The July 2014 newsletter - Text Version
Updated 29-Jul-2014 ==== Copyright (c) 2014 Corvairs of New Mexico
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AUGUST 2014 / VOLUME 40 / NUMBER 8 / ISSUE #467
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Tony Fiore Memorial Chapter Newsletter Award, First Place, 2005
Tony Fiore Memorial Chapter Newsletter Award, Third Place, 2010
Tony Fiore Memorial Chapter Newsletter Award, First Place, 2012
EDITOR: Jim Pittman
NEXT MEETING: Wednesday, August 6th, 2014 at 7:00 PM
North Domingo Baca Multigenerational Center, Wyoming & Carmel NE
THIS MONTH:
Dues Due.....................................Membership Committee
Photo Opportunity:............. Breakfast at Jimmy's Cafe in July
Where's Dave ........................................Alex the Cat
July Meeting Minutes................................Anne Mae Gold
July Board Meeting Minutes..........................Anne Mae Gold
Hemmings Classic Car Cover:..................1960 Corvair in 2007
Birthdays & Anniversaries......................Sunshine Committee
Web Site Blues (June Car Council)......................RobertGold
Finally Good News (July Car Council)..................Robert Gold
Thank You Anonymous.................................Heula Pittman
Photos from July Fourth on Santa Fe Plaza...........David Huntoon
Membership Certificate..............................Mike Stickler
CNM Sunshine in Placitas......................Elizabeth Domzalski
Where Were You, 21 July 1969..........................Jim Pittman
Treasury Report.......................................Robert Gold
Fitch Phoenix Auctioned $230,000.........Prairie Capital Corvairs
Calendar of Coming Events......................Board of Directors
August Issue, 7, 14, 21, 28, 35 Years Ago..........Club Historian
COVER: The Rampside of LeRoy Rogers appears to be at the CNM campus.
The 1963 Monza Convertible of Mary Lou Martinek now in Washington.
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MEETINGS: First Wednesday of the Month at 7:00 PM
North Domingo Baca Multigenerational Center, Wyoming & Carmel NE
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President: David Huntoon 505-281-9616 corvair66 @ aol.com
Vice-Pres: Tarmo Sutt 505-690-2046 tarmo @ juno.com
Secretary: Anne Mae Gold 505-620-7434 beisbol30 @ msn.com
Treasurer: Robert Gold 505-268-6878 beisbol30 @ msn.com
Car Council: Mike Stickler 505-856-6993 sticorsa @ gmail.com
Merchandise: Vickie Hall 505-865-5574 patandvickiehall @ q.com
Membership: Larry Yoffee 505-321-5909 corsa180 @ gmail.com
Sunshine: Heula Pittman 505-275-2195 heula @ q.com
Newsletter: Jim Pittman 505-275-2195 jimp @ unm.edu
Past President: Ray Trujillo 505-839-7436 ray @ bpsabq.com
Past President: Pat Hall 505-620-5574 patandvickiehall @ q.com
Past President: John Wiker 505-899-3076 wikerj63 @ yahoo.com
DUES: CNM: 12 months $25.00 -or- 26 months $ 50.00
CORSA: 12 months $45.00 -or- 26 months $ 90.00
CNM & CORSA: 12 months $70.00 -or- 26 months $140.00
CORSA's home page: http://www.corvair.org
CNM's newsletters: http://www.unm.edu/~jimp
Steve Gongora's page: http://www.corvair.org/chapters/chapter871
Larry Yoffee home page: http://www.corsaturbo180usa.com/
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On 25-July-2014 the club had 44 active family memberships.
DUES DUE DATES August 2014
EXPIRED ============================ INACTIVE DATE
2013.10 Mary Alice & Oliver Scheflow 25-NOV-2013
2014.03 Everett (Allen) Greer 25-APR-2014
2014.04 Angela & Wesley Heiss 25-MAY-2014
2014.05 Marilyn & Richard Foster 25-JUN-2014
2014.05 Chloe Mullins 25-JUN-2014
2014.06 Melba & Tommie Anderson 25-JUL-2014
2014.06 Susanne & Larry Hickerson 25-JUL-2014
DUE LAST MONTH ===================== INACTIVE DATE
2014.07 == NONE == 25-AUG-2014
DUE THIS MONTH ===================== INACTIVE DATE
2014.08 Alan Gold 25-SEP-2014
2014.08 Nancy & Russ McDuffie 25-SEP-2014
DUE NEXT MONTH ===================== INACTIVE DATE
2014.09 Kathryn & Douglas Gadomski 25-OCT-2014
2014.09 Brian E Rowe 25-OCT-2014
DUE OCTOBER 2014 =================== INACTIVE DATE
2014.10 Debra & Jon Anderson 25-NOV-2014
2014.10 Janet & Steve Johnson 25-NOV-2014
2014.10 Mary Lou & Mark Martinek 25-NOV-2014
2014.10 Sylvia & Ray Trujillo 25-NOV-2014
Send your Dues to:
CNM Treasurer c/o Robert Gold
1301 Valencia NE
Albuquerque, NM 87110
Past due memberships become inactive after a one-month grace period.
The Club will mail in your National Dues if you send us the renewal
form from your Communique.
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Where's Dave?
David Huntoon
I am having a difficult time believing it is August already. Time is flying by
for me at least. Likely the same for others I bet. The unofficial list of
jobs/projects is not nearly done. Have made some decent progress but not enough.
Again, likely the same for others.
Not much news on the Corvair front for me. I did help Mike with a 140 motor I
had built maybe 20 years ago and had kept for possible future use. Came to the
realization that it wasn't needed and could possibly be of use for someone else.
New .020 over ( I think ) forged pistons, bored and honed cylinders, all new
std. bearings main and rod bearings, rebuilt heads by the old SUNDANCE machine
shop, rings, vitons, etc. I did reuse the crankshaft and camshaft/lifters.
Should be pretty good but will have to ask Mike later how it all went. Never
been installed in a vehicle but it was bench run for maybe 20 minutes. I may
have some other Corvair news later, we'll see.
The biggest news for me lately is a new member of my family. Alex the cat! Last
time at the vet for normal yearly checkups for my other two felines, Alex was in
the reception room looking for a new family. Alex's owner had to give him up as
she was moving into an assisted living situation. Thought about it over the
weekend but I couldn't be sure if Alex would fit in. Trouble? Who knows but I
decided to adopt Alex. They are not best friends yet. They tolerate each other.
A work in progress. Could be worse!
See you at the next meeting......
Dave
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General Meeting Minutes: 7-2-2014
Anne Mae Gold
OFFICER REPORTS
President: David presented Brenda & Mike Stickler a certificate for a
complimentary 1-year membership for all of their help with Wendell, as earlier
approved by the Board.
Vice President: On the Fourth of July the Santa Fe Vintage Car Club will show
their cars on the plaza in Santa Fe. Cars will be parked starting at 4:30am. The
Rotarians will also be hosting the annual Pancakes on the Plaza that morning.
Tarmo Sutt will show his red car and invites all members to either show a
Corvair or come up to see the car show.
Secretary: nothing to report.
Treasury: $4,418.03 is in the checking account.
COMMITTEE REPORTS
Membership: Larry Yoffee has a few T-shirts left over that are for sale. No new
members. The most recent member is Russ's brother-in-law.
Car Council: Things are starting to cook!
JUL 12: Car Appreciation Day at Mild-to-Wild and then cruise down to Los Lunas.
AUG 10: All Clubs Picnic
SEP 21: State Fair Car Show
SEP 26: Swap Meet
Work on the website has started, Paul Krause is helping with this. Robert Gold
will be in charge of updating their current events. Last Sunday they invited all
the Museum car show volunteers who were treated to a pizza lunch in Corrales.
Robert & Art Gold attended.
Editor: Friday July 25 is the deadline for the newsletter. Ruth Boydston was
given a framed picture of her presenting John Wiker the Boydston Award.
Sunshine: Wendell misses us, so we are going to send him a couple of pictures.
Heula Pittman sent around a paper where members can write him a little note so
that he knows we are thinking about him.
Merchandise: Vickie Hall sold two Care & Feeding books and five dash plaques.
OLD BUSINESS
Del Norte High School is celebrating their 50 year anniversary. They had an open
house, 850 people showed up, they were expecting 250. Larry Blair & John Wiker
showed their Corvairs. Unfortunately no other cars showed up! Watch the
newspaper because Del Norte will have events every month throughout the year.
NEW BUSINESS
Mary Lou & Mark Martinek are selling their Corvair. They will tow it out here if
someone from our area buys it. They have been living in Washington State since
2004 and have towed the 1963 Monza behind their RV more than once.
We heard from Mike Myers of Chicago, Illinois. He bought a New Mexico Corvair
and fixed it up. He wants to get in touch with the person he bought it from...
does not remember the exact name - possibly "Straight" or "Strange" from the
Deming area. He bought the car three years ago. If anyone has any information,
please let Tarmo know.
The 50/50 drawing was won by Brenda Stickler. $21.00 was the pot, she took home
$10.50.
NEXT BREAKFAST - Saturday July 19th at Jimmy's Cafe (on Jefferson, north of
Osuna) at 9:30am
After the meeting was adjourned several members got together at Jason's Deli.
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Board Meeting - July 16th
Anne Mae Gold
Present: Tarmo, Dave, Jim, Heula, Lube, Anne Mae, Robert, Larry
OFFICER REPORTS
President: No special items of interest.
Vice-President: Tarmo has been thinking about projects that people are doing.
Maybe on a Saturday we can visit a member who can share successes or problems or
have everyone help out. Tarmo will bring this up at the next membership meeting.
Treasurer: $4,451.51 is in the account. Nothing is outstanding.
Secretary: Nothing new to report.
COMMITTEE REPORTS
Membership: Larry has nothing new concerning membership. He donated $40.00 to
the Sunshine Committee from an anonymous party. Larry got a call from the
T-shirt vendor, Art's T-shirt has been printed and Larry will get it to him when
it comes in. If the membership is interested, Larry can ask this company for
prices for polos, shirts, windbreakers, coffee cups or caps. Larry has a catalog
that he can bring for the board to peruse.
Editor: July 25 is the deadline for the newsletter.
Sunshine: Heula mailed a new member packet to the new members (Joel Yelich, Val
Nye) in Santa Fe.
Merchandise: Vickie was not present.
Car Council: Logo is still on hold. They want to use the Zia symbol, but Zia
pueblo has a copyright on it. Dave Huntoon suggests that they look into using
Route 66. Last Wednesday they had a stuffing party for the swap meet (Anne Mae
and Robert attended). Work on their website is progressing slowly. The picnic is
coming up in August. CNM will donate water to the picnic.
OLD BUSINESS
Fourth of July on the Santa Fe Plaza was a lot of fun. Tarmo and Kay showed a
car. There was a 1911 Pope Hartford brass car on display. There were 109 cars on
display.
NEW BUSINESS
* Santa Fe Concorso will be held September 26-28. Tarmo will write up an article
with the details for the newsletter.
* Club Breakfast on 7/19/2014 at Jimmy's at 9:30am. Robert will send out an
email to remind everyone.
* Early Model Parts for sale in Rio Rancho; mostly trim parts. See Dave Huntoon
for information.
* Activity Award: Discussion was held as to what the criteria would be for
nominations for the award, no matter what it is called. John Wiker does not mind
keeping count of attendance, participation, etc. However, there are times that
someone in the club will make a significant contribution to the club that may
merit some kind of recognition. Jim moved to revive the name Meissner Award.
(Tarmo suggested "I Like Ike" as a name.) Robert seconded the motion. The motion
was voted on and the CNM Activity Award will be renamed the Ike Meissner Award.
There needs to be some kind of committee, possibly the board, to choose the
recipient.
Jim has found a group of articles having to do with speed. He thinks that he has
enough information to make a short presentation at the membership meeting.
Adjourned about 6:10 PM.
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CNM'ers Who Celebrate Birthdays in August:
* Floyde Adams
* Steve Johnson
* Ryan McDuffie
* Mark Morgan
* Sarah Price
* Lee Reider
* Larry Yoffee
Couples Who Celebrate Anniversaries in August:
* Heather & Matt Choiniere
* Marilyn & Richard Foster
* Sylvia & Ray Trujillo
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It's old news, but the 1960 Corvair made the cover of HEMMINGS CLASSIC CAR
magazine back in August 2007.
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* * M E M B E R I N F O R M A T I O N * W H O H A S W H A T * *
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LeROY ROGERS 505-294-0623 has a 1960 Monza coupe. He has been bringing it to car
shows for years. He thinks it may be time to part with it. Should some member
of CNM be interested, let LeRoy know.
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ROBERT GOLD 505-268-6878 has a 1961 air conditioned "hot red" Lakewood. This is
the famous "Radio Flyer" show car and it has "no issues" i.e. it is perfect.
Robert will be glad to tell you all about it.
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PAT HALL 505-620-5574 in Los Lunas, NM has Corvairs in need of repair. Lots of
parts for most Corvairs.
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WEB SITE BLUES
June Car Council Report
Robert Gold
Boy it was hot today. Normally that is not a good thing. That's why they
invented air conditioning. However, tonight it was a good thing. Hot air and no
air conditioning resulted in a very short meeting. Here's what happened:
The new/old treasurer said we had plenty of money, but he doesn't exactly know
how much. Tune in next month. Pat Hall's friend, Chris, of the GTO club,
volunteered a member of his club to help us with our Facebook presence. More
about this later.
The logo is still dead in the water. We've paid $250 of the $500 needed to get
approval from the Zia Pueblo. The issue will be addressed later.
Now more about technical things. I'm now on a committee to address the web page
problems. It should be meeting in the next few days. When we solve all the
Facebook and Web page problems, I'll be sure to let you know. Until then, be
sure to look at the monthly newsletter for listings of upcoming events. Of
course, I'll be relaying to you any information as soon as Joyce Clements sends
it to me. Also, after we solve all the problems I will be in charge of updating
the events calendar. I think it's nice that I finally do some work for the
Council.
We finished up the meeting by discussing the remaining 2014 Car Council events.
At the end of June there will be a free lunch given to folks who have
volunteered for the Car Council. Art and I will be attending and enjoying the
free pizza.
The itinerary for the 2014 Car Appreciation Day is almost complete. A group of
classic cars (yes, Corvairs qualify) will start at Mild to Wild in Albuquerque,
cruise down to the Los Lunas Baskin Robbins and end up at the Sonic (?) on San
Mateo.
Plans for the August 10 All Clubs Picnic are humming along. The GTO folks have
it all planned out. All you have to do is pay your $5 if they open the picnic
area again. Not to worry. The same thing happend last year, and the event was a
real success.
Lastly, we talked for a time about the Swap Meet scheduled to be held in
September. The main thing for now is finding out when the Highway Department
decides to begin construction of a new Interstate exit. This will impact how we
get in, not whether the event will happen. That's a relief.
It's also a relief that the meeting adjourned at 8:05.
-- Robert Gold
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FINALLY GOOD NEWS
July Car Council Report
Robert Gold
I don't know if you've noticed it, but there has been lots of bad news being
sent around. Of course CNM has experienced its own share of bad news with the
loss of a number of long-time members. But that's not what I want to talk about.
I want to talk about a pleasant surprise I experienced at July's Car Council
meeting. I was waiting for the meeting to begin, when CNM's car rep, Mike
Stickler walked up and sat down. It was the old Mike for sure. I spent some time
talking to him about his return to health. You'll have to see Mike about the
particulars, but I want you to know what a pleasure it was to have Mike's
company at the meeting.
I guess it's time to move on to report on the actual meeting. Most of tonight's
meeting can be described by quoting something 'ole Abe Lincoln use to say. He
was quite distressed about the progress his top general was making to take the
fight to the Confederates. In frustration he was heard to say, "McClellan has
the slows." I think that is an apt description of how several things are
progressing. Those two things would be the web site and the Council's logo. I
have taken responsibility for the first, but my suggestion for the second is on
hold.
The actual meeting was called to order at 7:00, shortly after Mike joined me. I
sensed that the duration of the meeting would be short due to the lack of
cooling system operation. I was not disappointed.
First off, Ron, the treasurer, assured us that the Council has plenty of money
in a checking account and two CD's.
Next was the topic of the dead web site. It seems that things haven't operated
properly in close to year, but who's counting. You might remember the fact that
I'd volunteered to "help out." In Latin that means, "Sure I'll head this up. No
problem." That's how things were translated this evening. Tune in next month to
see if I accomplished the job of solving all the problems with the site by next
meeting. I know there was something missing in my life, but I don't think this
was it....
It turned out Collector Car Appreciation day came off great. In Albuquerque we
saw 150 cars. Not bad. The gang down in Los Lunas had a record turnout. Next
year I'll try to remember when it is and actually attend. Next year is expected
to be even cooler than this one.
The All Clubs Picnic is still on for August 10. The GTO folks have really gotten
a handle on it. CNM is donating water as we did last year. The Council really
appreciates our willingness to help out. Of course you need to put this event on
your calendar. Five dollars will get a carful into the picnic. No need for the
old "hiding in the trunk" trick.
Joyce discussed the Swap Meet from 2013 and the one that's coming up on
September 26-27-28. Last year's event made over 4 grand. This is a testament to
Joyce Clement's efforts. There have been already 80 paid entries to this year's
event. It looks like the Council will be selling out all the spaces. Please
note: We've helped out in the past and I'm sure we'll have a group of CNM'ers at
the 2014 meet.
Nothing's happening with the logo. Next report, next month.
As the meeting wound down, Jamie, our Facebook expert, told us about an art
exhibit of car prints to be held on Friday August 1, 2014 at 1101 Cardenas Drive
NE. This is northwest of the Smith's on Lomas. The show will be held from 5-9
pm. Since this is about a block from my house I'll make sure there is a Corvair
or two to be seen in the small car show the owner hopes to see. If you happen to
be in the neighborhood, stop by. I saw some posters of Allan Price's work and
the cars he's adorned with electric colors are something to see. What's really
nice about this display is that it is FREE. See you there!!!??
So that's about it for the meeting. Please, if you see me around, don't be
concerned if I look preoccupied. It's just that I'm trying to figure out how to
create a perfectly working website in a month. Sounds like a bestseller in the
making.
Another near-record ending of the meeting at 8:10 pm. -- Robert Gold
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Thank You to Anonymous
Heula Pittman
Last night at the Board meeting, Larry Yoffee presented an anonymous donation of
$40 to the Sunshine Committee. And since we do not know who this generous person
is we can't say "Thank You" to him or her. So, please consider this our note of
appreciation and thanks to whoever you are.
Here is a quick overview of some of the things the Sunshine Committee does: We
mail birthday cards to CNM members, their spouses and their children still
living at home. We mail sympathy cards and get-well cards to members and to
their families. We sometimes prepare and deliver meals to CNM families when we
know of a need.
We make new member packets for those new families joining CNM. These packets
include a copy of "The Care and Feeding of your Corvair" by our own Bill Reider,
a CNM lapel pin, a Corvair refrigerator magnet, an engraved Corvairs of New
Mexico pencil, a Corvair kitchen pot holder and a copy of our CNM membership
roster.
Whenever our club sponsors the Tri-State events, our committee prepares the
registration bags. This involves purchasing items for the bags, filling them and
sometimes preparing hand-made items for them. This year at the Chama event, we
prepared extra special bags, which included images of hand painted Corvairs on
each bag. We also made centerpieces for the banquet tables and supplied other
decorations as well.
The committee made a large quilt that was raffled in Chama. ALL MATERIALS AND
LABOR were donated, clearing a whopping $325.00, which we donated to the CNM
general treasury! We always appreciate donations of any kind to our efforts.
Often items are donated to help fill our registration bags as are items to be
used for decorations for anniversary dinners. At the present time, our committee
balance stands at $142.00.
Brenda Stickler, Anne Mae Gold, Vickie Hall, Ruth Boydston, Elizabeth Domzalski
and I make up this committee. It is a real pleasure working with these ladies
and I appreciate their generosity, their dedication, their time, their talents
and often their money. My thanks to each of them.
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Fourth of July on the Santa Fe Plaza.
Photos by David Huntoon
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One Year Free Membership Certificate
Mike & Brenda Stickler
Brenda and I would like to thank the CNM board of directors for granting us a
year's free membership in our fine club. The motivation for this award was in
recognition of the years that we gave rides to the CNM meetings, for Wendell
Walker and Ollie Scheflow. Those long-time members were in our general area of
town, and we enjoyed giving them rides when their health conditions prevented
them from driving. We were honored to get to know them better as we shared those
monthly rides.
Just like our aging Corvairs, many of us will need help to keep going, as the
years go by.
Mike Stickler
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CNM Sunshine in Placitas!!
Elizabeth Domzalski
Mark and I were paid a visit this morning by the CNM Sunshine Committee. Heula,
Anne Mae and Brenda, chauffeured by Jim, came bearing pies, beef stew, pumpkin
muffins and fruit. Brenda brought a very pretty basket and I received a gorgeous
canvas bag with a lovely card from the Sunshine Girls. But here's "the rest of
the story" .... Heula cleaned our bathroom, Anne Mae and Brenda vacuumed. Our
house looks so much better!!!
Mark gave everyone a sneak preview of the new garage and hopes to have everyone
out to visit once he gets it all set up.
To say "Thank you" seems inadequate. Your kindness and generosity is very much
appreciated. You brightened my recovery! Your company was the best gift of all.
Thank you so much!! I love you!
Elizabeth
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Today was the 45th anniversary of the Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and
Buzz Aldrin stepping onto the moon while Mike Collins waited in the orbiting
spacecraft above. Where were you forty-five years ago and what are your thoughts
on this event?
Where Were You?
21 July 2014
In July 1969 I was in Dayton, Ohio, preparing for graduate school. My 1966 Corsa
with its Finch-modified engine was running well. This was a summer of rallies on
Ohio's wonderful sports car roads. During the week I took classes at the
University of Dayton and on most weekends my friend Jack and I could be found
out running a rally somewhere near Dayton, either in his Mustang or my Corvair.
About the only deviation from this routine was a bus trip to the Indianapolis
500 time trials on May 17th.
On Sunday July 20th we were running a rally put on by the Miami Valley Touring
Club. I was driving the Corvair, Jack was navigating. In those days I was still
keeping a close watch on the space program and I knew that in December 1968
Apollo 8 made the first trip around the moon. I knew that Apollo 9 flew in March
and Apollo 10 in May in preparation for Apollo 11's moon landing. I know that
Apollo 11 was coming up, but, hey, rallies were important, so on this day we
were running the MVTC event with our usual level of "sports car" enthusiasm and
concentration.
The rally was pretty routine, nothing special, and I remember nothing about it
until we got to the end. We pulled away from the final checkpoint, gathered our
papers and notes to take to the rallymaster for scoring, and I turned on the
radio. And we heard voices, alternating between the astronauts and Houston
Control, on my Corvair's radio!
We heard something like:
"Three and a half down, two-twenty feet, thirteen forward."
"Eleven forward. Coming down nicely."
"Gonna be right over that crater."
"Two hundred feet, four and a half down."
"Five and a half down."
"I got a good spot."
"One hundred sixty feet, six and a half down."
"Five and a half down, nine forward. You're looking good."
"One hundred twenty feet."
"One hundred feet, three and a half down, nine forward."
"Five percent. Quantity light."
"Okay. Seventy feet. And it's looking good. Down a half, six forward."
"Sixty seconds."
"Light's on."
"Sixty feet, down two and a half."
"Two forward. Two forward. That's good."
"Forty feet, down two and a half. Picking up some dust."
"Thirty feet, two and a half down. Faint shadow."
"Four forward. Four forward. Drifting to the right a little."
"Twenty feet, down a half."
"Thirty seconds."
"Drifting forward just a little bit; that's good."
"Contact light, Okay, engine stop."
"We copy you down, Eagle."
"Engine arm is off."
"Houston, Tranquility Base here, the Eagle has landed."
"Roger, Tranquility. We copy you on the ground. You got a bunch of guys about
to turn blue. We're breathing again. Thanks a lot."
The Apollo 11 module with Armstrong and Aldrin were actually on the moon! But I
don't remember anything else going on at that time. I'm sure we listened to
whatever was reported on the radio while we went back home from the rally. They
must have told the listening audience when the astronauts would step out of the
module -- sometime in the middle of the night. When the time approached I was
glued to a black-and-white TV set.
Today it is impossible for me to remember the feeling of our guys going to the
moon. At the time it seemed incredibly important that Americans should be first
to walk on the moon. Now, after 45 years, not so much. When politicians talk
about sending people to Mars I think, It's much, much harder than going to the
moon, and what can they possibly do there?
(Check these web sites for more radio transcripts)
http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a11/
http://www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/a11/a11.step.html
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TREASURY REPORT ............ 06-19-2014 to 07-16-2014 ............ ROBERT GOLD
DATE CHECK# AMOUNT PAYEE DESCRIPTION
========== ==== ========== ============ ====================================
2014.06.14 2169 -$ 135.00 CORSA dues J.Wiker 26 m. CORSA = $ 90.00
2014.06.14 J.Yelich 12 m. CORSA = $ 45.00
2014.06.20 2175 -$ 184.85 H.Pittman Newsletter postage 3 months = $184.85
2014.07.02 +$ 75.00 Deposit J.McMahan 12 m. CNM = $ 25.00
2014.07.02 R.McBreen 26 m. CNM = $ 50.00
2014.07.03 2174 -$ 41.52 J.Pittman JUL 2014 Newsletter_Printing = $ 41.52
========== ==== ========== ============ ====================================
ENDING BALANCE = $ 4,451.51
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FITCH PHOENIX SOLD AT AUCTION FOR $230,000
Reprinted from the July 2014 "FLAT SIX" Prairie Capital Corvair Association
Thanks to the concerted efforts of Wayne Carini (Velocity's "Chasing Classic
Cars"), Journalist Don Klein, and the Fitch Family, the late John Fitch's pride
and joy -- the one and only Fitch Phoenix -- went to the Bonham's auction at the
Greenwich Concours Sunday, June 1 [2014].
Given appropriate display space just feet from the auction stage, the Phoenix
was the center of attention. After bidders went back and forth, at 2:42 p.m. the
gavel came down on its sale to Mr. Charles Mallory of Greenwich, Conn.
A collector with eclectic tastes, Mr. Mallory was not there to simply add to his
stable: "This was by far my most emotional purchase," Mallory said shortly
afterward. "I loved John, I love Lime Rock, I really feel the Phoenix belongs in
Connecticut. I'm very happy for not just me, but everyone who understands what
this is about."
The Phoenix went for $230,000 (137,278 British pounds, 168,665 Euros). Look for
a "Chasing Classic Cars" episode covering the Phoenix and the auction this fall
on the Velocity Channel.
From PETE KOEHLER, noted Corvair Enthusiasts, AKA Caveman Pete for his fondness
of 1960 Corvairs:
John Fitch commissioned Frank Risner of Intermechanica in Italy to build the
Phoenix prototype and then a series of 500 total units after that. The first and
only one built started off life as a 1965 Corsa coupe. Simple reason? It was the
only Corvair available to them in Italy at the time of construction. It had the
base 140 engine and optional 4-speed transmission.
Once completed and shipped back to the USA the Phoenix suffered a dropped valve
seat just before it was to be unveiled in New York City at Abercrombie & Fitch
(no relation). A late night thrash at the Fitch Works in Falls Village, CT
swapped out the ailing powertrain with the only other one available to John on
short notice: his personal demo Sprint - the white and blue 1966 Corsa coupe.
John told me they just swapped out the entire powertrain in the interest of
time. That is how the Phoenix ended up with a 1966 engine and a Saginaw 4-speed.
After the original Phoenix engine was repaired the guys at the shop just put the
1965 powertrain back in the '66 Sprint. That is the engine that is still in the
car as it sits on display at the Saratoga Auto Museum in Saratoga Springs, NY.
When John Fitch was still alive I offered to trade engines with him giving him
the correct original Phoenix engine in exchange for the correct original Sprint
engine. We never made the swap.
I could also tell you about the time that John offered to sell me the Phoenix
for $10,000. That was back in 1979 and ten grand was so far out of my price
range that I had to say no. Talk about a missed opportunity?
From KEN SCHIFFTNER
A few years ago, NJACE did a Tech Session at Brian O'Neil's "Garage Mahal" to
work on the Phoenix. This effort was in preparation for its display at the Upper
Saddle River NJ Memorial Day car show. Rich Ribble applied his wiring talents on
the electrics of the vehicle (which were a mess) and David Main and others did
extensive cosmetic work... mostly on the wheels. I worked a bit on the
carburetors which were four (4) Rochester "primaries" with some very clever
"linkage". I believe the Phoenix literature mentioned Webers but the carbs were
Rochesters.
The linkage was essentially a "trip" between the primaries and the secondaries.
If I recall correctly, the "secondaries" also had accelerator pumps but the
actuator was modified to squirt later (after the butterfly was open further).
The mechanism looked like it had been modified repeatedly. I'd guess John Fitch
had less interested in getting slowly to the next slop light than pedal to the
metal acceleration.
NJACE got it running and the vehicle went back to CT. I believe John Fitch drove
it at least once thereafter. Then back into storage.
In preparation for the Sturbridge Convention where the Phoenix was also
displayed, the Phoenix was trailered to Massachusetts by (I believe) Bob Marlow.
The engine had developed a noise so it was not run. At about 6:00 AM the day of
the Convention John Edgerton and I pushed it outside and gave it a bath. We also
cleaned up the interior (dust, etc. from storage). I believe it also received a
waxing... but no further mechanical work.
It was and is a very clever vehicle and certainly "rare" is a proper adjective.
Reprinted from the July 2014 "FLAT SIX" Prairie Capital Corvair Association.
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Wed 6 Aug 7:00 PM Meeting: NORTH DOMINGO BACA MULTIGENERATIONAL CENTER,
at Wyoming & Carmel, north of Wyoming & Paseo del Norte NE.
After the meeting, we may go to "JASON'S DELI" at 5920 Holly Ave. NE.
Sat 9 Aug 1:00 PM Los Lunas - Wells Fargo Bank, Bosque Farms
Bill Schofield 505-565-2105, David Silva 505-550-8415, or vintagegasser@aim.com
Sun 10 Aug ======== NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL - All Clubs Picnic
Same location as last year: OAK FLATS in the Manzanos.
Wed 21 Aug 5:00 PM Board Meeting: HIGHLAND SENIOR CENTER at 131 Monroe NE
Fri 22 Aug 9:00 PM Deadline for items for September newsletter
Wed 27 Aug 6:00 PM NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL MEETING OLD CAR GARAGE 3232 GIRARD NE
============================================================================
Wed 3 Sep 7:00 PM Meeting: NORTH DOMINGO BACA MULTIGENERATIONAL CENTER,
at Wyoming & Carmel, north of Wyoming & Paseo del Norte NE.
After the meeting, we may go to "JASON'S DELI" at 5920 Holly Ave. NE.
Sat 13 Sep 1:00 PM Los Lunas - Wells Fargo Bank, Bosque Farms
Bill Schofield 505-565-2105, David Silva 505-550-8415, or vintagegasser@aim.com
Wed 17 Sep 5:00 PM Board Meeting: HIGHLAND SENIOR CENTER at 131 Monroe NE
Fri 19 Sep 9:00 PM Deadline for items for October newsletter
Sun 21 Sep 7:00 AM State Fair Car Show = meet before 7:00 AM at "Old Furr's"
Wed 24 Sep 6:00 PM NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL MEETING OLD CAR GARAGE 3232 GIRARD NE
Fri 26 Sep ======== NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL - Swap Meet - Los Lunas, NM
Sat 27 Sep ======== NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL - Swap Meet - Los Lunas, NM
Sun 28 Sep ======== NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL - Swap Meet - Los Lunas, NM
Fri 26 Sep = SANTA FE CONCORSO -- Santa Fe, NM - The Club At Las Campanas
Sat 27 Sep = The Southwest's Primier Auto Gathering
Sun 28 Sep = Santa Fe Concorso 369 Montezuma Avenue #511 Santa Fe, NM 87501
http://santafeconcorso.com/schedule.html
============================================================================
Wed 1 Oct 7:00 PM Meeting: NORTH DOMINGO BACA MULTIGENERATIONAL CENTER,
at Wyoming & Carmel, north of Wyoming & Paseo del Norte NE.
After the meeting, we may go to "JASON'S DELI" at 5920 Holly Ave. NE.
Sat 11 Oct 1:00 PM Los Lunas - Wells Fargo Bank, Bosque Farms
Bill Schofield 505-565-2105, David Silva 505-550-8415, or vintagegasser@aim.com
Wed 15 Oct 5:00 PM Board Meeting: HIGHLAND SENIOR CENTER at 131 Monroe NE
Wed 22 Oct 6:00 PM NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL MEETING OLD CAR GARAGE 3232 GIRARD NE
Fri 24 Oct 9:00 PM Deadline for items for November newsletter
============================================================================
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SEVEN YEARS AGO IN AUGUST
2007 - Vol 33 Nr 8 - # 383
Brenda & Mike Stickler invited us to their Corrales home to watch the fireworks
and a twilight photo of members was on the cover. Wendell reported $3157.82 in
the bank. Sylvan Zuercher said Paul West and Don Heath, present at the Stickler
party, were prospective members. A First Aid kit for the Old Route 66 cleanup
crew was ready for use. President Ray asked where the phrase "the dog days of
summer" came from and said we were definitely there! IE, hot! Richard Finch
previewed an Ultra Van rally in Ruidoso and an airplane fly-in at Moriarty.
Robert reported on a talk at the Car Council meeting about zoning difficulties
with parking extra cars on our property. More than one or two cars owned and you
may have a problem. Actually, Robert said, an irritated neighbor was the more
likely source of a problem. Robert also included photos of exotic cars in a
Coast-to-Coast race. Steve Goodman reported on "Mightaswell Disease" from which
many Corvair owners suffer, where a minor tuneup can quickly escalate into a
multi-thousand-dollar restoration project -- often beyond the owner's ability to
control! We had a report (from December 2000) by Mark Martinek on a "Frostbite
Tour" when Mary Lou's 1963 Monza quit running and the efforts of many to
resuscitate it.
On a sad note, Christy Barden of Boulder, Colorado provided a biography of Herb
Berkman, a long-time Corvair enthusiast who died recently in an airplane crash.
Herb was active in Rocky Mountain CORSA for many years.
Finally, Jim reviewed the book "Where Have All the Leaders Gone" by Lee Iococca,
a sharp critique of American business and government in the 21st Century.
2000 - Vol 26 Nr 8 - # 299
Our cover featured five photos at a recent Route 66 clean-up party. Billiken
said we were lucky to have such a wide range of mechanical skills in our club.
We met for July at Galles Chevrolet and had no new members. Wendell said we had
$6,057 in the treasury. Mark Martinek reviewed many topics discussed at the Car
Council meeting. Plans for a summer camping trip were complicated by the no-burn
rules in effect everywhere due to the drought. Our after-meeting tech talk was
on converting your early model from generator to alternator. Several people had
contacted club members recently about selling Corvairs, including the 1965 Monza
coupe formerly owned by Bud Knapp. Your editor fantasized about his adventures
at the latest trash pickup day on Old Route 66. Not everything he told about was
made up, but some details were rather hard to believe. Your editor also told a
sober tale of unintended acceleration and how he didn't run into anything when
it happened. We devoted three pages to a discussion from Virtual Vairs on just
who or what was responsible for the demise of the Corvair. No, it wasn't Ralph
Nader - thus spake the folks on Virtual Vairs. Finally, there was a map showing
how to get to Ruth's place in the Pecos, and the copy of the famous swimming
pool picture Del supposedly found.
1993 - Vol 19 Nr 8 - # 215
The cover map helped us get to our summer campout, Villanueva State Park.
President Del presided. Will reported $1289 in the bank. Bill's Care and Feeding
of Your Corvair was now in its second edition. New club jackets arrived. Debbie
Pleau reported our proposal for the 1996 convention. We had a presentation on
synthetic oil. Kim previewed the Villanueva campout. Del reported on the Alamosa
Tri-State at Alamosa, particularly enjoyed by the mosquitoes. Four Corvairs were
on display at the Santa Fe show on July 4th as well as a big gray Bugatti.
After the car show we found that jackets in July were a good idea at a picnic at
the Santa Fe ski area. Tech tips included how to repair your gas gauge sending
unit and using a Ford Granada muffler for your FC. Some Corvair truck trivia was
provided by Tim Palmer of CORSA Northwest.
1986 - Vol 12 Nr 8 - # 131
August had a Chevrolet ad for a 1963 Monza coupe. President Claybourne ran the
meeting and told us about the phenomenon of getting half our yearly supply of
rain in a five-minute thunderstorm. Does your Corvair float? We had $863 in the
kitty. A picnic and a couple of car shows made up our Car Council news. A "new"
member was Dale Housley who was one of the CNM founders back in 1974, but his
job with the State Police took him away from Albuquerque for a number of years.
He was driving a sharp 1965 Monza coupe. After he found a Corsa coupe to
restore, he sold the Monza - it is now sitting in your editor's back yard,
always ready and eager to go to CNM meetings and events.
LeRoy was in the hospital for angioplasty and hoped to be home soon. Sylvan
claimed higher gas mileage than was reported in last month's newsletter and
claimed his Corvair had a record-breaking number of dents.
Your editor reported on the econo-run to El Morro and Grants. National Park
rangers told us about "Inscription Rock" and its place in the settlement of the
West. Fine examples of graffiti from the last four or five hundred years are to
be seen on the cliff face. Don't add yours, though, unless you are either very
rich, ineffably famous or a hundred years dead. We hiked up to the top of the
cliff to see ancient pueblo ruins and to see the marvelous view over the
landscape. After filling up and calculating the winning mileages (my yellow 1966
Corsa 140 got 33.7 MPG) some of us headed home while others went looking for the
natural arch on NM 117. It was impressive. Carved on the rocks were some
definitely twentieth-century graffiti. All in all, a truly memorable tour.
1979 - Vol 5 Nr 8 - # 47
Cover drawing by Mark Morgan showed a Yenko Stinger race car. There was no July
meeting but "minutes" included a report on the Moriarty Fourth of July trip
which included nine Corvairs. Sylvan reported that Fred Yuricic (eleven years
old) had a sweet-running engine he rebuilt. Dan Simpson says he rebuilt a
Powerglide transmission and it was an interesting job. Our summer dinner party
at Bella Vista was a success. The magazine Car Collector & Car Classics featured
the Corvair in its August 1979 issue.
Ike Meissner provided an excellent article on the ammeter, why every Corvair
needs one and why it is better than a voltmeter. Jim had an article on what you
can tell about your car's electrical system with a voltmeter. A tech tip from
Houston told where to look for those pesky bell housing oil leaks. Finally, Jim
editorialized about the national energy crisis and what we all can do to, if not
cure it, at least survive. A quote from Patrick Bedard of CAR AND DRIVER
magazine: don't worry about acceleration, worry about braking. You have to
accelerate to go anywhere, but every touch of the brake is wasted gasoline.
Therefore, always drive so as to minimize braking.
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Enchanted Corvairs Newsletter is published monthly by Corvairs of New Mexico,
chartered Chapter #871 of CORSA, the Corvair Society of America. Copyright by
the Authors and by Corvairs of New Mexico. Articles may be reprinted in any
CORSA publication as a service to CORSA members, provided credit to the Author
and this Newsletter is clearly stated. All opinions are those of the Author or
Editor and are not necessarily endorsed by Corvairs of New Mexico or CORSA.
Material for publication should reach the Editor by the 15th of the month. Send
material via e-mail ( jimp @ unm.edu ) or submit a readable manuscript. I prefer
ASCII TEXT, but MS Word or RTF are fine. Photographs are welcome. Don't
photoshop your digital JPGs -- send the originals. This ecologically green
newsletter is produced in a Microsoft-free environment. I still print mailing
labels with a 1989 Apple IIgs on a Hewlett-Packard LaserJet IIIp. The newsletter
is composed using Apple Macintosh computers. Software includes OS-X, AppleWorks,
Photoshop CS, GraphicConverter, BBEdit and InDesign CS. If you care, ask for
details. Transportation: 1965 Corvair Monza, 1990 Honda Civic, 1996 Mazda Miata,
2013 Honda Civic. When I'm 64, I'll get by with a little help from my friends.
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=END=