The usual events were going on all over LA too many to mention. For me It was just going to be the Blackstar Campout followed by the Classic on Sunday. The first year Ive missed OCTO. This year like every year theres always something interesting added to the mix. Fred' Foosed bus was a big hit all around town. It looks great and Fred loves it. But there was a side project going on this year that had the whole world buzzing around this story. A gal named Korie posted a question on theSamba.com for some help in the form of advice to get her hubby's bus back on the road. Well it took off like wildfire. Next thing you know people everywhere are sending parts, making plans, devising schemes, and all rallying together to fix this bus. Un be nounced to the Hubby, Will plans were being made. The bus located in Ventura was checked out by samba member P_Dub, Paul went out and gave it a once over and then posted on what might need to be done. Next thing you know the great community of folks I am so proud to call my friends start sending parts offering services and basically take over this gals project of fixing the Hubby's bus. Plans are made to get the bus to Blackstar early so all the donated parts can get on the bus and all the qualified VW technicians can do the brakes, tune-up,other mechanical stuff that needs be done. The Really cool Blackstar campout hosts, VTO guys (Vintage Tranpoter Owners)make all the arrangements for the bus to get picked up in Ventura and delivered to Silverado Canyon on thier dime. Now the plan is coming along OK because Korie has other relatives in on it and the bus is at the Mothers house so Hubby won't now its gone. As the days go on more and more people get in on the work. Kristine aka 4EYES donates hand made seat covers and curtains. Bill hepls install them with her. Another guy fixs the radio. ABC (Arizona Bus Club ) offers to take the bus home and do all the body and paint. This little party just keeps growing. So Korie and new friends come up with a plan to present the bus to Hubby. She tells him there is this said mechanic that will look at the bus for him and he'll be in town for the long VW weekend,and they need to meet with him at this bus show OCTO.In the meantime VTO and friends gets the bus driveable in time to get it to Anaheim Stadium for the show.Will unsuspecting of anything going on is wondering around the show just in awe of all the buses there. They do the raffle and call him up over the loud speaker. Start giving him shirts bus club memberships stickers decal etc.. and then the take the car cover off his bus. He has no idea its there or that all these people got together to fix it. What a great surprise. The really cool thing is this still keeps growing. There are people that followed the thread from afar that still want to be part of the saga. This nice young couple in a matter of days acquired an entire community of people to have as friends to last a lifetime. These folks opened their hearts and their pocket books called on their contacts and rallied together for a couple they had never met and knew zero about, unconditionally gave of themselves to help out another. These are my friends and I am proud to know them. So they let Will drive his bus from Angel Stadium back to the campout. He hadn't driven it in something like 10 years I believe. He got to camp for the night in it amongst all his new friends, his wife and new baby left him there to get to know everyone. The bus needs a new motor so Johnny Salazar has offered to take the bus back home and do this for him. My only help in this whole project was driving Will home after the Classic, since he had to let his bus go off with the VTO guys. It was nice to have a passenger in the bus for once and what a great guy. He and his family are very deserving of this special experience again I'm proud to know them. What I love best about this event is it seems to be one of two were it all happens and I all ways meet a new friend or two every year. I got to sit with my good Yuma buddies for a while whom I only get to see a couple times a year. We were up at 5am and headed into the Classic show. I thought it might be a little smaller with gas prices were they are at but it seemed to be alot bigger. We scored our usual SV2S Club spot on the lawn, the only shade in the entire parking lot. I just spent the day sitting by the bus and catching up with everyone till it was time to go. On the way home my phone rang and it was my buddy Mike to let me know I won 3rd place in the show for my bus whoo hoo.Till the next one Peace