Volkswagen

HAGERSTOWN -- Brian Caron's mother says he got on a bicycle when he was 6 years old and he never got off of it. That is, until he got a Volkswagen bus when he was 16. But he still didn't give up the bike. He would alternate between the two. Caron, now 37, has parlayed his passion for bicycles and Volkswagens into adulthood. The president of Hagerstown BMX still owns a Volkswagen and frequents air-cooled Volkswagen car shows. "I go to (BMX) freestyle shows and people talk about their Volkswagens," Caron said.

At first you have to wonder what it's all about. Inside the rear compartment of this gleaming, perfectly polished shell is - a gleaming, polished engine. Doesn't look like it's been run a mile in its life. Lovingly refurbished at who-knows-what cost not only of money but of time, persistence, energy, research, personal relationships and perhaps other talents gone undeveloped. But it's perfect. This engine compartment is spic-and-span. This is one of several restored, mostly vintage vehicles that stopped at Sharrett Volkswagen on the Dual Highway, Hagerstown, this week on a curiously concocted promotional tour.

Edward Jones The six local Edward Jones investment representatives will host a free satellite broadcast titled "Retire on Your Terms: Exploring a Phased Retirement. " The broadcast will be Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. The program features Jean Chatzky, Money magazine's editor-at-large and the financial editor of the NBC "Today" show. It will explore the opportunities and pitfalls of phased retirement, including insurance, Social Security and income. The interactive event is presented at select Edward Jones branch offices nationwide via the firm's private video network.

WOODSBORO, Md. - A motorcyclist died Wednesday shortly before 3 p.m. when he struck a vehicle at the intersection of Md. 194 and Coppermine Road, police said. Jan Kuczma II, 34, of Keymar, Md., was thrown from the motorcycle and died at the scene, Frederick County Sheriff's deputies said. Mark Alan Poli, 49, of the 7300 block of Brookside Drive in Frederick, Md., was driving north on Md. 194 and turning left onto Coppermine Road when he did not yield the right of way to a motorcycle driving south on Md. 194, according to deputies.

A Middletown, Md., man has been charged with backing his Ford F-250 pickup truck over the hood of a police car near downtown Frederick early Sunday and with ramming a Volkswagen Cabriolet into a utility pole. Brian Christopher Head, 26, of 4502 Deer Springs Road in Middletown, was charged with two counts of second-degree assault, reckless driving, driving under the influence and other offenses, police said. Sgt. Matthew Burns was patrolling in an unmarked police car at about 3:09 a.m. Sunday when he spotted the pickup truck, which allegedly was being driven recklessly and at a high rate of speed near South Bentz and West Patrick streets, the press release said.

City man dies in accident ARLINGTON, Va. - A Hagerstown man died after a collision which sent a car crashing into a motel in Arlington, Va., Saturday morning. Arlington County Police said Daryl Paul Earnest, 22, of Halfway was pronounced dead at the scene. Police said a Toyota Camry was attempting to make a left turn onto South Glebe Road from South 24th St. when a Volkswagen hit the Camry, sending it out of control over the sidewalk and into an unoccupied room of the Econo Lodge at 2400 S. Glebe Road.

It was a long road, but sooner or later you just know it had to come to an end. On a sweltering July day, amid great pomp, ceremony and mariachi music, an Aquarius Blue bug - the last Volkswagen Beetle - rolled off the Puebla, Mexico assembly floor and into the history books. It was immediately dispatched to join other milestone VWs at the company's Automuseum in Wolfsburg, Germany. Mexico was the sole country to still turn out the Beetle, or "Vocho," as it's called in Spanish.

MERCERSBURG, Pa. - The driver of the second vehicle involved in Saturday afternoon's fatal crash in Montgomery Township, Pa., was listed in critical condition at Hershey (Pa.) Medical Center on Sunday evening, according to a hospital spokeswoman. John D. Ulsh, 36, of Carlisle, Pa., was driving the 2007 Acura RDX that collided with a 2002 Volkswagen Jetta at 12:35 p.m. Saturday, Pennsylvania State Police said in a news release. Daniel J. Martin Jr., 23, of Mercersburg, was pronounced dead at the scene at 2:12 p.m., police said.

Hagerstown residents could glimpse a fun sight this week when caravans of old-school Volkswagens roll into town.  The VWs will be on their way to Simple Transport 5, Hagerstown's own air-cooled Volkswagen and classic BMX show, which will take place from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 25, at Fairgrounds Park. Enthusiasts often load up their vintage VWs and get together in groups to drive to the event, where they spend the day showing off their vehicles, admiring other VWs, socializing and soaking up Simple Transport's festive atmosphere.

FREDERICK, Md. - A Frederick County, Md., woman was killed Friday in a U.S. 15 crash that involved seven vehicles, Maryland State Police said. Patricia Adams, 66, of Adamstown, Md., was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Most of the vehicles involved were northbound. Adams, however, was southbound, and her vehicle struck a car that had been pushed into her lane. Adams' 1998 Toyota Avalon then went into the northbound lane and was hit by a 2005 Ford F-250 driven by Derek Harris, 26, of Middle River, Md. Police said four other people involved in the crash were taken to Frederick Memorial Hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening, but they didn't specify who. Police said the crash started about 3 p.m., when a northbound 2005 International truck driven by Ronald Farnsworth, 57, of Hanover, Pa., struck a 2004 Honda Accord driven by David Snyder, 50, of Point of Rocks, Md. That happened on U.S. 15, near Mountville Road.