September has been a magnificent month for BMWDCM. With spring finally here, the weather has been perfect for driving, socialising, and enjoying everything we love about our club. The sunshine certainly brought out the best in our members, and their cars, and it has been one of the most enjoyable months we’ve had in a long time.
9 September – Melbourne Coffee & Chat at Shannons
We kicked off the month with our first Coffee & Chat at Shannons, and what a brilliant start it was. The turnout was fantastic, with an impressive range of cars on display. The atmosphere was relaxed, friendly, and full of great conversation. It was wonderful catching up with so many members and seeing Shannons filled with BMWs and smiling faces.
13 September – Private Tour of the Dowell Museum
This was a real highlight. The private tour of the Dowell Museum was simply amazing, a stunning display of cars that left everyone in awe. I’m very glad I didn’t miss this one. We had a terrific turnout, enjoyed a delicious lunch afterwards, and finished the day with another beautiful drive home. A perfect Sunday with perfect company.
19 September – Südschleife Gippsland Weekend Tour https://www.bmwdcm.com.au/news/13716900
Our short weekend away was nothing short of spectacular. Over 30 cars joined us for the Südschleife (South Loop) Gippsland Tour, and the weather could not have been better. The roads were sensational, the scenery breathtaking, and the company outstanding. I must say, this was possibly the best weekend away we’ve had in a very long time. The accommodation was first class, and the entire event ran like clockwork. A huge thank you to Peter and Jo for organising another flawless tour, arranged to absolute perfection.
23 September – Variety Grand Final Charity Auction Lunch https://www.bmwdcm.com.au/news/13718402
Jo and I were invited to represent the Club at the Palladium at Crown at the Variety Grand Final Charity Lunch and Auction. What a wonderful event, raising over half a million dollars for the children Variety supports. We, of course, support Variety with our Stars on Track event each year and we also donated some of the auction items for this event. We were very humbled to be seated on a table with a few celebrities and dignitaries, right in the front row centre of the room. Have a look at the blog for the photos and story. We had a fantastic time and hope to go back again next year. We may even look at having a Club table at the event next year, if there is enough interest from members.
30 September – Geelong Coffee & Chat
We wrapped up the month with our ever‑popular Coffee & Chat in Geelong. This event has become a real favourite, always well attended and always full of friendly faces. It’s wonderful to see our Geelong members, and those who travel down, enjoying these relaxed evenings.
Looking Ahead to October
October is shaping up to be just as exciting, with a fantastic lineup of events:
3-4 October – E30 Racing at Phillip Is
A few of our members will be racing at Phillip Is for the last round of the E30 Racing Championship with the Vic State Race Series, if you are at a loss for something to do, go down to the Island and watch some great racing and support our E30 friends and members.
4 October – “What Else Is in Your Garage?”
This event looks like it will be very well attended. It’s always fun to see what other treasures our members have tucked away at home, not just BMWs! Sadly, we will be away, so won’t be able to attend this one. I love seeing what treasures our members have tucked away.
5 October – An Evening with Damon Hill
A special night with a motorsport legend. This will be a memorable evening for all motorsport fans. (SOLD OUT)
18 October – Pink Ribbon Brunch (SOLD OUT!)
This event is completely sold out, and Jo and the team have done an incredible job collecting raffle prizes. It will be one of our best fundraising events yet, and I’m pretty sure everyone will walk away with something from the raffle. Don’t forget our Silent Auction Item, an amazing pressure washer kit, worth over $1000, donated by Würth Australia. Bids are open until the 17th, so don’t miss out on this amazing item. You might have to fight me for this one, it truly is an amazing, professional level machine. Thank you so much to Wurth Australia and all the businesses that have made donations, we are so lucky to have such wonderful sponsors and supporters of the Club.
25 October – Oktoberfest at Beaumaris Motor Yacht Squadron
Always a favourite, great food, great cars, and all things German. A fun, relaxed day by the water. This is becoming a favourite place for some of our meetings and being Spring now I am sure it will be a wonderful day out, can’t wait to get the lederhosen’s out and have some fun.
Club Updates
Jo and I took a week off to explore the Red Centre, which was absolutely amazing. If you haven’t been to Ayers Rock, it is the perfect time with all the wild flowers out and everything so green with all the rain they have had this year. We’ll be away again at the start of October, first week in KL for the F1, then we rush back for the Damon Hill night and then hook the caravan up to the X5 and straight off to Bathurst to officiate at the Bathurst 1000.
Membership numbers are steady, welcome to all the new members, merchandise is selling extremely well, and there are some great bargains in the store, so make sure you check it out.
Our welfare team continues to work hard behind the scenes, supporting members quietly and compassionately. Always remember, we are one big family, if you are doing it tough and need anything, reach out, we are here for you all.
All is well in our Club, everything BMW and everything community. We have some truly great events coming up, and I encourage you all to get involved. We have such a variety of events, there is sure to be something to interest everyone.
Upcoming Events
September has been a month full of great driving, great company, and great memories. Thank you to everyone who attended, volunteered, organised, and supported our events. Your enthusiasm is what makes BMWDCM the incredible club it is.
CPS renewals requiring signing in person must be done by appointment, so please don’t just turn up, remember, we are all volunteers and we’re not always at the office when you think we might be, especially the next few weeks! We won’t be there at all. Before heading down, just give us a quick call so we can make sure someone is available to help you.
You can also complete CPS renewals online, which is often much easier and quicker. Many members find this the most convenient option, especially during busy periods. Head to the web site for all the information on how to renew.
We’re here to help — just reach out and we’ll make the process as smooth as possible.
I look forward to seeing you all at our October events, spring is here, the weather is perfect, and there’s plenty more fun ahead.
Stay safe, enjoy your driving, and see you out on the road.
BMW Drivers Club Melbourne Inc.
PO Box 81, Tyabb VIC 3913 Incorporated in Victoria #A0102695G BMW Drivers Club Melbourne Inc is a member of: BMW Clubs Australia and the BMW Clubs International Council Motorsport Australia Affiliated Motorsport Club
A Day of Heart, Hope and Community
Being guests at the Variety Grand Final Lunch was nothing short of extraordinary. From the moment we arrived, the room was buzzing with energy, a powerful mix of generosity, excitement, and genuine community spirit. It was clear we were part of something truly special.
The food was exceptional, the atmosphere electric, and the raffles were nothing short of fantastic. Every prize announced brought a wave of cheers across the room, and the sense of shared purpose was unmistakable. For us, one of the proudest moments was seeing the four items donated by BMW Drivers Club Melbourne attract strong bids. Watching people enthusiastically support our contributions, knowing those funds would directly help families in need, was incredibly humbling.
But the most moving part of the day came from the stories. Hearing football legends and families speak so openly about how Variety has impacted their lives was deeply touching. They shared how essential equipment, funded through Variety grants, has transformed their day‑to‑day living, giving their children independence, comfort, and opportunities they otherwise wouldn’t have. These stories weren’t just inspiring; they were reminders of why events like this matter.
This is exactly why BMWDCM is so passionate about running our Variety Stars on Track event each April. Seeing firsthand how much these funds mean to families reinforces our commitment to making our event bigger, better, and even more impactful next year. Our goal is simple: raise more money, support more families, and help more sick and disabled children live fuller, more normal lives.
Walking away from the Grand Final Lunch, we felt proud, humbled, and energised. Proud to stand beside such an incredible charity. Humbled by the strength and resilience of the families we met. And energised to continue doing what we do best, bringing our community together to make a real difference.
BMWDCM is honoured to support Variety, and we look forward to building on this partnership for many years to come. Together, we can help create brighter futures, one event, and one child, at a time.
Jo Mawon
Vice President #2
BMW drives on the south loop - a reference to the famous North loop, and less famous South loop, at the Nurburgring race track.
I mean, what can I say, this was nothing short of a perfect weekend and certainly the longest tour yet I’ve done with the F22.
The journey to our morning tea stop in Mirboo North was where the magic began with twisting roads and great scenery to provide a taste of what was to come, once there it was a good opportunity to have a wee stroll and enjoy the morning sunshine before moving onto the next leg of the journey. Wherein we encountered our only real traffi c frustration in the form of a slow-moving tractor, but that was soon forgotten when we came to an impromptu stop at a lookout on Mount Tassie. Sun shining, clear blue sky, gentle breeze, just exquisite.
Back on the road, we shimmied on through some more brilliant scenery and roads to our lunch stop at Port Albert where we enjoyed some lovely meals by the sea, although the wind seemed determined to blow it away! Continuing on, our next stop was Agnes Falls and I suspect what happened is that Agnes fell in love with the breathtaking scenery there, as the water cascaded further and further down into the valley. Day 1 ended with a drive to our overnight stop at the RACV Inverloch resort, complete with pre-dinner drinks as well as plenty of laughter and chatter over tasty set-menu meals.
Day 2 saw yet more fantastic roads, interspersed with my terrible Pierce Brosnan-like rendition of ABBA’s SOS, to our fi rst stop at a beach in Walkerville North. The weather was once again perfect with a clear blue sky and a nice gentle breeze to accompany it (another day in the offi ce as Ros put it). Must say, I’m incredibly jealous of the people living in the house just above the beach, what a view that would be to wake up to every morning. Following on from that, we made our way over to the small town of Fish Creek for a brief cuppa stop before making our way back into Mirboo North for lunch during which we were presented with an objet d’art of a French toast-cake that Jo had ordered. It was quite the thing to behold.
Afterwards, we embarked upon the fi nal leg of our journey, which was like a parting gift to all of us with yet more fantastic scenery and great roads that took us there. Before long though, we entered our fi nal stop of Drouin where we all said our goodbyes and parted ways back to our homes. What an extraordinary weekend it was, one that I’ll never forget as long as I live. I still cannot express enough how thankful I am to Jo, Graeme and Perfect Purple Peter for organising such an incredible event and for them and all of the other wonderful people who came along that made it such an unforgettable experience. I thoroughly look forward to joining in on many more like this in the future!
Brayden Burnett #1044
The Dowel Museum is a private museum which rivals or beats many commerical museums. Whilst in transition to being open to the public we were asked to not share publicly any photos we took inside.
But, as you can see from the supplied photo the displays are neatly arranged in mostly date order with interpretive signs for each car. What a welcome change from many other museums I have been to. The range of vehicles is extensive yet we were told there are more which will be housed in an additional space soon.
To get things started we were treated to a brief hsitory of the Dowel family and some of the antics of the members when they were younger. Highly entertaining and in stark contrast to the disciplined museum!
Our substantial turnout (some of the member's cars shown above) were left to explore the display at our leisure with various staff members always close at hand should a question arise. Most enjoyable it was too.
The visit was closed off with an excellent lunch at a near-by pub, another hidden gem, with more than sufficient time to catch up with other members before departing for home.
Lawrence Glynn #3
Life does not have to be super organised all the time so a simple get together with friends is sometimes exactly what one needs.
Taking the popular "coffee and cars" format indoors gave us all chance to see, admire and comment on each others cars and have casual chats and conversations - whether about cars or otherwise.
As an added bonus we got to use Shannon's "photo booth" for those who wanted a nice photo or two of their car with no distracting background.
This certainly makes the cars "pop" out in the photo, very effective.
Many thanks to Shannons for the use of their facilities, their coffee machine and their staff who helped make the evening a great success.
A terrific evening we will, by popular demand, repeat.
August has been another huge month for BMW Drivers Club Melbourne, filled with great drives, great company, and plenty of memorable moments. Thank you to everyone who joined us, your enthusiasm is what keeps this club strong.
We started the month on 1st August with our Northern Loop Drive. We had a terrific turnout, the weather was perfect, and the route was interesting, safe, and enjoyable with our Tour Boss guiding us throughout the day. As always, the company made it even better.
On 16th August, we were back at Braybrook for Go Karting at Karting Madness, and once again it lived up to its name. This event is always a favourite, lots of laughs, friendly competition, and great fun had by all.
On 23rd August, some of our members headed to Broadford for the Traction Tyres Yokohama Drivers Championship. Broadford never disappoints, it’s always a great day out, whether you’re competing or simply enjoying the motorsport atmosphere.
Also on 23rd August, we were blessed with a sunny, wind‑free morning for an early start at the 100 Steps of Federation, followed by a private guided tour of the RAAF Museum What an incredible experience, so much history in one place. We will definitely be going back for those who missed it; it’s well worth the visit. We finished the day with lunch at the Phoenix Restaurant. This outing was made even more special by being joined by our motorcycle friends from BMWMCCV, and we’re delighted they enjoyed the day as much as we did.
On 26th August, we held our Coffee & Chat Drop‑In, which continues to grow in popularity. It’s becoming a regular catch‑up for members who simply want to talk about all things, not just cars, and it’s wonderful to see these friendships strengthening.
Then on 30th August, we had two events in one day at Calder Park. Our Come & Try Driver Training Day had a fantastic turnout, including a strong showing from E30 Racing with many of their cars on track, either taking people for rides or showing people lines. A huge thank you to all our volunteer coaches, we are incredibly proud of our Motorsport Australia‑affiliated members who give their time and expertise to help others learn. We also ran course car lead parade laps of the Thunderdome, which is always a favourite. The huge smiles told the story; it was an absolute blast. Thank you to VFT for your volunteers; without you, these days simply wouldn’t happen. And thank you to all our members who came out to help. And of course, thank you to Jo, who is the glue behind these events and keeps everything running smoothly. Again, it was a fantastic day and a credit to the Club and all our members that came and helped run the day. The weather definitely helped too, it was a superb Melbourne day and the promise of what we expect in Spring.
We’ve been very lucky with our events and the days we have run them through Winter, each one has been a perfect sunny day. So looking forward to Spring arriving in September and the longer days and warmer temperatures make for lots more fantastic events.
Coming Up in September
Other Updates in the Club
Jo and I will be away for the first week of September celebrating my 65th birthday, we’ll be at Uluru for the week, so don’t pop down to Hastings expecting us to be there. Back next week!
Merchandise Sales are going well, and we still have a few winter specials available, make sure you take advantage of the sale pricing. Check out our on-line store.
Membership remains steady and continues to grow, which is wonderful to see.
A New Addition to the Bell Family. We are thrilled to welcome Matilda Rose, born on 8/8/26, all eights, and if you add the last two numbers together, another eight. A very lucky day for her to arrive. She is our little angel, and I’m sure you’ll see her around the track and at events in the future. Congratulations Chris and Katie.
Welfare Team Our welfare team continues to work hard supporting our members. Our team have been doing a lot behind the scenes for several members and friends. Please remember that our welfare team sometimes needs support too. Jo has been struggling a little these past few months with the fallout from my treatment and general exhaustion. If she looks down, please give her a hug or a kind word, kindness costs nothing, and it means a lot.
Jo’s Breast Cancer Walk Jo has been raising funds by walking for breast cancer throughout August. She was originally supposed to do 58 km but chose to do 168 km and has exceeded that. Her fundraising total has gone well beyond her expectations, first $1,500, then $3,000 an incredible effort. Well done, Jo, so proud of you.
She is also doing a huge amount of work for our Pink Ribbon event in October, so please come along and dig deep. She has secured some amazing raffle prizes and I’m sure everyone will go home with something special. Thank you to all the businesses who have donated something, your generosity is truly appreciated. Still time to contact Jo and donate if you have anything you think might be of interest.
Men’s Health – November Event We will also be supporting men’s health in November with our Racing Against Cancer event at Pro Racing Simulators in Hastings. All proceeds will go to prostate cancer research. Mark it in your diaries and bring as many friends as you can, raffle prizes on the day and a great prize for the winner. Also remember Movember and get those moustaches growing.
My Health Update
A quick update on my own health, each day I’m getting better. I’ve started an exercise physiology program at the hospital and it’s really helping me regain strength and feel more like my old self. It’s great to be out again, seeing you all and chatting about life.
Thank you all for your ongoing support. I look forward to seeing you at our upcoming events.
Come and Try
If you want to have fun and learn a bit more about safe driving on the road a Come and Try day at a race track is a good place to start.
Whilst there are many aspect of driver training, roughly summarised as Attitude, Awareness, Anticipation and Actions, an instinctive knowledge of what to do and when to do it is present in many ways across all aspects.
And have a bit of fun along the way. Driving above the road speed limit feels good to most people but doing so safely is vital. But some can have fun without troubling the far end, or even the centre, of the speedometer. And that’s just fine.
Track day training does not have to mean driving like crazy with smoking tyres around corners. At our Come and Try days that sort of behaviour is discouraged.
The emphasis is on learning how to sit in the car (sounds simple, often wrong), how to position the car on the road/track for a corner (also sounds simple, also often wrong) and how to actually turn the corner (perhaps not so simple but equally often wrong).
Generally our untrained instincts want to turn into a corner too early comprising the ability to a) pick the entry point in the first place, and b) adjust the vehicle’s path when we find out we have misjudged the entry point or something unexpected happens. Even at legal road speeds on the public road these errors can be costly and doing it well is more satisfying.
Our intrepid instructors guide the driver on how to do this properly. It usually takes a few laps before the adjustments start to become muscle memory after which further refinements and increased speed (if desired) can be added in.
If you don’t want an instructor, no one will force you to have one.
At the end of the day we had a lot of happy drivers who have enjoyed themselves and learnt a lot. And, some rather tired but happy instructors to who we are very grateful.
From an instructor
I think my highlight of the day was coaching a young bloke in an AU falcon. He was very receptive to feedback and we were able to accurately manage his expectations of the car and its capability. As a result he was able to get out there for multiple sessions, driving within his and his cars limits and having a great time doing it.
Again thanks for organising and getting us involved.
Igor Kay #151
A fine collection of cars lined up to drive around the iconic Thunderdome banked oval behind a pace car.
Calder Park’s Thunderdome is banked high speed oval built for the brief period when American NASCAR style racing was popular here. NASCAR evolved in America during the alcohol Prohibition era from the hotted up cars used by boot leg booze smugglers to out run the Police in order to get to the State line first and out of their jurisdiction.
Modern day race cars run in close formation at speeds over 300 km/h but we don’t do that on our parade laps.
However, even at a more leisurely pace, driving on a banked track is quite an experience. Despite having been out of action for far too long, the Thunderdome retains an amazing atmosphere. You can quite easily avoid looking at your speedometer and imagine yourself in the thick of the action.
And, if you so inclined (no pun intended), you can casually drop into a conversation “Oh yes, I’ve driven at the Thunderdome”.
Combining two gems, both hidden in plain sight, Sunday was a delightful day of exploration and history.
Which started at the 100 Steps of Federation which can make the (modest as it turns out) claim of being the highest land between Melbourne and the You Yangs. Despite the hill being almost completely hidden behind some trees, the extra elevation does indeed provide an extensive view.
From there we moved to the nearby RAAF Museum at RAAF Base Point Cook, the first and the longest continually serving air force base in Australia with over 100 years of history.
The site was originally chosen because Bristol had operated an aeroplane from nearby as a sort of prototype for an air force, taking advantage of the flat terrain. An additional benefit was the proximity to water as flying boats were one of the most common air craft, certainly for military use, in the absence of purpose built runways.
Strange to think the air craft were not considered a military asset at the start of World War One but rapidly become one, culminating in the inevitable rapid escalation of capabilities and the famed aerial dog fights where one plane tries to shoot down another plane before it can shoot down the plane trying to drop bombs.
Split into two groups for guided tours the vast collection of items and information was presented in a condensed but relatable format. As with many such venues, the tour is but a taster with many more enjoyable hours possible at a later stage.
Perhaps too soon we were off to lunch and some great conversations.
From our friends at the BMW Motorcycle Club VictoriaOn Sunday 23 August a small group from our club joined members of the BMW Drivers Club Melbourne for a tour of the RAAF Museum at Point Cook. It was a fabulous day. The weather was perfect and Bob and I enjoyed the ride to our meeting point in Altona Meadows, apart from the traffic. Any day on a motorbike is a good day. From there we rode in convoy with the cars to the base at Point Cook.
Who knew the museum held such a comprehensive display? The hangar displaying aircraft made in Australia at the time of World War II was eye-opening to me. The skill of engineers and tradesmen producing aircraft at that time contributed significantly to the war effort. Our tour just scratched the surface! Many aircraft to see, photographs, artifacts, maps and displays, it’s all there, giving an overall picture of our aircraft history. The sound and visual experience on big screens, including interviews with pilots, was fantastic.
There is so much to see at the museum. Having been in operation since 1914, RAAF Base Point Cook is Australia’s oldest military air base and one of the world’s oldest continually operating airfields.
After touring the Museum, most of us went to the Phoenix Hotel in Point Cook for lunch. We really enjoyed sharing this event with the BMW Drivers Club Melbourne, they’re a very friendly bunch. We’ll continue to list BMWDCM events which may interest you on our Club website. We had a great day. Lynne Rosenthal
Participants:Max Traeger K 100 RSNathan Ranft R 1250 GSABraydan Willrath G 310 GSBob Rosenthal R 1200 GSLynne Rosenthal F 650 GS
The museum was doubly-interesting for me because my dad served in the RAAF during WWII in the Pacific theatre. His work in signals intelligence was covered by the Official Secrets Act, so he was unable to tell his family about his work until 50 years after the war ended.
Guy Nutting #669
What a great day we had together, we really enjoyed it, thank you.
Not only was the museum extremely interesting, we also enjoyed the company of others around the lunch table. Everyone is very friendly and welcoming. Hope you had a good time too
Lynne Rosethal BMW MCV
We had a fantastic day, the museum, the stories, and the whole experience were genuinely awe inspiring. Thank you all for the effort that went into making it such a memorable event
David Chandler #1562
Another great venue from the BMWDCM. Well done. It was a good day all round.
Jeff and Jill Palmer $682 and #949
Lovely day out today on a gorgeous Melbourne winters day.
Started at Truganina Park for an early morning walk up the 100 Steps of Federation, apparently the highest point between Melbourne and the You Yangs.
We met up with DCM members and friends to then drive to Point Cook RAAF Museum for a tour of the facility. Fantastic displays of our Air Force history and some of the planes and helicopters we have had in our arsenal over the last century.
Then on to a lovely lunch at the Phoenix Hotel before heading off home.
Was great to have some members of the BMW Motorbike Club of Victoria going us for the day too. Perfect day to be out on a bike!
A wonderful morning of respectful and enjoyable competition at Karting Madness in Braybrook culminated in a grid start race, with the results shown above.
Whilst I (shown here as The Sage) was fortunate enough to take pole position after the practice session two miscalculations left me in 2nd spot. The first was not resuming full speed after a yellow session quickly enough and getting demoted to 3rd. The second was thinking I had passed Len whilst spun out thus, in my mind, putting me in a comfortable 1st. I would not have caught, yet alone passed, Len anyway to congratulations to him for a convincing win.
A lot of fun.
Lawrence GLynn #3
After a cold, cloudy week, Saturday 1st August was cold, clear and sunny – a perfect day for a drive. We had a convoy of 17 people in 14 cars starting from Wallan and cruising the Hume to Seymour for a short stop.
The route then took us on a great backroad east through strange countryside. The rolling hills were vibrant green from the recent winter rains, but the trees were black and bare from bushfires earlier in the year, with just a few early shoots.
The group was well-matched for maintaining a brisk pace and everyone enjoyed this road. We then turned onto the backroad to Yea and drove straight into a fog bank. Technically it was low cloud which covered the whole Yea valley and we soon drove out under it.
A planned second stop at Yea was aborted as the location was packed with people and parked cars for a community fete, so we pressed on along the Melba Highway before taking the long detour through Murrindindi – a pleasant, mostly empty cruise through scenic countryside, with a twisty sting in the tail to rejoin the highway.
For the final stint, we turned off through Toolangi and had a fun, unobstructed sweep down Myers Creek Road into Healesville.
The cars were parked up at the back of the Beechworth Bakery for photos, and most of the group had a casual lunch and coffee over a friendly chat in the bakery. Afterwards, some people headed directly home. One crew was taking the very long way home via Marysville and Reefton, while another couple headed to Tarrawarra winery to explore the new art gallery there.
Thanks to everyone who took part in the drive and the lunch, and to Trent for stepping in as the tail car.
Peter Williams #36
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