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Australia's Largest Military vehicle gathering - Corowa, NSW, 12-18th March 2012


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Hi all,

The KVE Website has just been updated and includes the latest information on the 2012 event. Over the past few years we have had a number of people from all over the world. It would be good to hear from anyone who is planning to attend in March 2012.

 

We have just submitted an application to the Corowa Shire and hope to be considered for a Council Grant. We should find out by the end of next week.

 

Take a look at our website: www.corowaswim-in.org and see reports on our past events and newsletters which are put out 3 times per year. More details on the 2012 event will appear in our January 2012 newsletter and if you have anything you would like included please forward prior to the end of December. You may have some Wanted and For sale items or future events you would like promoted. If anyone has a story on a restoration project they have been doing please forward this to us. Richard Farrant is one of our Committee members and he is also our newsletter editor.

 

To be included on our database or to ask any questions please forward me an email to kveinc@optusnet.com.au

 

Each year we have a theme and DVD's are produced by Keith Webb from Image Control. In 2012 our theme is "Year of the 6x6".

 

Future themes are:In 2013 the theme will be Year of theTrailed Vehicle or Equipment and Year of the Armoured Vehicle

In 2014 the themes will be Year of the Fordand Year of WW1

In 2015 the theme with be Year of the Emergency Vehicle and Year of theGeneral Motors.

 

Program of Activities:

Participants commence arriving from the 10th March and the event officially starts on Monday 12th March. At the start of the week there are no planned events. This gives people the opportunity to visit places such as The Army Museum Bandiana and other local places such as wineries, antique shops etc.

 

Wednesday 14thMarch: Visit to the South Corowa School at 10am. Drive out to the Owl’s Eye Rural and Military Museum on the Hopefield-Rand Rd approximately 15 kms from Corowa. BYO lunch. BBQ facilities will be available. In the afternoon we will visit the Lowesdale Public School and come back via the Redland Hills where there is a piggery. If time permits there is a collector in town with Vintage Tractors and Machinery. Fortunately we have 3 KVE members who live near Corowa who are organising thistrip.

Thursday 15th March: Departing at approximately 8.30am from Ball Park Caravan Park. Visit to the “Finley and District Historic Museum and Log Cabin." It is in town on the Newell Highway at the Tocumwal end of town. They have a good collection of all sorts of items and equipment, and have engines, etc, that can be run while we are there. Entrycost $5

Friday 16th March: Departing at approx. 8.30am from Ball Park Caravan Park. Trip is to the Pentarch facility at Wangaratta. We anticipate the visit will be about 1 to 1 ½ hours. Trip one way is approx 1hour with some impromptu detours on the way back via the Boorhamen brewery and the Renaissance Chocolate factory.

 

Friday night Guest speaker, dinner and dress up: The Corowa Jump Shak will organise ameal. It will probably be a spit roast with potatoes, salads and bread for $18per head for adults and $9 per head for children. Desserts will be at an extracost. Participants will be required to contact Tim and Tabitha directly. Phone:0415 704748 or email: timmy_tj@bigpond.net.au

In the evening we are hoping to have John Belfield as our guest speaker at Corowa Airport. Participants are encouraged to dress up in their favourite outfits.

 

Saturday 17th March: Vehicles will line up at Bangerang Parkfrom 7.30am and participate in the parade to the Corowa Airport where there will be a photo shoot and swap meet. In the evening there will be an auction and presentations.

Sunday 18th March: KVE will have a General Meeting at 10am. In the evening there will be a meal at one of the local hotels.

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Thanks Rob. I can't see it ever getting as large as Beltring but it has changed over the years. I was 10 at the first event in 1980 and from only missing 2 years have seen the event make gradual changes. It was always a gathering where people didn't have to pay an entry fee. They just turned up and things were very casual for many years. After Back To the Track in 1995 the number of participants increased and people attended from all states of Australia rather than NSW and Victoria. Since 1996 we have had a program of events so that people know what time we are holding the main activities on Saturday.

 

 

There have been a number of overseas visitors since 1996 and if anyone was planning to attend we would like to be able to welcome them to Australia and make sure they get to see why the Aussies love attending the Swim-In.

 

 

If you take a look at our website there are event reports from 1980 and this shows the development of the gathering. www.corowaswim-in.org

 

 

We encourage people to pre-register so we are given an indication of number of people, vehicles etc. For $15 they get a pack with far more than $15 of value. The funny thing is that people who come along for the first time always say "Why didn't I come along before".

 

 

Richard Farrant has copies of the DVD's related to the gathering since 2002.

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Richard Farrant has copies of the DVD's related to the gathering since 2002.

 

Thanks for the reminder, Jan.

 

I do have copies of Corowa event DVD's, there are six titles here, some running out fast;

Year of the Carrier - 1 copy left

Year of the Blitz - (CMP trucks) 2 copies left

Year of the Studebaker - 3 copies left

Year of the Cycle and Staff Car - (bikes, motorcycles and car, plus other MV's)

Year of the Armoured Car

Year of the Tracked Vehicle

 

Price is £15 each, plus postage, or if more than one is purchased, then post free. Please PM for more info or to order.

 

regards,

Richard

 

KVE Committee Member

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The attached photos are from Year of the Jeep in 2010.

Photo 1: Tim scriven's DUKW stuck on a log with some GPA's coming to the rescue.

Photo 2: SAS Jeep

Photo 3: Tony Elliott's Cab 12 F60 Portee with Clevo his dog

Photo 4: The line up of vehicles attending the event at Corowa Airport. (Close to 266 vehicles on display)

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  • 3 weeks later...

A couple of days prior to Christmas we received notification from the Corowa Shire that our application for funding under the Tourism Events Grant Program was successful. We received everything we asked for so if you are planning to attend the event I encourage you to submit an Entry Form. Pre-registered participants will receive a Swim-In Cap, Coffee Mug, sticker, voucher book (part of the Shire Grant) along with a memento badge, vehicle certificate and calender from KVE.

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  • 2 months later...

Message from Jan Thompson, KVE Secretary ;

 

IMPORTANT INFORMATION RELATING TO THE SWAP MEET AND DRIVE ON SATURDAY.

KVE have received approval to use the Corowa Showgrounds for our photo shoot and swap meet on Saturday. From today people who have swap meet stalls are able to set them up out there.

 

Plan of events for Saturday will be as follows:

7.30am: Vehicles to start arriving at Bangerang Park. 6x6 to enter via Reisling St.

9.00am:Parade leaves and goes up Sanger St at the top roundabout and goes left out towards Mulwala. Turn left at Orford St and enter the Showgrounds.

9.45am: Vehicles are lined up at the Showgrounds and will not be able to leave until 11.30am. Swap Meet Commences

12.30pm: Photos of people associated with forums such as MLU, MVCA & REMLR.

7.30pm: Auction and Presentations. Any left over promotional items such as badges, caps and coffee mugs will be auctioned along with other items. Please donate something to the auction.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Well, two weeks have passed since this year's event at Corowa ended. Everything went well, despite problems from the heavy rains and flooding in the week previous to the event. The venue for the Saturday activities of swapmeet, vehicle display and photoshoot, had to be hurriedly re-located after the Shire Council inspected the ground at the airport and decreed it too soft and with forecast of more rain later in the week. So the organising committee, Khaki Vehicle Enthusiasts (KVE) had to go of in search of another site. We found that the Showground adjacent to the racecourse was ideal and equal in distance from the town.

Vehicles started arriving from Saturday onwards. Due to the serious flooding in NSW, to the North of Corowa, a number of participants were either unable to get to the event or delayed in their arrival. Our theme this year was 6x6 vehicles, which in the main, were Studebaker, GMC, Dodge, with the odd Mack, Kenworth and Kaiser as well. With a total of 167 vehicles of all types in attendance it was a good turnout considering this part of Australia had been declared a national disaster area due to the floods, which would have effected a lot of people. As it happened, we had good weather for the whole week, excepting Friday where it rained heavily, but cleared off later in the day.

There were road runs organised for three days, the first was to a local collector's museum and also included visits to two schools in the area. The second was to the town of Finley, and their museum and school. The final run was on the wet day, to Wangaratta, to visit a company that reconditioned ammunition containers and other related items.

Vehicles arrived from as far afield as Perth, WA, as well as a large contingent from Queensland. The latter included three intrepid motorcyclists, riding an Indian and a couple of WLA Harleys, also a Studebaker owner, who hauled three US6 trucks down on a B-double outfit. Visitors without vehicles came from all States, as well as a number from New Zealand, and myself from the UK.

We have had good feedback from participants and the new location for Saturday's activities at the showground has gone down well. The theme for the 2013 event next March is the Year of the Trailed Equipment, which can include artillery as well as trailers, and Year of the Armoured Vehicle. I have been attending Corowa since 1996 and this was my sixth visit there, in February last year I was invited onto the KVE committee, then in August, took over the Newsletter editors post as well, so have become heavily involved in the event. Corowa is not so much a public show, more a gathering of enthusiasts and their vehicles, and as such is a really friendly and family orientated event, in the evenings, groups meet for dinner at local resturaunts and hotels, making it a social occasion.

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Edited by Richard Farrant
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Richard,

 

Is that Johny B in the Wardle ? Did he catch up with you at W&P

 

Rob.....................rnixartillery

 

Hi Rob,

It sure is John. I did meet up with him at W&P and had dinner with him one night at Corowa. The wrecker is in fact a Kenworth, he was quite emphatic that a lot of people refer to them all as WLF without checking the chassis numbers!!

regards, Richard

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