A Lifelong Love of “Vettes”
With so many great choices in Corvette’s six generations so far, it was hard to narrow down a ‘theme’ for a collection I started more than two decades ago. But I did. My goal throughout was to assemble a ‘mini-history’ of America’s only true sports car.
If you love Corvettes, that says it all. You just love Corvettes. There’s no explaining it further, and frankly, there’s no need to.
With so many great choices in Corvette’s six generations so far, it was hard to narrow down a ‘theme’ for a collection I started more than two decades ago. But I did. My goal throughout was to assemble a ‘mini-history’ of America’s only true sports car.
The first Corvette I ever saw in person was the ‘63 split window. It hit showroom floors during the fall of my junior year in high school. Hugo, Oklahoma would never be the same for me after that car came to town. Oh, I’d fallen in love with pictures of Vettes long before that and had watched Route 66 on TV. But seeing that ‘63 changed everything for me.
It would be 22 long years after that before I would have one of my own, but a ‘63 split window became the cornerstone of my collection...and it still is. My son was 10 when I bought it and now he’s in his early 30s and has a 4-year old who thinks Papa’s Corvette collection is pretty cool. I’m pleased to say my son is doing his part to carry Corvette love forward. Other cars followed on an irregular basis, and each one was welcomed into the fold. Though they have sometimes been crowded, none has ever spent a night outside a garage after I acquired it.
Finally, last year I was able to build the garage for the collection I’d wanted to construct for a long time. My first ever visit to the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green during construction (well worth the trip from anywhere!) gave me the inspiration for my collection’s garage and website slogan: ‘The Best Little Corvette Museum West of Bowling Green’. Check out www.hookedonvettes.com.
Agreed, I’m not very objective. Some may think it’s far from the second best, but that’s OK. I’ll admit a complete lack of objectivity. Still, it’s a fair representation of Corvette history. In summary, my argument is based on the fact that in my collection, there’s at least one car from each of the six generations of Corvette, heavily-loaded in the C1 and C2 generations. And out of only ten Vettes, all silver, black or a combination of the two exterior colors, you’ll find 4 milestone anniversary cars, two fuelies, a big block ‘67, a couple of Z06s, coupes, convertibles, a T-top, a glass top, a Pace Car, bookends for a whole generation (C2) and a six cylinder ‘putt-putt’, ‘54. And oh yea, three of my four high school years are represented. Grow up?!! What’s the fun in that?
This Baby Boomer plans to leave the world the same way he
entered...kicking and screaming....but hopefully, not for a long time.
After all, when GM adds another generation of Vettes, I’m going to need to be around to figure out how to add on to the garage!
