It started with a lucky bottle of whiskey. I'm not a drinker, so let me explain. In 1969, I was invited by a friend to attend a Corvette meeting. I didn't own a Corvette at that time. While attending this meeting, I won the door prize: a bottle of whiskey, which I gave to my friend. Gratefully he offered, "I have a Corvette in my garage. If you're interested I could make you a good deal!" I thought I might as well take a look.
Then I saw her - a 1959 Corvette. She came with her original wheels, tires, and shifter – not exactly attached! I examined all her parts and pieces and thought, "NOW I'm a Corvette owner."
My excitement grew through many hours of work. Through the long cold winter of 1969, I worked to create my dream. As the first buds appeared on the trees that spring, she was ready to be painted – red of course!
Then I met Sandy, the true love of my life. I knew it the moment I saw her and told her that she would really look good in my little red Corvette. That sealed the deal on my marriage proposal, as seven weeks later we were married. As the years passed, it became sadly apparent that it was time to relinquish the much-needed garage space to bikes and other necessities of three growing children. So, we bid a fond farewell to our Corvette. I assured Sandy that we would have another some day.
Fast forward to 1995. The children were grown and we were feeling that need for fiberglass and speed! We honed in on a certain black beauty; a 1995 black on black coupe. We were back in style! It was time to expand our horizons in the Corvette world, so we took our new darling to a meeting at our local Corvette Club. We joined the Glass City Corvette Club of Toledo that night and we fit like a leather glove. We re-ignited our love for the Corvette and now had new friends to share it with!
By 1999, the C5 had caught our attention. I bought Sandy a 2000 Torch Red convertible, in honor of our first red one, for her birthday. That red convertible looked so beautiful parked in the National Corvette Museum where we first laid eyes on her. We picked her up in August of 1999. The car was built on the first day of production with the serial #42. When Sandy's prized car was selected for the 2000 Historic Motorama, it became a life-changing event for the both of us! We made more Corvette friends from across this whole country and still keep in touch and see them at various Corvette events.
In 2002, we purchased a 50th Anniversary red convertible with the Anniversary package. Now we each had one to drive. We were thrilled when this car was chosen to participate in the Dale Earnhardt Legend Road Tour. This exciting adventure included 100 Corvettes traveling together from Dale Earnhardt, Inc. in North Carolina all the way to the National Corvette Museum. How great it was to be traveling with old friends, and making many new ones.
Our next love became our 2008 Atomic Orange convertible. We followed her every step of the way as she was built in the Corvette factory by the loving hands of the Corvette team. We watched in anticipation as her parts were married. Then she was delivered to my capable hands and this baby roared to life when I started her for her first breathe of fresh....fuel, her odometer reading zero at the end of the production line.
Then at Christmas 2014, when Santa Claus arrived with the key fob to our new C7, we couldn't have been more thrilled! This car will be the next love of our life, I am sure. The C7 black convertible with black top and kalahari interior 3LT Z51 is ready for her first adventure across the U.S. As soon as the snow quits flying, we will be on the road.
Now retired, we have the opportunity to travel across the country to many Corvette shows and events. We've learned the art of driving, having experienced Spring Mountain Driving School in Pahrump, Nevada, and are on our way again for our first outing in a new Corvette. We've traveled the entire Route 66, climbed the Rockies, conquered the Lincoln Highway, the Natchez Trace, and even survived the Tail of the Dragon! Corvette Funfest in Effingham, Illinois is one of our yearly treks.
Our many memories and Corvette friends will be with us the rest of our lives. Our love affair with the Corvette is certainly an "Affair To Remember" and this is all thanks to that lucky bottle of whiskey!