Kevtoberfest Road Trip #1
When Mr ET aka Glen began his Prep Year at school in 1963, he met Kevin. Glen and Kevin had a lot in common: they both had seven sisters and one younger brother, they lived not far from each other and they were fervent supporters of Essendon Football Club. It wasn’t long before they were best friends. When they grew older, the boys spent their weekends and holidays exploring far and wide on their bikes, only returning home at the end of the day for dinner.
As adults, Glen and Kevin developed a mutual passion for beer. For many years, they’ve made their own home brews and they enjoy visiting craft breweries in Australia and overseas. In 2011, we holidayed with Kevin and his wife Mary Lou in Munich for a week, where we spent much of our time at the Hofbrauhaus and other beer-related establishments. Even though they live in different states, Glen and Kevin are often in touch and regularly discuss their latest home brewing experiments.
When Kevin announced his plans for a beer-themed party to celebrate his 60th birthday in October this year, it was a given we would be there. This wasn’t to be a one night event; it would start on Friday night and continue all weekend, before finishing up on Sunday afternoon. It would incorporate the telecast of the Australian Rules Football League (AFL) Grand Final on Saturday afternoon and a fancy dress party on Saturday night – Kevtoberfest was born!
Instead of a quick fly/drive journey, we decided to do a three week caravan trek to Kevin’s home near Bairnsdale in Victoria. The return journey of 3,500 kilometres would cover inland and coastal regions of Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria. It wasn’t by coincidence that the route Glen planned included several towns with craft breweries and, knowing my love of quilting and crochet, he made sure to include some craft shops as well. The itinerary was a winner for both of us!
To be continued…
Our 60ths were somewhat more muted. A trip to Edinburgh and then Bath. No beer. But I like the sound of Kevtoberfest. It looks a loooooong drive.
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It was a long drive but we took a week and a half to get there and stopped in several places along the way. It was great.
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What a great framework, to make a road trip around a celebration of Mr ETās friendās birthday, with Kevtoberfest at the end! Sounds like a perfect excuse for an adventure!
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It sure was! We had so much fun.
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Boy, I sure didn’t have that kind of celebration for my 60th. What a hoot. š When we travel, we are always looking for a craft brewery to visit once we have pulled off the road for the day. Makes it fun. This is a great story of true friendship lasting through the years which is a gift that a lot of people aren’t able to count in their blessings. Here’s to many more years of enjoyed friendship and ‘good’ beer drinking. š
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Judy, hoot is a good word to describe it. I’ll be posting about our trip to get there for a while but eventually there will be a Kevtoberfest post, with photos. š
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Haha…Kevtoberfest sounds like a blast…what a great friendship Carol. š
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And Kevin’s wife Mary Lou and I are great friends too so when we travel together it’s always wonderful. We laugh a lot.
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Thatās awesome. Very blessed š
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Mind boggling being one of 9 children! And a friend with the same! Boy I bet Christmas was a whole lot of fun. And what sharp young men they were too back in 1975, those 70s suits are instantly recognisable along with the haircuts. Good to know that some school-day friendships continue through life and the idea of an entire weekend celebrating a birthday is amazing! I just wanted to be alone on my 60th!! Not that the age bothered me, I just hate being fussed over. Looking forward to the adventures on the road culminating in Kevtoberfest. Sounds an awful lot like one of those mad American movies….
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Jude, you’re in for a treat. This was a fun trip and the party weekend was fun. I love that 70s photo – so much hair! When Mr ET’s family gets together, it’s very noisy. š Weddings are always a big event.
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I’ll bet!
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Cool way to spend your 60th!
Makes me want to return home again, but I’m stuck in Italy for a while š
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If you have to be stuck somewhere, Italy sounds like a nice place to be. š
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Of course, especially down here in the south where tourists are scarce and food plentiful! š
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This sounds like itās going to be a fun story! And I just love the 1975 photograph. Takes me right back.
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It’s going to be an adventure!
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Can’t wait til the next installment š
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Coming soon!
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That’s quite some coincidence that they both have seven sisters and one brother – there can’t be many families with that particular combination. That photo from the 70s is a classic! š Now that we have the background, I am eagerly awaiting the next part of the trip.
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I love that photo! There will be many posts to come Elaine, so fasten your seatbelt!
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It’s fastened!
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It’s incredible how little they’ve changed since 1975 š
Looking forward to this series of posts/adventures
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You’re so kind Denzil. Kevin’s comment when I checked on the event was “so much hair and so little of me!”
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They sound like soul mates š And if you’re going to be 60 you might as well do it in style. š š
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This is true.
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That sounds like an awesome 60th birthday party! I’ve never had one that goes across several days! What a lovely friendship š
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And getting there was great too. There will a few more posts before we get to the party weekend.
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What a great way to celebrate!
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It was, and the fact we could turn it into a lovely long holiday was a bonus. āŗ
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What a fun adventure and road trip. I think it is so fabulous that the friendship has thrived over the decades. So great to see the photos from then and more recently.
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I thought I would find more photos of them as youngsters but this was the only one. There are probably school photos somewhere but we don’t have them.
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Glen is not nearing 60 is he???? Can’t be! Yikes! Love his head of hair. š
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Next yearš
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Ok , whew! šš
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What an excellent excuse for a road trip
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Far better than flying down and back.
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I agree
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How fabulous to have a friendship spanning such a long period of time, and managing to keep interests in common.
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The older Kevin and Glen get, the more they seem to have in common.
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Ha – found it!! Thank you for sending directions Carol. I figure you published this when I was busy with my daughter just home from hospital – I’m glad I had missed it and not forgotten it! What a long friendship these two have had and what a hoot to turn the big six-oh into a ‘fest’! I hope it becomes a tradition! ā¤
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Glad you are caught up now, CC. Everyone who was there is hoping for a repeat event at some time in the future. It was such a fun weekend. I have a few more stories to tell before we actually get there though.
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I remember reading this before, Carol, and being so excited about the reason for your trip: the lifelong friendship between Glen and Kevin, the beer-themed birthday party at the destination, and the craft breweries and craft shops along the way. Any and all of your Kevtoberfest posts will be perfect for the journey invitation. š
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I have a few more posts to come in this series too.
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Yes, I know, and I need to catch up on all of them. I know I’m behind! Slowly, slowly. š
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I didn’t mean the ones already posted. I have several more still to write. š
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Oh boy, then you get to continue to relive your trip for a while longer! š
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Yes!
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