Corvair Tri-State Meets - History and News 

Updated 25-Sep-2023 = Copyright (c) 2023 Corvairs of New Mexico       

  • The Start of the Tri-State Tradition by Steve Gongora
  • Photos and Reports from Recent Tri-State Events * Preview of the next Tri-State * The Official CORVAIRS TRI-STATE Web Site MAP SHOWING ALL TRI-STATE LOCATIONS, 1976 TO PRESENT (Click for larger map.) STATISTICS: ALL TRI-STATE EVENTS ---- 1976 TO PRESENT ==== ================= | SPONSOR WINNER | === HOW MANY ATTENDED? == | ====== YEAR LOCATION | CLUB CLUB | CNM RMC PPCC UTAH OTHER | TOTAL ==== ================= | ======= ====== | ==== ==== ==== ==== ===== | ====== 1976 Montrose, CO | RMC, CNM - | - - - - - | - 1986 Montrose, CO | CNM CNM | 25 16 9 - 12 | 62 1987 Ouray, CO | RMC - | - - - - - | - 1988 Canon City, CO | PPCC - | - - - - - | - 1989 Red River, NM | CNM CNM | - - - - - | - 1990 Durango, CO | RMC RMC ? | - - - - - | - 1991 Gunnison, CO | PPCC RMC | 21 41 14 - 11 | 87 1992 Las Vegas, NM | CNM CNM | 56 35 12 - - | 103 1993 Alamosa, CO | RMC RMC ? | - - - - - | - 1994 Pagosa Springs CO | PPCC RMC | 24 27 19 - - | 70 1995 Red River, NM | CNM CNM ? | - - - - - | - 1996 Montrose, CO | RMC RMC ? | - - - - - | - 1997 Gunnison, CO | PPCC - | - - - - - | - 1998 Lake City, CO | CNM CNM | 39 36 12 - 24 | 111 1999 Salida, CO | RMC RMC | - - - - - | - 2000 Albuquerque, NM | CNM CNM | 55 42 11 - 8 | 116 2001 Manitu Springs CO | PPCC RMC | 27 48 39 - 5 | 119 2002 Grand Junction CO | RMC RMC | 17 39 17 - 29 | 102 2003 Raton, NM | CNM CNM | 41 25 31 - - | 97 2004 Cripple Creek, CO | PPCC PPCC | 18 34 42 - 13 | 107 2005 Ouray, CO | RMC RMC | 18 39 33 - - | 90 2006 Montrose, CO | CNM CNM | 37 28 29 - 12 | 106 2007 Monte Vista, CO | PPCC RMC | 16 29 24 - 5 | 74 2008 Pagosa Springs CO | RMC RMC | 15 46 25 - 18 | 104 2009 Taos, NM | CNM CNM | 42 37 18 7 18 | 122 2010 Canon City, CO | PPCC RMC | 17 37 30 4 21 | 109 2011 Red River, NM | CNM CNM | 38 24 20 2 14 | 98 2012 Salida, CO | RMC RMC | 24 33 21 2 6 | 86 2013 Cripple Creek, CO | PPCC RMC | 19 35 33 - 15 | 102 2014 Chama, NM | CNM CNM | 38 24 18 - 17 | 97 2015 Durango, CO | RMC RMC | 41 50 23 - - | 123 2016 Montrose, CO | PPCC PPCC | 25 49 30 11 9 | 124 2017 Taos, NM | CNM CNM | 43 38 23 2 30 | 136 2018 Crested Butte, CO | RMC RMC | 12 43 32 14 24 | 125 2019 Alamosa, CO | PPCC *** | - - - - - | 99 2020 ------------ CANCELLED DUE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC ------------- | - 2021 Albuquerque, NM | CNM *** | - - - - - | - 2022 Glenwood Springs | RMC *** | 5 20 12 1 7 | 45 2023 Salida, CO | PPCC *** | 19 37 56 4 5 | 121 2024 Las Vegas, NM | CNM - | - - - - - | - 2025 - | RMC ? - | - - - - - | - 2026 Montrose, CO ? | PPCC ? - | - - - - - | - 2027 - | CNM ? - | - - - - - | - =============================================================================== *** Tri-State Meets have always been sponsored by the same three clubs from two states, but the name has not been changed from the original TRI-STATE MEET. *** RMC, PPCC and CNM have used different methods of counting attendance at different meets, so the above statistics are not directly comparable. *** 2016: count based on attendance as PERCENTAGE of club's total membership. *** 2017: count based on registration forms as filled out by those registering. *** 2019: the attendance award has been retired from this and future Tri-States. =============================================================================== =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= THE START OF THE TRI-STATE TRADITION BY STEVE GONGORA This history of the Tri-States was written by Steve Gongora for the 1999 "Special 25th Anniversary Edition" of the "Enchanted Corvairs" Newsletter, March 1999. TRI-STATE MEETS Steve Gongora It has been so long since the first Tri-State Meet that I don't remember who was responsible for putting the first one together. I'm sure SYLVAN ZUERCHER had a major part in starting this thing. I remember that our Club wanted to expand our contact with other Corvair clubs in the area, and with the help of the CORSA directory we made contacts with people in the neighboring states of Utah and Colorado. The main contact in Colorado was LEO FORD, a retired FBI agent. He did much of the organizing in Montrose, Colorado at the first event. He arranged the dinner and the fun tour around the town of Montrose and south to Ouray. He drove his orange and black "Nader Hater" Corvair. Our CNM entourage included myself, JACK SELLERS, ANDY CIUPRYK and SYLVAN and OPAL ZUERCHER. DAVID LANGLOIS, along with his brother and father, trailered a mid-engine Corvair up to Colorado. This particular mid-engine was put together at our shop, House of Covers, on Central back in 1975. It was a beautiful piece of work. Jack and Andy traveled with me in my 1965 Corsa. (This car is still alive and well and is a daily driver in the capable hands of BILL REIDER, who gave it a unique silver-and-black color scheme.) This trip was going to be the farthest that I had traveled in my Corvair. Since I had Jack with me, I wasn't very worried because he was a Corvair mechanic. In fact, he rented space at our old shop so he could work on cars, including Corvairs. The meet itself was fantastic because you saw how other clubs conducted their business, and we could learn from their experiences how to make our own Club flourish. The event was also a way to buy and trade parts. Andy was able to purchase a brand new set of Corvair mag wheels out of the box at the first meet. You've got to remember that this was 1976. New Corvair items were easier to find back then. You have to look a little harder to find the same treasures today. Another aspect of the Tri-State events was an opportunity to see some great cars. The first meet brought on an inspiration for my car. BILL WOODMAN came from Colorado in a late-model Corvair. What Bill had done was install BMW 2002 seats in place of the traditional bucket seats. The look and feel was perfect for the Corvair. As soon as I got back to Albuquerque, the hunt was on for the BMW seats. These seats are still in the car that BILL REIDER drives today. Woodman had other nice modifications to his car. He placed the battery in the trunk, installed mag wheels, and put black trim on the headlight bezels. The Tri-State took a ten-year hiatus after the first meet for reasons unknown to me. When the aspect of resurrecting the event came up, I was all for it. The Tri-State originally included Utah, but in 1986 they did not have a strong enough response to carry on. Colorado Springs and Denver took the ball and ran with it. So up until now the "Tri-State" has been made up of CNM, Pikes Peak Corvair Club, and Rocky Mountain CORSA in Denver. The hosting of the event is rotated among each of the participating clubs. The meets have been a great way to experience the scenery of northern New Mexico and southern Colorado. The small towns always open their arms to the clubs and everyone has a great time. Finally, over the years the meet has become something of a rivalry between STEVE & RUTH GOODMAN and the GONGORA family. We are the only members who have attended every one of the Tri-state meets since the beginning. Now it has become a drive for me to continue this friendly competition. It is always a highlight of the year to be able to attend the meets with my family and see the enthusiasm of all those who come from different states and different Corvair clubs. Every- one looks forward to seeing you from year to year. It is amazing to me the way the longest distance traveled to each Tri-State seems to get longer every year. -- Steve Gongora -- 1999 =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= PHOTOS AND REPORTS FROM RECENT TRI-STATE EVENTS
  • 2009 Taos, New Mexico
  • 2010 Canon City, Colorado
  • 2011 Red River, New Mexico
  • 2012 Salida, Colorado
  • 2013 Cripple Creek, Colorado
  • 2014 Chama, New Mexico
  • 2015 Durango, Colorado
  • 2016 Montrose, Colorado
  • 2017 Taos, New Mexico
  • 2018 Crested Butte, Colorado
  • 2019 Alamosa, Colorado
  • 2021 Albuquerque, New Mexico
  • 2022 Glenwood Springs, Colorado
  • 2023 Salida, Colorado
  • 2024 Las Vegas, New Mexico =END=