Date:         Sun, 9 May 2004 21:27:45 EDT
Reply-To:     TStone8359@AOL.COM
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Tom Stone <TStone8359@AOL.COM>
Subject:      Re: State of the List... State your ages!!!!!!! :<)
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"

Ok, why not?

I am 57.  I have been "into" VWs for as long as I can remember.  The first
one I saw was a '50s bug driven by an ex-Air Force friend of the family and was
brought back from Europe.  They has three kids and would stop by and pick up
the four of us and go for ice cream.  There was always plenty of room.

I joined the Navy in '64 and made two cruises to the Mediterranean.  Saw a
lot of VW bugs and busses throughout Europe.  Decided I had to have one.  Left
active duty in '67 and started college in '68.  VWs were everywhere on campus.
I bought a '66 first (with burned valves, I found out later), sold it, and
bought a '67.  The engine died with the old stuck valve trick.  Being a student
with little money, I decided to rebuild it myself.  Bought a Chilton book for
the pictures and the John Muir book for the directions and went at it.  Where
I lived did not have a garage and the apt. owners were not fond of disabled
vehicles.  I took the front seats out of the bug, put a cement block on either
side of the emergency brake, put the engine on the blocks and proceeded to tear
it down.  That was the starting point for a lifetime of VW mechanical
adventures!  Got it back togther and it ran well.

The '67 was wrecked later but I kept the engine and a few other parts. That
was the start of a lifetime of accumulating spare parts.  I found a '63 bus
that needed an engine and, voila, I was on the road.  I built a bed in the back
and my girl friend and I hit the road.  We traveled up and down the east coast,
through eastern Canada, etc.  The old bus kept going.  Its demise came when I
hit a deer on a cold, dark night, on a country road.  Lost both headlights.
Good thing I had been to the junkyard earlier in the day and had an extra
light bulb!

The bugs bred and produced other bugs.  The busses multiplied as well.  I
have probably had 20-30 split window busses and as many bugs, including a rusty
'51 and a '56 sunroof that I drove 100 miles a day to college.  $5.00 a week
for gas!  The girlfriend and I got married and kids came along.  The demand
shifted to more reliable transportation.  In'78, we bought a brand new (first new
VW) '78 Westy.  We put well over 100K miles on it before we traded it in on an
'83 Westy.  The dealership had both aircooled and watercooled Westys on the
lot that year and we opted for the watercooled.  And with A/C!  We traded again
in '87 but this time for a passenger van.  Not enough room for all of us in
the Westy.

Fast forward a few years.  There have always been a few VWs in the family.
We went through a couple of dozen Rabbits, Jettas and Golfs.  The kids grew up
and left and took the VW habit with them.  All of them have at least one and
one has three.  Old dad has accumulated quite a pile of them to work on in his
spare time.  Present inventory; '57 Porsche Coupe, '63 Sunroof bug, '71 Westy,
''82 Diesel Westy, '80 Pickup - gas, '81 Pickup - diesel, 85 Westy, '87 GL,
'87 Westy Auto., '91 Carat plus a few daily driver Jettas.  Looking for a good
'67 Westy!

I was ready to give up on Vanagons in '96 or so when the '87 developed the
infamous head gasket leak.  I found the V@L list and have been a member ever
since.  I am mostly a lurker but have chimed in a couple of times when I had
something to offer.  Through the list, I have gained enough knowledge to be able
to tackle any problem that my fleet has thrown at me.  I appreciate the
camraderie and the helpfulness of the members.  I also enjoy, from a distance, the
occasional squabbles. I sent Larrry some $$ because for me, he epitomizes the VW
spirit.  Travel widely, help others when they break down, get helped when you
break down,  keep going, never stop, make lots of friends along the way.

We go to as many car shows as we can.  Had the fortune of going to the SV2
show in the San Jose area and the Kelly Park show during a recent business trip
I have had the pleasure of meeting a number of you at the shows. Of the more
(in)famous, I met BenT recently and met Boston Bob at the Manassas, VA show a
few years back.  Have been to local shows in the Chicago area and the
RealSource show in Effingham.  Have been to the Classic, Solvang, etc.  We love the
old VWs the best.

Tom
Illinois