the agenda was to feed that hungry stomach. The tacos supplied by Wahoos were muy perfecto, and the same should be said about Archie's ice creams. Galaxy Theatre had its doors open, which meant that everybody was invited to bring in their food and lounge in the club's groovy atmosphere.

Outside the action was frantic, starting with various booths that welcomed the cruisers and spectators alike. Commonwealth VW, a popular dealership from Santa Ana, had a bunch of new cars on exhibit. Further down the same aisle, people could do some shopping or check products from a variety of vendors: Westside Classics, Musty Putters (for the golf fanatics), BUGPACK, WCM, O.C. Weekly, Fish 'n Pox, etc. Kids and grown-ups also had the opportunity to participate in a few frenzied and sometime hilarious games.

To many the highlight of this day was the killer VWTrends raffle. The crowd loved every minute of it (well, especially the numerous winners!), as we definitely went that extra mile to find the best prizes. It would take too long to list here all the goodies we gave away. Let's just mention that a couple of lucky guys went home with a 1600cc engine and a stroker crankshaft, respectively supplied by Fast German Auto and BUGPACK. Not bad, huh? Check the box on Page 61 to find more details about this raffle...

VWTrends' 2002 Charity Cruise gathered 142 Volkswagens of all types--a few of them are featured in detail in this issue--and all participants we talked to said they were amazed by the quality of this event. Yeah, yeah, it sounds like propaganda, but it's true. Hey, the best thing you can do is checking it out yourself this year!

GOODIES, GOODIES, GOODIES!
Our list of raffle prizes seemed endless. Here is a condensed version of the products we gave away...

Fast German Auto: 1600cc engine
BUGPACK: Stroker crankshaft; header and exhaust
Kymco: Torque Meister tool
EMPI: Roof rack
West Coast Metric: A few $20 vouchers at their store
C.B. Performance: Valve covers; sump kit; T-shirts
Blimp: Fluted Euro lenses headlights; H4 headlights, and a bunch of VW accessories
Gene Berg Ent.: Berg shifter
Bug-Me-Video: Set of their tapes; a few T-shirts
Eagle One: Car care buckets
SCAT: Goody bags with T-shirts
Sector 9: Skateboard
Rocky Mountain Motorworks: Car cover; smoked taillight/headlight covers
Patti's Parts Palace: A few $20 gift certificates
Westside Classics: T-shirts
Musty Putter: Custom wood golf putters
Black Fly's: Sun glasses
Krispy Kreme Donuts: Gift certificates
The Real Source: Goody bags

A special thanks goes to our main sponsors: Commonwealth VW, BUGPACK, Chirco, SCAT; as well as our partnering sponsors: Boys & Girls Club of Santa Ana, Wahoo's Fish Taco, Galaxy Theatre, Archie's Ice Cream, O.C. Weekly, and Westside Classics.