DER KLEINER PANZERS

The So-Cal VW Car Club that has defined "Cal-Look" since 1965

DER KLEINER PANZERS - The So-Cal VW Car Club that has defined "Cal-Look" since 1965

An Honorable New Member

It’s not often that we induct an honorable new member into the ranks of DKP.  As a matter of fact, I can only recall two such members… Gene Berg and Darrell Vittone.  Now there is a third such member; Dean Kirsten.  Deano has been a fixture in the VW scene for as long as I can remember and has supported us all through his involvement at Hot VW’s Magazine.  With the completion of his fourteen year project ’67 sedan, we welcome him.  CHEERS!!IMG_0774

It Really Was A CLASSIC!

Can’t recall a better (or bigger) event… there was something on the lot for every taste!  This year’s Classic was simply AMAZING!  The cars on display from Buddy Hale and Dave “Pip” Pipoli were WAY over the top!  Great seeing old friends from the past… Mike Martinez (DKP II) even dropped by the DKP compound for a chat.  It was all over way too quick but the memories will last!IMG_0466 IMG_0510 IMG_0537 IMG_0540 IMG_0545 IMG_0567 IMG_0568 IMG_0576 IMG_0602 IMG_0607 IMG_0615 IMG_0627 IMG_0638 IMG_0651 IMG_0654 IMG_0661 IMG_0662 IMG_0673 IMG_0678 IMG_0684 IMG_0695 IMG_0698 IMG_0707 IMG_0708 IMG_0719 IMG_0723 IMG_0733 IMG_0743 IMG_0800

June Meeting

Here are a few pics from yesterday’s meeting at the park.  Loads to talk over about the up-coming Classic weekend… most importantly, what ARE the dining arrangements for Sunday??;-)  Some good news is that our Friday Nick’s Cruise has expanded into the neighboring Mexican restaurant parking lot and that we finally rented some portable restrooms… who’d a thunk it??!!IMG_0121 IMG_0123 IMG_0125 IMG_0127 IMG_0128 IMG_0129 IMG_0130 IMG_0135 IMG_0137 IMG_0142 IMG_0143 IMG_0148 IMG_0149

BUG IN 38!! Friday at Nick’s

Here’s a few pics from last night’s event.  The turn-out was small but we all had  a good time.  We are happy to welcome Robert Kong and his beautiful silver Karmann Ghia to our club roster…  Scott’s got some company now!  It was nice to see “old” members Doug Haydon and Sergio Rampone along with a host of other friends.  Thanks to all who attended!IMG_9522 IMG_9523 IMG_9524 IMG_9525 IMG_9528 IMG_9531 IMG_9533 IMG_9536 IMG_9541 IMG_9544 IMG_9546 IMG_9548 IMG_9550 IMG_9553 IMG_9555 IMG_9557 IMG_9558 IMG_9561 IMG_9564

 

 

Won & Done… Done!

We had a great day out at Irwindale with the Won & Done crew filming a couple future episodes. The weather started out windy but ended up perfect for a day and evening of Drag Racing.  A big “Thank You” to the Won & Done crew for inviting us and taking care of us for the day.

Allen Weiss got chosen to go up against a red ’79 Capri (Mustang) with a 351 and some serious slicks from the NMCA racing series. Once the dust settled from Negotiations, Allen gave the V8 a car length and the left lane in exchange for the “move”. You’ll have to wait until it airs to see the outcome. In the meantime, here’s a teaser…

 

Here is a photo recap of the day. There may be more to follow from Carlos, Fabien and Andre in the coming days.

Drag Day, March 2013

We had several club cars attend the 1st Drag Day of 2013. We met at our usual secret hidaway, then caravaned from there to the event. Club Prospect Robert Kong tagged along. Jason was the only Club member racing today, putting the new motor to the test. A great day of swapping, racing and comsumption of greasy foods under beautiful blue California Skies.

Thank you So. Cal. VW Community!!

We want to thank each and every one of you that showed up tonight for our 8th Annual DKP “Santa’s Lil Helper” Cruise in spite of the weather. It was a great turnout for a great cause and you were all very generous with the toys.

Check the Photo Archives for a few pictures from the trusty DKP Phonecam

Here’s a video of everyone leaving Nick’s for the Christmas light cruise…

And another video shot by Carlos:

‘Tis the Season… Mark your calendars, Dec. 2nd.

O.K. Folks, it’s time to make that shopping list for the 8th Annual “DKP Santa’s Lil Helper” Christmas Cruise & Toy Drive.

Here are the details:

DKP’s 8th Santa’s Lil’ Helper Driving Cruise, Fullerton, CA. Der Kleiner Panzers VW Club invites you to a 20-plus-mile cruise through the streets of Orange County. The cruise will start and finish at Nick’s Burgers in Fullerton (1712 W. Orangethorpe Ave.). Please meet at 4:30 p.m.; driving cruise will roll at 5:00 p.m. sharp. All streetable VWs welcome. This is a free event, but please bring an unwrapped toy to be donated to a charity.

WE HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL THERE!! 

Bon Voyage

Bill’s ”Coral Killer” is on it’s way to Japan. It got loaded into a spacious container with just the Lightning Bug and a Custom Motorcycle, no double stacking on this trip! As you can see from the photo’s, The real BRM’s are on with a set of sweet cheater slicks and beautifully polished. A couple of shots show Bill in the process of hermetically sealing the wheels in an attempt to keep the sea air away from the Mags.  Scott snuck in the spy cam to get a couple of shots (before his next mission we’ll teach him how to hold it steady). For those of you wishing to attend the 21st YOKOHAMA HOT ROD Custom Show 2012, Advance tickets are on sale for a cool 3300 Yen. Details at http://yokohamahotrodcustomshow.com/en/

Drag Day Report… sort of?

Stephan, Scott and myself showed up early for Drag day at our usual breakfast spot where we were joined by Original Members, Dennis DeMarco and Mike Mahaffey (Mike was sporting his new toy, a late model Ghia) for the cruise to Irwindale. Once at the track, we ran into Bill, Fabien and Russell. Scott Bakken was also spotted peddling parts, rather than racing for a change. Those of us that did show up, witnessed a less than spectacular day of swapping and racing in the late October heat. But as usual, we all had a good time and it was a good excuse to get together, eat, drink and laugh.

Here’s the poor excuse of a photo report,  the first 5 shots are from the Thursday Night Test-N-Tune, the last is a video tease from Sunday:

 

October surprise…

The monthly DKP business meeting conducted from a super secret location was going as planned, on schedule when Hector Bonilla arrived carrying a bag of DKP loot!
In the spirit of showing appreciation for the support and friendship of his DKP brothers during recent hard times, he had these bitchen key chains made up for all the members. A very cool gesture from a very cool dude! Thanks again Hector from all of us!


Here’s a short video of the usual suspects leaving super secret meeting place for the short blast to Nick’s:

Beecher’s BBQ Bash

Hats off and a BIG thank you to Steve Beecher for hosting a nice BBQ yesterday afternoon at his impressive digs.  It’s been a while since the last party at Steve’s house and there were a number of new home improvements to check… most notably the garage addition, a total kitchen rebuild and an annoying wall removal.  We feasted on burgers and hot dogs all washed down with PLENTY of cold beer… then there was those mini chocolate cupcakes with the Reese’s Peanut Butter cups inside… OH MY!!!  As most of us who know Steve best can attest to, he is quite the savvy shopper at all the local swap meets, so there was plenty to check out in the house not to mention that six car garage!  Thanks Steve!!!

Schwimmer Headed to Japan

Bill’s iconic ’59 along with the Schley Bros Lightning Bug are headed to Japan the end of October.  The Moon Eyes 21st Yokohama Hot Rod Custom Show is slated for December 2.  Among the different classes of cars, there will be a  “Spotlight on Air Cooled in Action” that the two cars are being invited to participate in.  Dale Snoke’s awesome ’64 Mercury Comet B/FX gasser is making the trip over as well.  Those who attended Dave Galassi’s shop parties in the past are familiar with the street striping capabilities of Dale’s car!

Sunday SUNDAY!!

Another beautiful Sunday afternoon in SoCal for our club meeting but first a few brews at Sarge’s house.  Haven’t had Ratto around much lately, so it was cool to kick it in the back yard for a while before heading over to Fullerton.  Fabien and Kiki, Jason, and Don joined the cruise through Carbon Canyon.  It was cool to see Mike Hunsaker and his white ‘Vert at our meeting… it’s been a long time since the last viewing!

 

Then the Cops Showed Up!

When we rolled into Nick’s last Sunday afternoon, Ben and Steven from the UK were there with their cameras ready.  They were interested in doing a video of some club cars.  After shooting a load of boring stills, Schwimmer, Sadler, Bunch, Fleming and Sarge took to Orangethorpe Ave. for some moving action.  The turn-around point was Roger Crawford’s shop where Fleming excused himself and headed home while the rest turned back to Nick’s.  Bunch was in the lead and made a signal the rest missed.  Pulling up to the traffic light at Euclid, the cops swooped in and pulled the film crew over for weaving through traffic.  Bill and Rick kept them company while Sarge managed to slither away undetected.  Nobody was cited!

New Guys

It’s always cool to add new blood to the club’s line-up.  Usually it’s done one at a time but yesterday was a little different.  First, we’d like to welcome new members Troy Palmer and Andre Hauffen to DKP.  Both have beautiful cars that fit in nicely as well as being great guys to boot.  The big surprise yesterday was seeing both John Lazenby and Ron Fleming (two names from DKP’s storied past) arrive at our monthly meeting in their new Cal Lookers!  A big DKP welcome to all.

Memorial Day Tribute

To all who have fallen while serving our country.  Bob Moore lived around the corner from Sharon (my wife) in the late ’60′s before being drafted and sent off to Viet Nam.  He was a member of DKP for a short time; unfortunately, our paths never crossed.  Those who knew him remember him as a fun loving free spirit.  RIP

The UN-usual suspects at Irwindale tonight…

First up is this blown corvair that went over to tech but came back without numbers. Next up was America’s version of a Double Cab Transporter. As we were leaving we saw this very nicely done Nascar-quasi-tribute car, complete with a full, modern Nascar chassis stretched to fit on this 65 Galaxy.

Put Another Candle on the Birthday Cake!

Had a great time yesterday at Bill’s surprise 50th birthday party!   The best part was that it came as a total surprise to Bill… and that there was a live surf band, great Mexican food and a KEG!!!  PARTY ON!!!

Lightning Strikes Twice!

This is a video snippet I got from Gregg Bunch of Bug-In 37.

This is a test, I need feedback on different browsers

and mobile devices from everyone on 3 things:

  • What browser/device are you viewing from?
  • Did the thumbnail image show up on the main page?
  • Where you able to view the video?

 

If it doesn’t show up, try it from dkpcarclub.com/blog instead, and let me know if that worked. Please just comment on this post, below.

Thanks and hopefully enjoy ;-D

 

Meeting Day

Had a nice time of it at Schwimmer’s digs Sunday.  Lot’s to discuss what with the Classic and all next month.  We watched a couple of club prospects (standing) completely butcher the secret club handshake, then headed to Nick’s for some bench racing, rolling up behind Ed Craig in his fine Ghia on the way.

See you next month for the big one!

HEY… Isn’t this Bug-In Weekend?

Time to head over to Nick’s for some fun this afternoon… see you there! ;-)

Dustin’s Ghia wasn’t quite done…

So he called “Scott’s Rent-A-Bug” and pick out this sweet little number…

Then Sarge and Scott showed up and we headed over to Nick’s to add another DKP Cruise Night to the History Books. This is just a teaser, check the archives for a full report from Sarge.

Last Sunday’s Meeting

WOW… nice weather this weekend!  Enjoyed a cruise with Allen Weiss and Don Brown over to our new secret DKP meeting place high in the pine trees away from the circus of the dining room at  Nick’s.  After discussing world events for an hour and a half, we hit the streets of Fullerton to said dining area for some burgers and tire kicking.  Here’s a few pics of all the excitement….

Allen Wiess wins 1st BRS S/C Race at Pheonix

Our very own Allen Wiess is the current points leader in the new BRS, Bugorama Racing Series, winning on a holeshot in the final round against Sasha Cerny.

For more info on the new series go to: www.bugoramaracingseries.com

 

Lunch Time

Had a nice time of it last week on a beautiful day.  My wife Sharon and I piled into the trusty ’67 for a lunch cruise to Cable Airport in Upland.  Joining us were Jim and Diane Holmes in their beautiful ’66 911.  After lunch, we took a spin east on Baseline Rd. to visit the J Filippi Winery before heading south to the Galleano Winery.  The juice at Galleano was worth the drive and the four of us had a great time hanging out.  Good times!

 

We have a celebrity!!

While I was adding links to the site I came across a interview from 2009 with our very own 2008/2009 PRA Champion, Allen Wiess.

(photos courtesy of Ultimate Aircooled)

The interviewer was Mike Lawless, a Champion in his own right.

Check it out at:  Ultimate Aircooled.com

and check out Allen’s car in the Member’s Rides section

March meet with some meetheads!

Piled into the Schwimmer mini-van with Scott, Daryll, Bill and Mike Herbert and drove to Bakersfield for the day.

NHRA Winternats

Headed out to Pomona today with my grandson and met up with Scott, Tim and Ron Weiss to breath some nitro. The darned camera phone froze up when browsing the vintage hardware.

Frivolity

DKP’s 7th Annual “Santa’s Lil Helper” Cruise

Thanks to everyone who participated in

“DKP’s 7th Annual Santa’s Lil’ Helper Driving Cruise”

We had 120 cars travel 21 miles nearly 2 hours through some great North Orange County neighborhoods full of Holiday Spirit. We had great fun but most importantly, we completely filled a Fullerton PD van full to the top with toys for under-priveledged children

Der Kleiner Panzers wishes everyone Happy Holidays