A Bay Virgin at Old Bar - As seen in next VWMA
Most Australian’s, whenever they hear the word “Kombi” immediately picture the quintessential Bay Camper. For something that has such strong ties to public perception, I personally have never driven one, let alone experienced the entire Bay camping adventure. So, when I was given the opportunity by Stephen Muller (Kombi Rescue) to make the annual pilgrimage from Sydney to Old Bar in a Bay camper that he had up for sale, I jumped at the chance.
Said Camper was a late 76 model, all original in Martini Olive, with only 155,000 kms on the dial – only 20,000 kms of those in the last 11 years. Fit-out was a Sopru Campmobile, including a never used self supporting annex. It was all in great condition and getting into it really felt like stepping back through a portal to the 70’s. A time where automotive fashion was a green vinyl folding rear seat and technology was a bolt on dash fan. Today, the minimalistic retro features give this old girl lashings of charm and somehow take its passengers away from the fast pace of today’s more stressful existence.
Cruising up the in Bay – Saturday morning
Driving the Bay Camper was a real joy. That said, it was obviously never going to provide any seat of the pants driving thrills but what it did give was a classic old school feel with a big grin factor tossed in. It’s amazing how many people come over to look or just smile when they see a bus like this. Add to this the waves from most other Kombi drivers and you can’t help but be transported back to an age where the world was simpler and more innocent. Happy days.
We stopped in at the obligatory half way point, Heatherbrae Pies at Hexham. Here we ordered pies and coffee, but the long weekend crowd meant there were no seats. Not to worry. The kids were keen to get straight back in the bus, so the table was folded out and here we enjoyed our break. It was here I noticed the weather was starting to turn for the worse.
Old Bar – Saturday Arvo
Arriving in the afternoon the first order of business was to find our camping spot at Lanis and set up the annex. It was great to see so many Kombis setting up camp in one place. Every variety was represented, splittys, bays, T3s, T4s, T5s, even a few Caddys and an enormous Crafter!
Next was the run for a few supplies. Instead of taking the Bay, mate Steve Muller threw me the keys for his raised red Desert Splitty, complete with zebra stripes down the waist line. What a ride that turned out to be. While the current trend is to lower your bus until the steering box scrapes, Steve went the other way, raising it to cope with the rigors of driving over sand dunes in the Simpson Desert.
Turning the key on this striking bus, one could tell that some time had also been spent under the engine lid. Beefy was a word that sprang to mind, but it was nothing compared to the beast unleashed when standing on the LOUD pedal, and oh what a noise. Simply put, it encouraged the driver to throw away common sense and just tear up the bitumen. Even cruising at sub light speed through the main drag at Old Bar, at least four separate groups of pimply faced youths yelled words of encouragement to light em up. 2.2 litres and a pair of massive webers will do that.
Organisers of the Kombi Festival had a few events planned for the Saturday afternoon including a cruise from the beach car park at old Bar, through Taree and culminating in a modest event at Club Old Bar celebrating 60 years of Kombis in Australia. Locals came out in their droves to watch the passing parade of 70+ buses of all varieties.
Saturday night in the Bay was all good, at least for three of us. Wife and I were super comfy in the main “downstairs” bed, with the plan being for kids in the “upstairs”, however, arguing as only a brother and sister can, my daughter opted to sleep across the front seats instead. It bucketed down during the night, but with curtains drawn we enjoyed our cosy home away from home.
The Kombi Festival - Sunday
Arriving at the Kombi festival on Sunday morning we were confronted with row upon row of buses. In fact a new festival record of 218 buses was achieved, and with the weather as bad as it was, this was an impressive result. It’s great to see the event is growing year on year.
The day was great fun as always, helped along by the markets right next door and aerobatic shows by a daredevil pilot overhead. Of course the real highlight was the amazing buses on display. Some personal highlights were the gorgeous Sambas of Andrew Roberts and Michael Ryan, a classic matte red and black Splitty panel and a good array of Bay windows with attitude.
Again our Bay Camper proved its worth during downpours. At one stage we had six people sheltering in the back, all cramped but having a laugh.
Toward the end of the festival, and as part of the 60th celebrations, the number 60 was painted on the field and festival goers were invited to stand on it for an aerial photo opportunity. I’m looking forward to seeing the result. Roll on 2011.
Kombi Festival Results
• Best Split Screen – Samba 1, Andrew Roberts
• The Oldest Kombi – 1956 Ute, Durk Lavers
• Best T3 – Jim and Jewel Sebbeens
• Best bay – 1977, John and Sandy Clark
• Best interior – Greg Porter
• Most travelled – 20,675kms, Phillip and Anne Parish who left Broome in July to get to the festival in time.
• Most novel – “Magic Happens,” David Dalton
• Best presented – 1976 Camper, Lorraine and Andy Keen
• Best business – “Bubbles” Yellowtail Wines, James McFarland
• People’s choice – Samba, Zoe and Michael Ryan
Said Camper was a late 76 model, all original in Martini Olive, with only 155,000 kms on the dial – only 20,000 kms of those in the last 11 years. Fit-out was a Sopru Campmobile, including a never used self supporting annex. It was all in great condition and getting into it really felt like stepping back through a portal to the 70’s. A time where automotive fashion was a green vinyl folding rear seat and technology was a bolt on dash fan. Today, the minimalistic retro features give this old girl lashings of charm and somehow take its passengers away from the fast pace of today’s more stressful existence.
On the family front, my dear wife had experienced camping in a tent at a previous Old Bar Kombi Festival, one where the weather was horrid. She vowed she would never return. However, this time the retro allure of the Bay Camper was sufficient for her to give it another chance. So after packing the bus with bags, food, wife and kids (x2), we set off on our weekend adventure.
Cruising up the in Bay – Saturday morning
Driving the Bay Camper was a real joy. That said, it was obviously never going to provide any seat of the pants driving thrills but what it did give was a classic old school feel with a big grin factor tossed in. It’s amazing how many people come over to look or just smile when they see a bus like this. Add to this the waves from most other Kombi drivers and you can’t help but be transported back to an age where the world was simpler and more innocent. Happy days.
We stopped in at the obligatory half way point, Heatherbrae Pies at Hexham. Here we ordered pies and coffee, but the long weekend crowd meant there were no seats. Not to worry. The kids were keen to get straight back in the bus, so the table was folded out and here we enjoyed our break. It was here I noticed the weather was starting to turn for the worse.
Old Bar – Saturday Arvo
Arriving in the afternoon the first order of business was to find our camping spot at Lanis and set up the annex. It was great to see so many Kombis setting up camp in one place. Every variety was represented, splittys, bays, T3s, T4s, T5s, even a few Caddys and an enormous Crafter!
Next was the run for a few supplies. Instead of taking the Bay, mate Steve Muller threw me the keys for his raised red Desert Splitty, complete with zebra stripes down the waist line. What a ride that turned out to be. While the current trend is to lower your bus until the steering box scrapes, Steve went the other way, raising it to cope with the rigors of driving over sand dunes in the Simpson Desert.
Turning the key on this striking bus, one could tell that some time had also been spent under the engine lid. Beefy was a word that sprang to mind, but it was nothing compared to the beast unleashed when standing on the LOUD pedal, and oh what a noise. Simply put, it encouraged the driver to throw away common sense and just tear up the bitumen. Even cruising at sub light speed through the main drag at Old Bar, at least four separate groups of pimply faced youths yelled words of encouragement to light em up. 2.2 litres and a pair of massive webers will do that.
Organisers of the Kombi Festival had a few events planned for the Saturday afternoon including a cruise from the beach car park at old Bar, through Taree and culminating in a modest event at Club Old Bar celebrating 60 years of Kombis in Australia. Locals came out in their droves to watch the passing parade of 70+ buses of all varieties.
Saturday night in the Bay was all good, at least for three of us. Wife and I were super comfy in the main “downstairs” bed, with the plan being for kids in the “upstairs”, however, arguing as only a brother and sister can, my daughter opted to sleep across the front seats instead. It bucketed down during the night, but with curtains drawn we enjoyed our cosy home away from home.
The Kombi Festival - Sunday
Arriving at the Kombi festival on Sunday morning we were confronted with row upon row of buses. In fact a new festival record of 218 buses was achieved, and with the weather as bad as it was, this was an impressive result. It’s great to see the event is growing year on year.
The day was great fun as always, helped along by the markets right next door and aerobatic shows by a daredevil pilot overhead. Of course the real highlight was the amazing buses on display. Some personal highlights were the gorgeous Sambas of Andrew Roberts and Michael Ryan, a classic matte red and black Splitty panel and a good array of Bay windows with attitude.
Again our Bay Camper proved its worth during downpours. At one stage we had six people sheltering in the back, all cramped but having a laugh.
Toward the end of the festival, and as part of the 60th celebrations, the number 60 was painted on the field and festival goers were invited to stand on it for an aerial photo opportunity. I’m looking forward to seeing the result. Roll on 2011.
Kombi Festival Results
• Best Split Screen – Samba 1, Andrew Roberts
• The Oldest Kombi – 1956 Ute, Durk Lavers
• Best T3 – Jim and Jewel Sebbeens
• Best bay – 1977, John and Sandy Clark
• Best interior – Greg Porter
• Most travelled – 20,675kms, Phillip and Anne Parish who left Broome in July to get to the festival in time.
• Most novel – “Magic Happens,” David Dalton
• Best presented – 1976 Camper, Lorraine and Andy Keen
• Best business – “Bubbles” Yellowtail Wines, James McFarland
• People’s choice – Samba, Zoe and Michael Ryan
Add a Comment
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Comment by Burnes Buggin on November 16, 2010 at 21:09 -
great pics and an entertaining story,makes me miss my bay
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Comment by Gary L on November 15, 2010 at 19:16 -
Great Pics and story Ash glad to see you in a Bay
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Comment by Andy Wood on October 18, 2010 at 22:06 -
Good story, Ash, and some nice pics. I can't see the pic of the missus smiling in the rain though??
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Comment by Syncro91 on October 18, 2010 at 14:16 -
Great Effort - well done - we were there too - glad to hear you survived the wind and rain!
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Comment by Greg Christie on October 17, 2010 at 22:29 -
Great read Ash. Will look out for the next VWMA. In fact I'll reserve a copy at our local newsagent tomorrow!
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Comment by Brad Wells on October 17, 2010 at 22:22 -
Great story Ash. Nice pics. Good read. Thanks.
© 2012 Created by Ash.
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