D’s Club celebrates 60 years

A QUIRKY part of Torquay’s social history celebrated its 60th anniversary last week.

About 40 members of The D’s Club dressed in their formal attire – black jacket, bow tie and shorts (shirt optional) – and gathered at the Torquay Hotel for an afternoon of drinks and many, many stories from their six decades of existence.

“After 60 years, one would say that’s time for retirement and relaxation… and 60 years is a bloody long time,” club member Adrian McKenzie said.

Forming in the early days of Torquay’s surfing history and loosely associated with the Torquay SLSC, The D’s Club has no clubroom – just a door salvaged from a shack at Boot Hill that is carried around – no committee and no functions.

“We did have a brick, and the brick came from Nairn’s Dairy – quite a few years ago, when we used to have the Sunday morning barrels, we drank five 18-gallon barrels on a long weekend in two hours, and that’s a record,” Mr McKenzie said.

“Anyhow, we left the brick in the hands of Peter Nairn, but of course he passed away just recently, and we’ve discovered he’s taken the brick to Heaven with him.”