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The History of Bugnutz 1991-2011, 20 years old! (Picture Heavy)

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#1 ·
BugNutz 1991-2011…yes, we are 20 years old!!!!

A brief history of BugNutz by me John Mills a.k.a. 'runningmonkey'…..Well, as much as I can remember, they were hazy days. ;)

I did start writing this earlier in the year, but with other commitments and all that ( newly married and new sprog), Iv only just managed to get it finished, and Iv asked janski to cast his eyes over it for crossing the t's and dotting the i's. So blame him if the spelling and grammar is terrible.

Back when petrol was circa. 46 pence per litre, a certain Volkswagen club was born.
The year, if I remember correctly was 1991 and a man, by the name of Jason White and his girl friend Melinda had the idea of a Bury based Volkswagen club after visiting another local classic car club in Bolton.

Jason was well known in the Northwest area, because of his distinctive 1967 beetle 'The Cadburys bug'. It was painted in Cadburys purple, lowered at the front, fitted with one piece windows and running Centrelines. It also had a 1641 motor as the power house. The Cadbury bug was a true old school cal look bug. As a school kid at the time, I would see the car cruising around the streets of Bury and it may well have been the car that made me fall in love with Volkswagens and the vw scene.

The Club originally started meeting at the Crofters arms in Bolton where Jason had been going for some years it was an established classic car club as I've already mention but Jason wanted a vw only club and a new venue, so a moved was needed. It was decided that the new club would meet at the Flying Shuttle in Bury. The Flying Shuttle had a large car park which was just perfect for the meets. (Now the mill gate multi-storey car park).In the early days, the club had about 5 founding members, Jason & Melinda plus a handful of others which I apologise for not remembering their names. They use to meet every Thursday at the pub from 8pm onwards. At this point the club still had no name, until a man by the name of Tim Kelly joined the club, and along with another club member came up with the name BugNutz.

I had just passed my driving test and my parents had bought me a mk3 Fiesta for my 17th. I had that car for about 3 months until one day I was driving home from college and saw a 74 Bug parked at the side of the road. I pulled over to talk to the owner and 20 minutes later I had done a straight swop for my fiesta! When I arrived home my dad had a strange look on his face that was somewhere between bemusement and anger. Once he had calmed down from the initial shock, I think he began to like the car. About a week after, I was driving the bug (which was painted in a light blue robin reliant colour with a full Porsche body kit fitted) I was flag over by some nutter in a green beetle who turned out to be the fore mentioned Tim Kelly. For me, Tim was one of the people who really got BugNutz off the ground. He was chief recruiter of the club and bought many new members to the Flying Shuttle including myself.


My first Bug 1974 with Porsche body kit (it was cool....in the day)


Tim Kelly
 
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#64 ·
:D

ta for that john,glad to see my photos were usefull!i will see if i can find some more!i certainly recruited some people guerrila style as you will vouch for,if i saw a vee dub,i would pull them over,and if it was on the driveway,i would knock on the door....no one was safe...lol...and i certainley fixed,my fair share...i can remember lowering andys 1303 at half even in the morning before we drove to santa pod!when i had my 205 gti..and they way i met you was through your dad!i went down the scrappers(your dad)and was after a set of calipers..my son has a set of those he said...deal done and met you!i virtually abducted ben with the baja..do you remember guy and lee from brandleshome road?i rebuilt there pink beetle...
oh the stories i can tell!lol...Tim aka sidewayssam...probably the only person who was always sideways round halford roundabout!!!!
Welcome home my friend ;)
 
#63 ·
ta for that john,glad to see my photos were usefull!i will see if i can find some more!i certainly recruited some people guerrila style as you will vouch for,if i saw a vee dub,i would pull them over,and if it was on the driveway,i would knock on the door....no one was safe...lol...and i certainley fixed,my fair share...i can remember lowering andys 1303 at half even in the morning before we drove to santa pod!when i had my 205 gti..and they way i met you was through your dad!i went down the scrappers(your dad)and was after a set of calipers..my son has a set of those he said...deal done and met you!i virtually abducted ben with the baja..do you remember guy and lee from brandleshome road?i rebuilt there pink beetle...
oh the stories i can tell!lol...Tim aka sidewayssam...probably the only person who was always sideways round halford roundabout!!!!
 
#65 ·
Good to see you on here Tim....;)

Ironically and not surprisingly, it was Tim who introduced me to BugNutz.

Prior to that time I was rolling in this as my college ride along side a Renault 5 Turbo....dont ask!...the year was 1989.



It was in that summer, I was busy tinkering outside the family home with the bug, when 2 young chaps in a beige metro pulled up and asked if I needed a hand.
Needless to say I thought they where joking looking at the state of their ride. Ironically, these 2 lads turned out to be the owners of the said (Raspberry) pink beetle Tim has mentioned.

That pink beetle in question, the owners ended up being some of my best mates i.e. Lee and Guy (Guy being BIG F@ TW@ on here :lol:), I also own all the 1776 engine bits for said beetle minus the carbs.

It was at this time i.e. the birth of BugNutz, that I was halfway through rebuilding the bug and thus never got to a meet with it at the Flying Shuttle/Sparkling Clog, but nevertheless, I turned up a few times and remember some of crew John has mentioned.

This is me doing some of the usual repairs on my bug in the early part of 1990 prior to starting Uni.....





I started Uni in Hull, late Summer of 1990 and still hadn't finished the bug, however, that Xmas saw it MOT'd, taxed and insured the morning of my new term start and this is how we rolled.....





....this is how I rolled in Hull and to and from Manchester, until that fateful day where in Hull, I had an electrical malfunction prior to the Summer break and where the bug stayed until trailered back to Manchester at the end of Summer break.

I subsequently sold the bug onto a mate and Bury lad (Wilky) who redid it, as the bug had sat for a year or so on the lawn at my parents house and started to go again.

Here it is, next to the Batten-burg bus in metallic malina blue......



and in a cruise to see the Volksmaniacs some years ago....



Just my 2p's worth peeps.

j :D
 
#68 ·
A few more...

No idea? Janski ?

1923462_7130286446_3759_n by John Mills, on Flickr

Bugnutz night out at Jillys rock work on Manchester around 2008 ish

1928311_13670815435_7366_n by John Mills, on Flickr

Big Bender weekender 2007 ISH...

1929298_13822280485_2433_n by John Mills, on Flickr

This was from an NDA Sunday meet again around 2007

10344256_10152373555286294_5968476122340765971_o by John Mills, on Flickr

10380169_867710079913199_8702838794474189467_o by John Mills, on Flickr

14711676_10154406156596294_3306143784234881672_o by John Mills, on Flickr
14567585_10154406156526294_5311280836724611529_o by John Mills, on Flickr

This is from the last meet we had at the Trackside Bury 2016

13512212_10154093202491294_2767903373061272456_n by John Mills, on Flickr
 
#69 ·
Well Tim Kelly knocked on my door because I had my pealescent white 1303 on the drive, and got me to meet the rest of you.

Tim was such a likeable enthusiastic bright minded chap. We became really good friends and could natter for hours. Tim went sideways at every opportunity.

I bought the Cadbury's Beetle from Jason then sold it to Holty, Bolton-way. I believe he nackered it trying to put suicide doors on it (and a sunroof?), and don't think it ever went again.

Had such amazing friends in Bugnutz, such a brilliant laugh, one of my happiest times of my life (so far!).

Trystan
 
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