diecastAUDIO

I feel fortunate to live in New England and be a diecast collector. My location in Massachusetts allows me to access about 6 states within a two hour drive, and that opens up an opportunity to connect with many of the clubs that have been established in those areas.

This past weekend I had the pleasure of being invited down to the 2008 Connecticut Valley Diecast (CVD) Holiday Dinner. Club President Ken Cwikla and his staff put together an amazing day full of diecast activities and surprises. It was an honor to join Mike Zarnock and Bob Parker (unfortunately Charlie Mack could not attend) as part of the special guests in attendance. The morning began with the CVD monthly meeting that featured a packed room filled with buy/sell/trade tables and the club’s fantastic downhill racetrack. The Chinese Auction featured many great items to tempt collectors such as a Since ’68 40th Anniversary set and a Burgundy Sledster that was graciously donated by Luis Tanahara and The Custom Crew.

The meeting ended at noon and everyone moved upstairs to take part in the holiday dinner. The dinner tickets also served as part of multiple raffle drawings that were pulled while everyone enjoyed the buffet. After dinner, Ken Cwikla presented the members of the club staff with some surprise (and well deserved) thank you gifts for all their hard work during the year. Ken was also presented with a 1:18 scale Orange Challenger that was signed by the staff and special guests.

The afternoon continued with a few short speeches by Bob Parker and Mike Zarnock. Both of them provided interesting backgrounds on their careers as well as what collectors have in store for events that they will be a part of in 2009. Mike even hinted that he’ll be making a very exciting announcement (involving Mattel?!) in the near future! I also stepped up to the mic to fill collectors in on what has been happening with diecastAUDIO and the great guests we’ve been having on Saturday Nitro Live. Speeches aside, the special guest who got the most attention was good ol’ Saint Nick who arrived in time to hand out some great gifts to the kids. The day wrapped up with autograph session with Bob and Mike where collectors could order copies of their books and have an opportunity to ask questions in a more up close and personal fashion.

Connecticut Valley Diecast is a great family-friendly club and the staff did an amazing job putting on such a great event. I highly recommend that you check out the club’s monthly meetings if you live anywhere in the New England area. They meet on the first Sunday of the month in Windsor Locks, Connecticut. A meeting schedule and directions can be found on the CVD website. Definitely check them out – you’ll be glad you did!

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