GAP YEAH

Dubs at the Gap is branded ‘The perfect summer send off’, and judging by 2022’s turn-out, we can certainly see why…

Words & photos: Zane Lacko Additional photos: Alex Lafferty

Flintstone, Maryland – In 1965, American folk rock band the Byrds released their version of “Turn! Turn! Turn!” in which there’s a purposeful, lyrical lament about seasonality and time marching on. Many car aficionados see the same inevitability through the show season, mornings get colder, the sun’s shadows get longer and longer. But before thoughts turn to the inevitable winter punch lists, tear downs, parts orders and winterizing, there’s one last show circled on the calendar – the perfect bookend to the season – Dubs at the Gap.

The show is the proverbial autumn – an opportunity to reflect and be thankful for the year’s bounty as one last flash of splendour allows participants to indulge in what they love. It’s a relaxed atmosphere, an opportunity for enthusiasts to take a breath after all the shows of summer.

Yet, it still retains the very best elements of the popular season opener and sister show, Dubs at the Lake, encouraging attendees to choose their own weekend adventure nestled in the rural, picturesque hills of Western Maryland and the backdrop of Rocky Gap State Park.

That’s the hook to these shows – a full slate of events all weekend long in destination locations. Attendees can tailor the slate exactly to what they want, and generous windows between events ensure folks have plenty of time to catch up with friends and strike out on their own adventures.

Dubs at the Gap was made up of five total events this year -- a cruise to Locust Post Brewery sponsored by Open Air Imports on Friday evening; a Dubs and Donuts cars-andcoffee style event on Saturday morning; an over-landing excursion presented by B2BFab midday Saturday; Cruising the Gap, a scenic drive around the rolling hills of the area that ended with more food and beverages Saturday evening at 1812 Brewing; and the show itself on Sunday.

The Friday evening event was relaxed, the sun lazily faded down the horizon casting a cinematic scene with a live local band to complement the Volkswagens and Audis that circled the grounds.

Before unwinding with the music, brews and on-site food, participants met about 20 minutes away for a cruise to the venue along a historic national road that went past

Erik Skursha's R32-swapped Corrado featured Recaro A8s and fully stripped interior…

overlooks, up mountainsides and down valleys. Many came and went, the prime parking at the front of the brewery was on constant rotation as different groups cycled through the evening before heading off to their accommodations.

On Saturday morning, attendees gathered at the show field for the Dubs and Donuts event through heavy fog that was starting to burn off. A note about the venue itself, festivities were held at the Rocky Gap State Park amphitheater – a multi-tiered grass area flanked by a lake and an elevated stage served as a central focal point. It was more than a humble parking lot, and when the tiers were filled with vendors and show cars, it was quite the site to see!

Fresh faces entered the venue, and it was a true opportunity to start to understand the diversity of cars, from Volkswagen-based overlanders to the latest and greatest in the Audi RS6 Avant, the lot was filling out quite nicely.

From there, two different options for cruising unfolded – those with a spirit of adventure, off-road tires and increased ride height set out immediately for the overlanding adventure led by B2BFab and some of their shop cars. The group set out for the Green Ridge State Forest to spend about three hours through a scenic off-pavement drive through some rougher terrain and small river crossings. The adventure lasted about four hours and after it was over, they reunited with the rest of the group at 1812 Brewery later in the evening.

Those with more traditional cars hit Cruising the Gap -- a 24-mile circuit cruise that plunges down twisty hills, shoots across harvest-ready farmlands and around a couple area lakes, much to the awe of local fishermen. More than 175 cars joined in, once again emphasizing a diverse offering. A sample lineup included everything from air cooled Volkswagens through brand new Mk8 Golf Rs-- both looking equally at home and photogenic on the paved back roads with leaves scattering about as they drive by.

Cruising the Gap ended at 1812 Brewery with in-house brews and food trucks available for hungry enthusiasts. At 1812, it’s an inclusive, family-run venue. Hops grown on the farm provide the flavour for the beers, and the ample outdoor seating venue is dotted with monolithic grain silos and barns. It’s one of the more picturesque places in Western Maryland, especially when Volkswagens, Porsches and Audis fill the lots and a Grateful Dead cover band starts up to enhance the friendly atmosphere.

The Dubs attendees had the entire upper pavilion to gather, eat, drink and catch up Panning shots always look cool, especially when roads covered with leaves…

Below: Has event organiser Jonathan grown or has his bike shrunk? Answers by email

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Best of Show award went to Johnny Schaitman who owns the stunning Mk3 Jetta VR6 (below). We need to hunt him down for a full feature very soon…

before the show. Friends and families gathered as the sun set and night slowly crept in as people unwound before the show the next day.

Sunday was show day. Roll in opened early to avoid excessive queuing and allowed the early birds to get in and set up to take on the sunny and uncharacteristically warm day – perhaps an homage to the memories of summer. More than 354 participants registered, and all show proceeds go to a local animal shelter.

As lots filled up, and groups of people milled around, the vibe was very laid back – a perfect complement to the Dubs at the Lake show, and the appropriate amount of energy after a long season. The venue saw little picturesque pockets of cars all around the hills.

More than anything though, the genuine connection between people and the collective behaviour is refreshing. It transcends social media, and those in attendance embrace everything good that we’ve all come to love about the Volkswagen scene.

Sponsors of the show included FCP Euro, Lindsay Volkswagen, ECS Tuning, Unitronic, UroTuning, New German Performance, AWE, Redline Motorworks, LiquiMoly, Country Style Mobile, Hengst Filtration, Rowe Motor Oil, Black Fly Industries, Open Air Imports and Steel City Society.

All in all, the show series continues to sustain and grow the community in the Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, Pennsylvania and West Virginia area. Next up is Dubs at the Lake in May 2023 – make plans to join the high-energy season opener! n

Supercharged Vento (Mk3 Jetta) VR6 was feature worthy…

90's themed Mk3 on Abt wheels - still stunning!

REWIND

1YEAR AGO

JANUARY 2022

Wow, what an issue. A Super Bug inspired by the car in Gran Turismo and a Tesla-swapped Mk2 GTI sleeper. If this is the future of car modding then I don’t think we need to worry. Inside, we featured a Stage 2 bagged Audi S3 and Jamie Orr’s Atlas GT concept Enthusiast Build. We also looked at contenders for our Car of the Year competition, checked out HP Tuner’s Mk7 R’s body mods and brought you coverage from L’oe Show and Dubs at the Gap across the water.

5YEARS AGO

JANUARY 2018

How can it be fi ve years since David Lee’s RS3-powered 640bhp Golf R took cover, followed closely by Karl Ellis’s 755bhp all-wheel-drive Mk2 Golf. Carrying on the performance tip we had Darkside’s 437bhp Ibiza TDI, plus a company profi le on the Barnsley-based tuner. PVW regular, Stuart Shellard was next up with his Ocean blue Mk1, plus Peter Krenmayr’s 800bhp B5 RS4 and fi nally Patrice Zend’s bagged Mk4 R32. We also looked at ST Suspension’s uprated chassis options for the Mk7 Golf platform. Finally, we had coverage from Westside’s tenth anniversary show, Tatton Park and the Dub Fiction Spain event.

10 YEARS AGO

JANUARY 2013

It’s a decade since Jay Mac’s revised Mk1 G60 stole cover, while inside we featured a Dutch OEM+ Golf Rallye, smooth German Mk6 on static suspension, Foose-inspired New Beetle, 500bhp MTM Clubsport Audi A1 and asked which was your Car of the Year 2012. In terms of event coverage we had reports from H20 International, Cult Classic, Modifi ed Nationals, Euro Hangar, Players Show and Meguiar’s BBQ.

20 YEARS AGO

JANUARY 2003

Another bonkers car from 20 years ago in this tripleturbo Mk3 VR6 Caddy from Canada. Inside, Franco Parisi returned with his reworked Mk3 TDI and we also featured a Mk2 1.8T from Essex, wide-body New Beetle, a pair of Mk4 Polos built by two brothers, plus Mick Clements made-over his Mk4 1.8T. Finally, there were also highlights from Club VR6’s rolling road day, Waterfest and VW Action.

RCARS by

IN ASSOCIATION WITH Above: Rear beam sent off to JTtech for some magic Below: Trial fi t of carbon roof. Nom! Now gotta fi t it…

HOLY MOLY

It’s been a slightly slower month on Tom’s project this time, but progress has still been made you’ll be pleased to hear.

Is it bad it made us feel quite happy when Tom admitted progress had been a bit slower this month with his Mk2 Golf project? It’s not that we don’t like to see the car progressing or wish for Tom to not reach his debut deadline of Ultimate Dubs in March, but it just makes us feel a little bit inferior seeing the car come on so well each month when our own projects are all currently standing still.

While Tom isn’t exactly getting his hands dirty with the build, he is project managing the whole thing pretty damn well. This month, Matt at Refl ex has fi nally fi nished welding up all the unwanted holes in the engine bay and bulkhead. Yes, all 55 of them (not that he was counting - Ed). Tom did joke that 55 wasn’t quite enough and that he might go and cut a few more holes in the shell, but thankfully he came to his senses and left the thing alone.

In terms of restoration or repairs to the shell, as we said before, Tom managed to source a pretty damn straight car here: “The lower rear panel did have some scabby bits on it so, we (the Royal ‘we’ - All) have trimmed them off completely,” Tom admitted. They decided that basically it no longer needs to be there as the bodykit actually covers that area any way. Let’s call it a weight saving mod, yeah?

While at the bodyshop, Matt then set about building the inner arch extensions for the rear arch to sit on properly, rather than simply fi xing the kit to the car and leaving it unsupported. It’s okay to fi t the kit this That's a wrap. Well, all 55 holes have now been welded up, at least…

RCARS by

SHOUT: www.meguiars.co.uk

way for a regular application, but as Tom intended to use the car on track, in anger, then it made sense to make a more heavy duty job of it in this case. As you can see for the photos, one side is complete and the other is almost there.

Once Matt has fi nished here it will be time to work out how the new carbon roof will be grafted into place, but for now (and your viewing pleasure) Tom had Matt drop the new panel in place. All we can say is, wow! Obviously there’s a sizeable weight saving gain to be made here, but visually, too, it just looks so good. Let’s hope Tom intends to keep the panel bare carbon. We’re sure he does…

Next up the rear beam was sent off to J-Tech for the guys there to work their magic on before it can be reinstalled. We’re presuming this will be blasted, powder coated and a rear disc set-up installed for good measure.

Finally, Tom was pleased to get an update from Kawkes Autoworks to say the trimming

Masking and fi lling and repeat. Holes fi lled for smoother look…

NEXT TIME

Super-size me! Tom's plussized Cobra buckets are sent to Kawkes for trimming

had now started on the dash. Well, the fi lling… “Max has fi lled some of the vents that aren’t needed across the top and also where the choke mount normally sits. This will make it nice and smooth. The pattern for the dash has started to take shape, but more on that next month!” We’ll also have details on the plus sized bucket that Corba have prepared for Tom and sent across to Max for trimming ■

Choke holes also fi lled as we won't be needing that any more, hey, Tom?