The name VAGKRAFT comes from combination of two words, “VAG” and “KRAFT”.
VAG (pronounced with a hard g) is the abbreviation of Volkswagen Aktiengesesellschaft. In German, Aktiengesesellschaft means “public limited company”. Abbreviated as “AG”, these letters follow the name of such public limited liability companies. For Volkswagen AG, it’s abbreviated further to VAG and is the name or term within the Volkswagen community that refers to the group of companies under the Volkswagen umbrella of car brands. These include Volkswagen, Audi, Seat, Skoda, Porsche, Lamborghini, Bentley, Bugatti, and Ducati. The more common being Volkswagen and Audi when the word is used.
KRAFT is the translated word from German meaning power, strength, force, might, fortitude, etc.
Therefore, VAGKRAFT is the best of all things Volkswagen. This is what the show promotes and celebrates for the enthusiast community.
VAGKRAFT was born in 2006, when two VW enthusiasts from Toronto drove 9 hours to attend an annual VW/Audi car show in New Jersey called Waterfest, the biggest and best of its kind at the time. Held as a two day show, enthusiasts would travel for hours from all over the USA and Canada to spend the weekend at the event. After having such an amazing experience, they were inspired to start their own show in their hometown of Toronto. Davide Lodovichi and Claudio Renini could not handle the workload of putting on a car show alone. That’s when Kris Paule and John DiBattista came onboard and the VAGKRAFT team was born.
The show debuted in August 2007 as a single day outdoor event. VAGKRAFT secured the north parking lot at The Powerade Centre (known today as the CAA centre) for it’s venue. It was a show created for the people, by the people. Cars could register to compete in up to four events, Show Car (nicest looking car), Dyno (most horsepower), Auto Slalom (fastest time around a road course), and Sound Off (loudest stereo). Custom made trophies were awarded for first, second and third place. Support came by local tuning shops, parts and accessories suppliers, and VW and Audi dealerships. VAGKRAFT swag was available for purchase at the merch tent. There was a lot to see and experience! The show ran successfully following this format, growing steadily over the next 7 years.
Sadly, we lost John to cancer in 2014. And the following year Davide decided to leave the show. Down to two organizers, Kris and Claudio could not handle the workload and took 2016 off to rethink the future of the show. In 2017 VAGKRAFT returned. Reformatted to a much more simple and relaxed event, VAGKRAFT moved to a new date and venue as a springtime season opener at the grassy fields of Boyd Conservation Area. Kyle Dodsworth, a longtime supporter and active volunteer of the show, came onboard and the new VAGKRAFT team was formed. The new VAGKRAFT was just what the community needed. The relaxed atmosphere was the perfect setting for enthusiasts and venders to interact. No more competition and the drama that accompanies it. Just drive in, park your car, and chill. The only event to this day is the car limbo. Purely for fun, cars line up and pass under a progressively lowered bar. The crowd loves it and it invites a little creative shenanigans to see how you can get your car to slip under the bar. Lowest car wins!
Today, VAGKRAFT continues on as the official season opener at Boyd. Kris, Kyle, and Claudio are always thinking of how to make VAGKRAFT better with no signs of stopping anytime soon. However, with Claudio at over fifty years old, and Kris and Kyle well into their forties, who knows how much longer VAGKRAFT will continue to celebrate all things VW!