Spotlight On: SX Dub Club

You may recognise the SX Dub Club from our feature back in 2018. Club members came together and fundraised to help replace one of their older members’ campers that was rusty and in need of an overhaul. With the funds raised, the club was able to present a new camper to ‘Grandad’ to keep him dubbing with the club. Stories like this always amaze us, club members going out of their way to help others and keep that friendship bond alive.

Let us introduce you to the SX Dub Club

The SX Dub Club formed in late 2014. As a smaller group from a much bigger club, the group wanted to get back to the roots of what a club was about. Now with around 165 members, this club is continuously growing.

We caught up with Paul Bridger, Club Organiser, to find out more…

Tell us a bit about the club?

We are located in Essex, which is where most of our members are based. The name SX is a take on Essex! We’re primarily a Volkswagen club with numerous different vehicles spanning the many models and years.

We operate on a subscription basis, but that is fairly new to us over the last few months. Subs are £1 a month which hardly breaks the bank and goes towards running costs of the club. We also have an online Facebook group that has around 165 members. Most are active members. We usually have a large group for the shows that we support throughout the year and a great turnout at our monthly meet at The Bull in Brentwood during the summer months.

What is the ethos of the club?

We have a diverse group of members, from all walks of life really. That’s what works! Our common interest and love of Volkswagens brings us together.

Our culture and ethos is to be inclusive, no matter what vehicle you may have, air-cooled or water-cooled! Some great friendships have formed have the years too. You often hear people talk of the ‘VW Family’, but once you own one and are in a club like ours – you truly experience it. I have met some of the best people and lifelong friends through the club who are always willing to go out of their way to help you.

Essex is quite a large county and there are plenty of clubs that you can join. We often unite with other clubs to support different causes or just camp out together at different events.

How many people are there in the team who run the club?

We have a small but strong group of admins, all taking on different roles. From chair, to treasurer, photography and event videography. They all give up their time for free running Instagram pages, moderating the group Facebook page, designing newsletters, arranging discounts and charity events. Of course, this isn’t an exhaustive list!

We all manage a show individually throughout the year too, liaising with organisers and getting all the relevant information together. This takes up a lot of time but most love it!

For those that might not know, tell us a bit about the vehicles that are covered by the club?

We are a club for all dubs! There are early Splitscreens T1’s, Type 2 bays, Beetles old and new, Golfs, transporters through all the ages and some very cool buggy’s. If you have the VW badge you are more than welcome. We even let the Chairman’s wife drive a Fiat (but don’t tell anyone…)

Do you have to own a VW to join in?

Yes that is one constant, the VW badge…

How about you Paul, how long have you been involved?

I got into VW’s in 2013 when I brought my first VW, which I still own – a 1986 blue T25 VW 1.9 aaz engine converted panel van. I also have a black 1972 beetle and a 1.0 2003 Lupo as my daily drive.

Money no object?

Something custom, something different, something crazy!

Do members receive benefits for being part of the club?

We have a few deals with some of the best-known VW shops for parts and accessories, as well as exclusive club camping at shows. Members also receive a 15% discount with ClassicLine Insurance on their VW insurance. We are always adding to the list and trying to negotiate a club discount for our members to take advantage of.

Tell us about your club meets…

We have pretty full social calendar. We try to attend at least 10 shows a year as a club. Throughout the summer months we arrange few local camping weekends away where we can all get together. During the winter months, we meet on a monthly basis at The Bull in Brentwood.

The December meet is a little special. We hold our annual ‘secret Santa’ for members as well as having our very own Santa and elf. The members’ children get to meet and greet Santa and take home a present. In February we do pancakes for Shrove Tuesday and during the summer club nights we have an ice cream van.

We’ve heard you organise a New Year’s Day Cruise…?

We’ve organised the New Year’s Day Cruise for the past three years with the proceeds going to our nominated charity, Farleigh Hospice Charity. Farleigh Hospice Charity is very close to some of our members and co-hosts hearts. We co-host this with two other local clubs, Essex VW Nights and Spooky VDub Club. The New Year’s Day cruise starts from two different points across the county, joining together to cruise to Southend, finishing at Thorpe Bay. We pretty much take over the entire carpark with fellow dubbers! There are usually cake sales, raffles and auctions with prizes we manage to get donated from some very generous sponsors. There is really strong support for this event and every year the turn out gets bigger and better. As a club we are very proud of this and what we can achieve by coming together.

What are your must do shows throughout the year?

There are a lot of shows that have been around for a while now and a lot of new shows that have a cool vibe. Some are more family orientated than others. Aside from the Essex shows that are a given for us, Retrodubs in Suffolk is firmly on our list every year, as is Volksweald in Kent.

Viva Skeg Vegas is a new one for us this year, it’s meant to be an epic show. There’s a group of us going and I am personally really looking this one. Generally, a few of the admins cruise on ahead to set up for the rest of the group who arrive later. We have to work fairly closely with the organisers to ensure we get a club plot for camping and are within the rules and regs of the weekend – this is generally a shared admin task.

Are there any club moments that stand out for you over the years?

I think one of the best moments for us as a club was last year where we rallied together to replace a campervan of one of our older members fondly known as ‘Grandad’. His bus was rusty to say the least and needed a serious overhaul – work that couldn’t be afforded! I decided to see if we could manage to raise some money to at least help toward a replacement and keep him dubbing with the club… I never dreamt that we would raise the money to buy him a fantastic new bus. The support and generosity of our members was overwhelming and incredibly humbling. From cake sales, donations, rum and reggae nights, meals, plastering, raffles, you name it we did it.

Are there any projects or upcoming road trips in the pipeline for the club?

Road trips are always on the agenda, some big and some local. Some members travel to the European shows like EBI – Ninove etc, and this year there are a few heading to Glastonbury and Tunes in the Dunes in Cornwall. We also have a few new local shows on the list this year as well as the regular ones we support.

Anything else that you’d like to mention?

If your reading this and like the sound of what we do, give us a look 3rd Tuesday of the month at The Bull in Brentwood from 7pm!

So, these are the people behind one of our favourite clubs. Working hard behind the scenes and trying to create a club that’s is like one big family. SX Dub Club, thank you for being our car club of the month.

ClassicLine Insurance offer a range of car club insurance schemes that can provide revenue for your club as well as benefits and discounts for your members. To find out more about this and our specialist club liability insurance, visit our car clubs page.