The June 2021 newsletter - Text Version
Updated 01-Jun-2021 ==== Copyright (c) 2021 Corvairs of New Mexico
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June 2021 / VOLUME 47 / NUMBER 6 / ISSUE 549
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First Place, Tony Fiore Memorial Chapter Newsletter Award, 2005 & 2012
Third Place, Tony Fiore Memorial Chapter Newsletter Award, 2010
EDITOR Jim Pittman
NEXT MEETING Actual (non-virtual) meeting: June 5th 10:00 AM
The Gongoras: 8419 Palo Duro NE Albuquerque NM 87111 505-292-5570
THIS MONTH
What's Up Dave (Econo Run is What's Up) .. President's Letter
Next Old Route 66 Cleanup, June 12th ............ Greg Nelson
Dues Due Dates ......................... Membership Committee
May Meeting Minutes ................................ Kay Sutt
May Board Meeting via Zoom ......................... Kay Sutt
Treasury Report ............................... Steve Gongora
Tony Fiore Newsletter Awards, 2019 & 2020 ........ Terry Kalp
Photos from the Springfield Mini-Convention .... Gary Huntoon
Article on Holden-Corvair Development ...... CORSA Communique
Service for David Neale via Internet ............ Jim Pittman
"My First Car" - by CNM Members ..... Edited by Karen Jackson
Calendar of Coming Events ................ Board of Directors
Birthdays & Anniversaries .............. Membership Committee
June Issues, 7, 14, 21, 28, 35 Years Ago ..... Club Historian
COVER Tony Berbig & Linda Soukup at an April Edgewood Breakfast
Corvairs at a previous east mountain economy run: 13 October 2018
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OFFICERS and VOLUNTEERS
President David Huntoon 505-281-9616 corvair66 @ aol.com
Vice-President Tarmo Sutt 505-690-2046 tarmo @ juno.com
Secretary Kay Sutt 505-471-1153 tarmo @ juno.com
Treasurer Steve Gongora 505-220-7401 stevegongora @ msn.com
Membership Linda Soukup 763-226-0707 feathersandfur.ls @ gmail.com
Car Council Tony Berbig 763-226-0707 studeboytony @ gmail.com
Merchandise Vickie Hall 505-865-5574 patandvickiehall @ q.com
Sunshine Heula Pittman 505-275-2195 heula @ q.com
Newsletter Jim Pittman 505-275-2195 jimp @ unm.edu
Old Route 66 Greg Nelson 505-400-8670 fesedu @ comcast.net
Past President Ray Trujillo 505-814-8373 rtrujilloabq505 @ gmail.com
Past President Pat Hall 505-620-5574 patandvickiehall @ q.com
Past President Dave Allin 505-410-9668 dnjallin @ gmail.com
MEETINGS: Actual (non-virtual) meeting: June 5th at 10:00 AM
The Gongoras: 8419 Palo Duro NE Albuquerque NM 87111 505-292-5570
INTERNET: CORSA's home page www.corvair.org/
CNM's newsletters www.unm.edu/~jimp/
New Mexico Council of Car Clubs www.nmcarcouncil.com/
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SCHEDULE CNM: 12 months = $25.00 or 26 months = $ 50.00
OF CORSA: 12 months = $45.00 or 26 months = $ 90.00
DUES CNM & CORSA: 12 months = $70.00 or 26 months = $140.00
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DUES DUE DATES June 2021
DUE LAST MONTH ====================== INACTIVE DATE
2021.05 NONE
DUE THIS MONTH ====================== INACTIVE DATE
2021.06 Janice & David Allin 25-JUL-2021
DUE NEXT MONTH ====================== INACTIVE DATE
2021.07 Lloyd Piatt 25-AUG-2021
2021.07 Sarah & Terry Price 25-AUG-2021
DUE AUG 2021 ======================== INACTIVE DATE
2021.08 Gregory Nelson 25-SEP-2021
2021.08 Brenda Stickler 25-SEP-2021
INACTIVE ============================ INACTIVE DATE
2020.02 Larry Yoffee 25-MAR-2020
2020.03 Natalie Robison 25-APR-2020
2020.04 Conner Siddell 25-MAY-2020
2020.06 Art Gold 25-JUL-2020
2021.04 Janet & Steve Johnson 25-MAY-2021
2021.04 Lesha Kitts 25-MAY-2021
Send your Dues to:
CNM Treasurer -- Steve Gongora
8419 Palo Duro NE
Albuquerque, NM 87111
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.
As of 29-May-2020 we have 43 active family memberships.
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WHAT'S UP DAVE?
David Huntoon
Hope everyone is well. Nice to see things approaching normal again!
At the last Car Council meeting we learned that the State Fair car show is back
on with no limits on number of cars. Car Council also had their first event
several weeks ago. A Poker Run in the north valley with more than 50 cars! Seems
people are eager for a return to normalcy. A swap meet on the 23rd went well and
another is planned for July 15-17. A three-day event this time at the
Albuquerque DragWay. The July 4th Car Show on the Santa Fe Plaza is back this
year. A recommended place to be if you want to see some unusual cars. Some you
may have never seen before.
Our next Old Route 66 cleanup is June 12 at 9am. Could always use a few more
people. June 19th will be our Econo Run in the East mountains. Start at Shell
station on N 14 around 10am. Fill up, run the route and fill up again to
determine your fuel usage. Total distance 43.27 miles and typical driving time
is about 1 hour. Directions are.......
Start at Shell station on N 14 and Frost Road, fill up, then......
00.00 miles, turn right onto N 14.
10.01 miles, turn right on S 344
21.94 miles, turn right on Frost Road, W 472
25.89 miles, turn left on Mountain Valley Rd at stop sign
29.45 miles, turn right on W 333, old RT 66
37.42 miles, turn right on N 14 at traffic signal
43.27 miles back at Shell station
Fill up. Record your miles, gallons, dollars and cents.
I will be there to record fuel usage and we will list the results
in the next newsletter.
Clean 'em up, tune 'em up, be there......
thx, David
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A reminder for club members that the next Old Route 66 trash pickup is on
Saturday June 12 at 9:00 AM. Once again we will meet on the east side of the
I-40 overpass. If the weather cooperates we can meet at the roots farm cafe
afterwards for tea, coffee and snacks. Cheers, Greg Nelson
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GENERAL MEETING MINUTES, 05/01/2021
BY SECRETARY KAY SUTT
The May meeting was called to order by President David Huntoon at 10:15 in the
back yard of Steve & Rita Gongora. A total of 25 people were present, including
Phil Finch from Tularosa, newer members Bill Richardson and Bill Heil, and guest
John Stitchman. Welcome Gentlemen.
President's Report: David reported on the NMCCC meeting he attended two weeks
ago. There will be no Albuquerque Museum Car Show this year. Financial
challenges caused by the loss of the swap meet last fall are constraining
factors, but events are starting to be scheduled as public venues begin opening
and people begin seeking car activities to enrich their lives. Hello Deli car
breakfasts on Saturday mornings are now active again.
The Tri-State Meet information has been posted on the Corvair Center and the
Corvair Owners' Group. The print ad is scheduled to be in the May or June CORSA
Communique -- depending on the ability of the publisher to get it placed in the
magazine so near the May publication cut-off date.
David reported the passing of our British member, David Neale, who purchased
Bill Reider's car last year and Mr. Neale was honored by comments by several
members at our meeting.
The new president of NMCCC is Robert Gold. Our members Tony Berbig and Greg
Nelson have volunteered to share CNM's place on the Car Council. Thank you for
volunteering, Gentlemen!
Vice President's Report: Tarmo Sutt reported the Tri-State website
www.tristatecorvairs.com is up and operational, and the online registration
Lupe Arellanes designed is now active on the site. The vendor Lupe used for the
online registration only allows one person to register at a time, so people will
have to fill out a second registration for a second person (wife, child, etc.)
for banquet registration and choice of meal.
Secretary's Report: Kay Sutt had nothing to report.
Treasurer's Report: Steve Gongora reported the balance in the account is
$7,575.38, and $1,038 has been donated by Jim Pittman specifically for Tri-State
expenses. Three people have paid for the Tri-State Banquet at this time.
Sunshine Committee Report: Vickie Hall reported the Tri-State registration
packets are pretty much complete.
Newsletter Editor: Jim Pittman informed members the deadline for the next
newsletter is 9 P.M. on Friday, May 28.
Old Route 66 Cleanup Report: Greg Nelson reported the next cleanup will be
Saturday May 8 at 9 A.M. at the regular place.
Old Business:
Virtually all the remaining business was centered on the upcoming Albuquerque
Tri-State Meet scheduled for October 15 - 17, 2021.
The hotel reports the banquet will go as scheduled, and they will honor the menu
chosen last year and at the same price.
Phil Finch is working on getting his Ultravan painted and in top running order
for the Tri-State. Several members volunteered to go down to Tularosa to help
him work on the Ultravan and help sort, organize and cull the Corvair stock left
by his late brother, Richard Finch.
Volunteers are needed for the Tri-State events, so keep the time open and be
thinking what you would like to do to help make this a successful event. If
every member volunteers a couple hours each day of the event, it will ensure the
event is a success.
The El Pinto informal dinner for Thursday night will be "order off the menu" and
at the expense of those attending.
Larry Blair has reported Dr. Harrison Schmitt has re-verified he will be the
keynote speaker for the Banquet.
Lupe Arellanes has T-shirts for the Tri-State for $10 available for order on the
registration form, and she had a prototype for members to see. She will also
have glasses, cooler bags and caps completed for sale at the event.
Steve Gongora & Terry Price agreed to take responsibility for getting dash
plaques designed and printed.
Check the website www.tristatecorvairs.com. Tarmo & Tami have worked hard to add
fun content, including photos, maps, videos, etc. The brochure will be on the
site when it is complete.
Hotel reservations: Please make your reservations early. Terry explains why: We
have 40 rooms reserved at the special rate. We can add more if we need them, as
many as we want. But, we will need to know ahead of time, I don't know how far,
probably two to three weeks, so we can get them set aside. That is why we need
as many people as possible to make reservations as soon as possible.
New Business:
The next CNM Board meeting will take place via Zoom on Wednesday, May 19th at
7:00 P.M. If you would like to join the meeting, remember all members are
welcome to attend. Let Kay Sutt know so she can add your name to the Zoom link
sent out prior to the meeting (505-690-2056 or suttkay@gmail.com).
The next CNM general meeting will be an in-person meeting (with Covid guidelines
being observed) in Steve & Rita Gongora's back yard at 8419 Palo Duro, NE, on
Saturday, June 5 at 10 A.M., pending any changes in the State's meeting
requirements during the pandemic. Members are urged to bring your Corvairs. Any
changes necessitated by the State of New Mexico's Covid guidelines will be
transmitted to club members elsewhere in this newsletter.
Larry Blair reports he has been contacted regarding a 1964 Corvair 4-speed
convertible which has not been driven in about 34 years that is for sale for
about $2,000. Call Larry for details.
John Stitchman brought a 1965 Monza convertible with fuel injection to the meet,
and he would like to sell this car. Call John if you are interested.
Finally, Tarmo Sutt reported his experience getting the speedometer for his 1966
convertible calibrated, and the lessons learned in the process. He plans a
separate article for this newsletter, so no elaboration is included here.
The meeting was adjourned at about 11:15 A.M.
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BOARD MEETING MINUTES, 05/19/2021
BY SECRETARY KAY SUTT
The May Board Meeting was held Wednesday May 19, 2021 at 7:00 P.M. via Zoom.
Present were President, David Huntoon, Vice-president Tarmo Sutt, Secretary Kay
Sutt, Newsletter Chair Jim Pittman, Old Route 66 Cleanup Chair Greg Nelson,
Tri-State Chair Terry Price and Tri-State Committee Member Lupe Arellanes.
The June General Meeting will be in person, subject to the NM State Covid
guidelines. It will be held Saturday, June 5, at Steve and Rita Gongora's house
(outside, or in their garage, depending on the weather) at 10:00 A.M.
The next NMCCC (New Mexico Car Club Council) meeting will be held at 7:00 PM on
May 26. David Huntoon and new representative, Greg Nelson, said they will
attend. They will let Tony Berbig, the other new representative, know about the
meeting as well.
The June Old Route 66 Highway Cleanup is scheduled by Greg Nelson, Chairperson,
at 9:00 A.M. on Saturday, June 12, at the regular location.
President David Huntoon has scheduled a CNM Corvair Econorun for June 19,
beginning at 10:00 A.M. The course will cover approximately 50 miles, and it
will take about an hour to drive. Drivers are asked to meet at, or slightly
before, 10:00 A.M. at the Cedar Crest Shell Station at the corner of Frost Road
and North Highway 14 (the Turquoise Trail), about 10 miles north of I-25 in
Cedar Crest. Frost Road is the intersection with Highway 14 leading to the Crest
if you are not familiar with the area. You will fill your Corvair's gas tanks
there, get your directions, and begin your drive. The drive will return you to
the same station, where you will refill your gas tank to determine how much gas
you used for the drive, and a winner will be determined from that calculation.
Lunch will be available afterwards at the Lazy Lizard Grill, adjoining the Cedar
Crest Shell Station, for those wishing to eat.
Jim Pittman, Newsletter Editor, set Friday, May 28 at 9:00 P.M. as the
newsletter deadline.
David Huntoon indicated his brother is currently attending the Corvair
mini-convention in Springfield, MO, and he sent along photos of two notable
Corvairs once owned by Carl Sagan and John Glenn. David has forwarded those
photos to Newsletter Chair, Jim Pittman.
The remainder of the discussion centered around the Tri-State meet, which CNM is
hosting October 15-17 in Albuquerque. Terry Price and Lupe Arellanes led the
discussion, and questions and comments were offered by various other officers.
1. The print ad has been sent to the CORSA Communique, and it should appear in
the upcoming issue.
2. Terry has printed about 170 postcards with the display ad appearing in the
CORSA Communique, and he will send those to chapters around the country to
forward to their members.
3. David Allin is working to arrange for the balloon rides for the meet, but he
reports he may be unable to attend himself.
4. Lupe Arellanes says the online registration is working well, and multiple
RMC and CNM members have signed up already.
5. CNM members are encouraged to make hotel reservations early, and you are
encouraged to do your online registration early as well.
The meeting was adjourned within the Zoom 40-minute limit.
Members are reminded you are welcome at all Board meetings. If you wish to
attend a Zoom meeting of the board, email Kay Sutt at suttkay@gmail.com to
request an invitation to join the discussion.
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TREASURY REPORT FOR 04-24-2021 to 05-xx-2021 =============================================
DATE CHECK# AMOUNT PAYEE DESCRIPTION BALANCE = $7,512.93
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2021.04.30 4194 +$ 40.00 TRISTATE David Huntoon Registration +$ 40.00 $7,552.93
2021.04.21 2897 +$ 50.00 Dues L.Lubert 26 m CNM +$ 50.00 $7,602.93
2021.04.21 2401 -$ 132.55 J.Pittman Newsletter Printing MAY 2021 -$ $7,602.93
2021.04.21 2401 -$ J.Pittman 38 Newsletters -$ 46.43 $7,556.50
2021.04.21 2401 -$ J.Pittman 34 Stamps at $0.70 each -$ 23.80 $7,532.70
2021.04.21 2401 -$ J.Pittman 34 envelopes at $0.161 each -$ 5.47 $7,527.23
2021.04.21 2401 -$ H.Pittman 100 Stamps "Sunshine" $0.568 ea -$ 56.85 $7,470.38
2021.04.21 3449 +$ 25.00 Dues T.Berbig 12 m CNM +$ 25.00 $7,495.38
2021.05.01 7705 +$ 80.00 Deposit Tarmo & Kay Sutt TRI-STATE +$ 80.00 $7,575.38
2021.05.01 5596 +$ 70.00 Dues G.Johnson 12 m CORSA & CNM +$ 70.00 $7,645.38
2021.05.01 2402 -$ 45.00 CORSA G.Johnson 12 m CORSA -$ 45.00 $7,600.38
2021.05.02 2403 -$ -337.77 All-Sports Trophies ---- Blank Name Tags -$337.77 $7,262.61
2021.05.09 1287 +$ 25.00 Dues J.Dinsdale 12 m CNM +$ 25.00 $7,287.61
2021.05.17 667 +$ 25.00 Dues S.Johnson 12 m CNM +$ 25.00 $7,312.61
2021.05.17 1233 +$ 50.00 Deposit Ken Schifftner TRI-STATE +$ 50.00 $7,362.61
2021.05.22 8730 +$ 100.00 Deposit Tony & Diane Lawler TRI-STATE +$100.00 $7,462.61
2021.05.22 1056 +$ 100.00 Deposit Lupe, James Arrellanes TRI-STATE +$ 80.00 $7,542.61
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2021.06.01 JUN NEWSLETTER ===================================================== $7,542.61
TRI-STATE 2021 EXPENSE FUND
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2021.04.30 +$1,031.47 Tri-State 2021 Fund Donation Jim Pittman $1,031.47
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Subject: 2019 and 2020 Tony Fiore Chapter Newsletter Awards
From: Terry Kalp [ tkalp@cox.net ]
Date: 2021=May=27 14:20:18 MDT
To: Jim jimp@unm.edu [ jimp@unm.edu ]
Jim,
The 2019 and 2020 CORSA newsletter awards were announced at the CORSA
Mini-Convention in Springfield. Since you maintain a list of winners on
the club's website I am attaching an official list of the winners as a
Word document.
Keep up the good work. There should be an award for longest term as chapter
newsletter editor ... pretty sure you would be a shoe-in.
Terry Kalp
TONY FIORE CORSA CHAPTER NEWSLETTER AWARDS
2019 Calendar Year:
1st The Fanbelt -- New Jersey Association of Corvair Enthusiasts
Bob Marlow, Editor
2nd Tie between:
COCA Newsletter -- Central Oklahoma Corvair Association
Coleen Law, Editor
Corvan Antics -- Corvanatics Special Interest Chapter
Molly Bacon, Editor
2020 Calendar Year:
1st Corvan Antics -- Corvanatics Special Interest Chapter
Molly Bacon, Editor
2nd Tie between:
The Fanbelt -- New Jersey Association of Corvair Enthusiasts
Bob Marlow, Editor
The DenVair News -- Rocky Mountain CORSA
Paul Seyforth, Editor
Subject: Re: 2019, 2020 Tony Fiore Chapter Newsletter Awards
From: James Pittman [ jimp@unm.edu ]
Date: 2021=May=27 15:59:28 MDT
To: Terry Kalp [ tkalp@cox.net ]
Cc: David HUNTOON [ corvair66@aol.com ]
Hi Terry,
Thanks! I have added these newsletters to the list on my web
page. I'll probably also add this to my June newsletter.
- Jim
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MY BROTHER GARY went to the mini-convention in Springfield, Illinois. His photos
of the Carl Sagan (red) and John Glen (tan) 1964 Corvairs. -- David Huntoon
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CORSA COMMUNIQUE - HOLDEN IN CORVAIR DEVELOPMENT
JIM PITTMAN
We all know Chevrolet used Australian Holden cars to test the Corvair prototype,
right? Well, in the Communique for June 2021 there is a long and detailed
article with many photos of this story. More than we ever knew about! Another
reason for Corvair fans to be a member of CORSA and get their excellent
publications.
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SERVICE FOR DAVID NEALE VIA THE INTERNET
JIM PITTMAN
Lee Reider told us that the service in remembrance of David Neale would be
available to stream via the internet. The date was Wednesday May 12th at 2:45
PM. The time difference between Albuquerque and England is seven hours, so we
started looking for the feed at about 7:30 AM. It started right on time and the
picture was as clear as if it had been sent from a local TV station. The sound
from the room's PA system left a bit to be desired and it was not possible to
understand all the words.
When I was growing up in the south in the 1940s and 1950s it was a given that
you'd attend funerals of near or distant family members or members of your
church congregation, so I have been to many funerals. In 1997 when Princess
Diana died and the state funeral was broadcast to the world from London, I
stayed up late to watch it, and this year I watched the broadcast of the royal
funeral of Prince Phillip. I was curious to see if the service for David would
be similar to southern funerals. There were similarities but also differences.
One difference was that at the end of the service everyone in the audience filed
to the front of the room and bowed toward the casket before filing out a side
door. I can only assume that many people gathered outside the room before and
after the service, but if so, none of that was shown.
There was one person who spoke and gave the eulogy which was basically a brief
outline of David's life, his education and careers. He was educated as an
engineer but later went into the police force where he served as an officer for
thirty years. The speaker said that two of his interests after retiring were
restoring American Chevrolet cars and restoring old radio sets. The radio sets
had what we call vacuum tubes but the British call thermionic valves.
I don't know if anyone in CNM watched the service beside Lee and her daughter.
Lee said she could see the video but could not hear anything. I'm sure she was
disappointed when I told her there was no mention of the Corvair club nor of
Bill's car being shipped to England last year. But Laurie provided photos of the
car that David had made after getting it safely to his home and starting to work
on it. We are all disappointed that he became ill and died before he could
report on his use of the car in England. We were hoping he would succeed in his
plan to come to America and attend our Tri-State, but now that will not happen.
I am glad we had the opportunity to experience the service "live" from England,
limited though it was.
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Note: In 1986 Karen Jackson had the idea to ask our members to tell
about their first car experiences. Several members replied and Karen
provided their stories for the newsletter. These are some of those stories.
"MY FIRST CAR" -- STORIES BY CNM MEMBERS
EDITED BY KAREN JACKSON
I. FRANCIS BOYDSTON bought his first car in June 1945. It set him back $600 in
San Luis Obispo, California! while he was still in the Navy. It was a 1938 Ford
coupe with a 60-HP V-8 engine. During the year he owned the Ford coupe, he drove
from California to Denver, Colorado. Going over mountain passes in a gutless
60-HP vehicle was an adventure for Francis. The car wasn't much better at sea
level. Perhaps that is why Francis is loyal to Corvairs. He still travels, and
all he drives is Corvairs.
II. LARRY BLAIR said that his first car was a 1936 two-tone black Ford coupe.
In this "hot" car he cruised Main Street almost every night. Besides being able
to do 85 to 90 mph, the 1936 coupe had a window shade that pulled down over the
rear window. He was in high school when he bought the car for $250. Now, an
engineer, Larry drives a Chevy pickup and Corvairs. Larry also enjoys
woodworking, hunting, fishing, food and tennis.
III. JIM PITTMAN would become a sports car fan, but his first car, passed down
from his family, was a 1952 dark blue automatic V-8 Ford custom four-door. When
it was new the family drove it from Louisiana to the Great Smoky Mountains in
Tennessee and North Carolina. By the time he started college his mother had a
1957 Ford and he inherited the 1952 Ford. It would easily cruise at 70 mph to
college and to various parts of Mississippi and Louisiana. Although it was
reliable and cheap to maintain, it was too big, too old, too heavy and the wrong
color for Jim Pittman. When he went into the Air Force Jim left it with his
brother. Later the first car Jim bought new was, you guessed it, a Ford.
IV. CHARLES VERTREES, back in 1948, towed home a 1929 Model A Ford coupe from
a junkyard And it cost him $50! He then proceeded to disassemble it completely,
rebuild it and "hop" it up. After he hotrodded the 1929 Model A, Chuck sold it
to his brother, but not before drag racing on the Roswell to Vaughn highway for
two years. He misses the car because it was fun to drive and easy to work on.
V. CLAYBORNE SOUZA received his first car as a graduation present from his
parents. It was a 1963 Chevy II Nova Super Sport and had 64,000 miles on the
odometer. However, from the condition of the car he believed it had to be
164,000 miles. After all, the almost ten-year-old car's 230 L-6 engine was
completely worn out. Over the next two to three years Clayborne rebuilt the
mechanical portion of the car, that is, the front end, rear end, engine and
transmission. During that time he also drove it back and forth from Tracy City,
California to Pocatello, Idaho (where he was in the diesel mechanics program at
the university) and to San Felipe in Baja California, Mexico. Then to
Washington, D,C. and to Virginia Beach. By the time he gave the car back to his
father the odometer on the car had turned over twice. When Clayborne's father
was selling the car a year or two ago, the odometer read 99,800. A gentleman
looking at the car thought that was high mileage. Clayborne's father chuckled
and said there's a running joke in the family about whether the car has 300,000
or 400,000 miles on it. The man bought the car anyway.
VI. BILL McCLELLAN told us that a 1917 Model T Ford roadster that he bought in
1927 for $10 was his transportation to and from high school. The ten-mile drive
from high school to home could be an adventure on a rainy day. The roadster had
no battery and ran on coils. If the coils got wet, Bill removed them and dried
them on the furnace. Three years later, he got a 1929 Model A with a rumble seat
for better transportation. When he retired, Bill owned a 1976 Pontiac Le Mans to
drive to and from the golf course.
VII. ELLIOTT KNAPP, a retired farmer, drove a Lincoln, a Cadillac, an Imperial,
a Corvair and a rare 1926 Buick Master Short touring car that was his FIRST car.
He bought it, used, in August 1928 for $550. Only 2051 Buick Master touring cars
were built. The special paint and trim on his 1926 Master took Elliott wherever
he wanted to go in grand style.
VIII. KIRSTIN ROMER is a woman whose first car is her only, and her last! Why?
Because people look at it and it's not like the car next door. Kristin, who
likes hot air balloons and cars, drives a 1965 Corvair Monza convertible. When
her convertible was an ugly, faded aqua with non-original black interior, it
carried her to and from school. Kristin has driven her Corvair between
Albuquerque and Nevada, Missouri; Colorado Springs, Pueblo and Canon City.
People didn't pay much attention to it back then, but now that her Corvair is
bright shiny red with immaculate white interior, it has won first place in car
shows and people stare at it.
IX. DEAN SANBORN, back in 1927, bought a 1918 Model T touring car for $10 from
his family doctor. The Model T had side curtains and a floor board hot air
heater. Six months after he bought the car, Dean installed a radio and a 4-valve
head on the engine. These improvements cost him $3.00 and included a valve
cover. (If you wanted to buy a similar car today, the car would cost you between
$6,000 and $12,000 and the 4-valve head, with valve cover, about $600.) For two
years Dean, his brother and four friends explored the mountains west of Boulder,
Colorado where they grew up. In the Model T they visited many real ghost towns
and old abandoned mines. They visited Nederland, Ward, Central City and Idaho
Springs in Dean's Pride & Joy. Then he traded the 1918 Model T, plus $10, for a
1923 Touring Car. Dean is a retired Civil Engineer. He'd like to have another
Model T, if he had a place to keep it and if he could afford maintenance and
repair parts.
X. LEE OLSEN wrote in 2004: My first car was a 1963 convertible that had been
repainted a baby blue after starting life as a white car with a red interior.
The guy had taken the motor out and had it overhauled but had never put it back
in the car. I ended up buying the car with absolutely no idea about where all
the odd-looking shrouds and pieces went on that car. As luck would have it, the
old gentleman who lived behind my shop was a retired Chevrolet mechanic who
still had his 1963 Greenbrier. Mr. Todd had shop manuals and a wealth of
knowledge about Corvairs. He really liked them when they came out, although many
mechanics hated to see them come into the shop. To make a long story short, he
gave me lots of guidance and I successfully installed the engine and had it
running like a song. As we all know, once you have a Corvair you soon have a
small collection of them, or at least a small storage shed full of parts. That
first car was purchased in 1995 and since then I have bought several parts cars
and bought and sold several running cars. I guess I am very lucky, maybe I
should buy more lotto tickets, but I found my current love, Yenko Stinger number
"YS 044" in a junk yard close to home! I have restored it to like new condition.
I sold the 1963 after a 5 year affair to take a new convertible mistress, a 1966
Corsa convertible. I hope to restore it in the next couple years, although it is
a running, driving car now. It shouldn't be near the job as the Yenko.
XI. HURLEY WILVERT wrote in 2004: My first car was a beautiful 1960, turquoise
blue, 500 coupe, 80 hp 3-speed manual shift Chevrolet Corvair. I didn't choose
it, my father did. I was going to college and I really needed a car. I think I
had told my father about Corvairs, the economical, not too fast, small car that
Chevrolet had just come out with, but I didn't think he would ever buy me one. I
suppose it was because we had a Chevrolet at the time. I came home one day and
there it was, sitting in front of the house. I could hardly wait to drive it!
Even though it was only 80 hp and a three-speed, it was GREAT! I loved that car
and drove it everywhere until one day I was driving somewhere and decided to
change lanes. I didn't notice the guy in the station wagon on the side road. I
moved to the right just as he pulled out and he hit the right rear quarter
panel. My dad wouldn't believe that it was not my fault. He had the body damage
fixed. Shortly thereafter the rivets on the flywheel started to loosen and
rattle. Dad took it to the dealer who replaced the flywheel. The dealer said the
loose flywheel came from "jackrabbit" starts. How can you do "jackrabbit" starts
with an 80 hp motor? But that was it. Dad sold the "Sports Car" and bought me a
1953 Chevrolet four-door. But that's another story.
XII. MARY LOU MARTINEK wrote in 1999: It was really Wendell Walker who started
it all. Mark and I had gone to a car show at the Albuquerque Museum in the
spring of 1990 and Wendell was there driving a cute convertible. It was the
first Corvair that I remember seeing. I mentioned to husband Mark that a Corvair
would sure be a nice little car to tow behind our R.V. I was sure Mark did not
pay much attention -- after all, he had always been a Ford man and had owned a
few, some of museum quality. One day I went over to the southeast part of town
to purchase a cartridge for my new Epson printer, and outside a warehouse-like
building I saw several Corvairs. My curiosity got the best of me. I went over to
talk to the guy who was working on one of them and he turned out to be none
other than Bill Reider. I learned a few things about those cute little cars that
day and Bill even had an automatic he would sell me. I took his card and advice
about the Club and went home and talked to Mark. He looked at me like I was
crazy. I found out why a few days later when I received my birthday gift: a 1963
Monza Convertible. So in August I decided to visit the Club that Bill had talked
about. I got into my cute little 'Vair and drove all the way to Ed Black's
Chevrolet dealership near San Mateo and Zuni. It was neat how everyone checked
out everybody else's car outside before the meeting. Inside I got the distinct
impression that I was invading a man's domain. But that just made me more
determined than ever to continue attending. After all, I was the proud owner of
that cute, little car! I made new friends who patiently answered my many
questions. I was glad when the Pleaus moved here from California and joined our
Club because Debbie came to the meetings as often as her job would allow. I
finally got Mark to tag along to a couple of the meetings, especially after he
went to a couple of the Club outings. He even took one his Fords to some 'Vair
Club outings. We have the photos to show. Mark learned how to care for "my baby"
with lots of help and instructions from Bill and Sylvan, so it stays in great
shape and I have a few trophies to prove that. Mark even sold his Ford and
became a 'Vair owner also when he purchased a neat 1965 Corsa for a daily
driver. In August 2000 I will have been a member for ten years! I hope by then
I'll still be driving that cute little car from long ago and enjoying others in
that great Club - "Corvairs of New Mexico."
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| June 2021 | July 2021 | August 2021 |
| Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa | Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa | Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa |
| 1 2 3 4 5 | 1 2 3 | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 |
| 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 | 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 | 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 |
| 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 | 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 | 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 |
| 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 | 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 | 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 |
| 27 28 29 30 | 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 | 29 30 31 |
| | | |
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SAT 05 JUN 10:00 AM REGULAR CLUB MEETING: DRIVE YOUR CORVAIR!
* At the Gongoras: 8419 Palo Duro NE Albuquerque NM 87111 505-292-5570
* Masks and social distancing advised and required due to continuing COVID-19
SAT 12 JUN 9:00 AM Old Route 66 Cleanup - Meet at I-40 / NM333 overpass
WED 16 JUN 7:00 PM Board Meeting via Zoom, hosted by Kay Sutt
Contact: 505-471-1153 or ( suttkay @ gmail.com )
SAT 19 JUN 10:00 AM - Economy Run in East Mountains - Details to follow
WED 23 JUN 7:30 PM NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL MEETING: >>>>>>>> TO BE DETERMINED
FRI 25 JUN 9:00 PM Deadline for items for the July 2021 newsletter
MON 28 JUN >> TARGET FOR PRINTING AND MAILING JULY NEWSLETTER <<
============================================================================
SAT 03 JUL 10:00 AM Meeting: >>>>>>>> TO BE DETERMINED
WED 21 JUL 5:00 PM Board Meeting: >>>>>>>> TO BE DETERMINED
WED 28 JUL 7:30 PM NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL MEETING: >>>>>>>> TO BE DETERMINED
FRI 30 JUL 9:00 PM Deadline for items for the August 2021 newsletter
MON 02 AUG >> TARGET FOR PRINTING AND MAILING AUGUST NEWSLETTER <<
============================================================================
SAT 07 AUG 10:00 AM Meeting: >>>>>>>> TO BE DETERMINED
WED 18 AUG 5:00 PM Board Meeting: >>>>>>>> TO BE DETERMINED
WED 25 AUG 7:30 PM NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL MEETING: >>>>>>>> TO BE DETERMINED
FRI 27 AUG 9:00 PM Deadline for items for the September newsletter
MON 30 AUG >> TARGET FOR PRINTING AND MAILING SEPTEMBER NEWSLETTER <<
============================================================================
SAT 04 SEP 10:00 AM Meeting: >>>>>>>> TO BE DETERMINED
WED 15 SEP 5:00 PM Board Meeting: >>>>>>>> TO BE DETERMINED
WED 25 SEP 7:30 PM NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL MEETING: >>>>>>>> TO BE DETERMINED
FRI 24 SEP 9:00 PM Deadline for items for the October newsletter
MON 27 SEP >> TARGET FOR PRINTING AND MAILING OCTOBER NEWSLETTER <<
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See the New Mexico Council of Car Clubs Web Site for more "NMCCC" activities
======================== http://www.nmcarcouncil.com/ ======================
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Happy Birthday Wishes to June CNM'ers:
Leroy Alderete
Bianca Arellanes
Bill Darcy
Phil Finch
Robert Gold
Rita Gongora
Tony Lawler
Jonathan Reider
Timothy Shortle
Sylvia Trujillo
Happy Anniversary Wishes to June CNM'ers:
Janice & Dave Allin
Debra & Jon Anderson
Sharon & William Heil
Sarah & Terry Price
Mary Zelli & James Richardson
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SEVEN YEARS AGO [ JUNE 2021 VOL 47 Nr 6 ISSUE 549 ]
Jim Pittman
2014 V.40 N.6 #465
The 1965 Monza did a rain dance in our very dry New Mexico, and a quilt was
especially made to raffle at the Chama Tri-State Meet. David Huntoon mentioned a
1950's Sunbeam Alpine at the Museum car show, another superb event. An article
by Casey Schesky told the early story of engineer Ed Cole whom we all know and
love. John Wiker finally got a trophy for his yellow Corvair at a car show.
2007 V.33 N.6 #381
Art Gold posed with a 1965 Monza sedan and we learned how hand controls were
added. Sylvan provided a tech session, showing a set of carboned-up spark plugs.
Ray Trujillo told about the drive to Monte Vista. Wendell Walker's RX-7 caught
fire! Actually it was just spilled oil that smoked a lot and the Antonito Fire
Department promptly delt with the problem. Robert praised the greatness of the
2007 Museum car Show. John Wiker told about a car show in Santa Fe and making
the "Route 66 Cruise" starting in Bosque Farms. Del Patten described living with
Corvairs in Virginia. We had a report on the Monte Vista Tri-State by Steve
Goodman.
2000 V.26 N.6 #297
Photos throughout this issue totaled thirty-eight, mostly from the Year 2000
Albuquerque Tri-State. Hurley Wilvert ran our meeting; Chuck Vertrees took
notes; Wendell Walker reported $6,613 in the bank; Mark Martinek reported Car
Council news; Debbie Pleau reported on Tri-State preparations; Mark Domzalski
previewed our Bar-B-Que. Hurley reported on another great Tri-State and thanked
many members for all their help. A few named were Del Patten, Photo Rally. Bill
Reider & Jerry Goffe, Museum Car Show. David Patten, Bar-B-Que cooking. Mary Lou
Martinek, Sylvan Zuercher, Jim Pittman, Debbie & Ron Deck, registration. Ruth
Boydston & Ilva Walker, raffle prizes. Yes, this list leaves out many others who
worked on the event, not to mention the many superb Colorado Corvairs and their
owners who traveled south to Albuquerque. Finally, a map showed the way to
Brenda Wilvert's home where the CNM Ladies group planned to meet.
1993 V.19 N.6 #213
A Rampside photo from Autoweek Magazine. State Senator Michael Wiener brought
samples from his extensive collection of license plates. Treasurer Will Davis
said we had $1,428 after BMW expenses were factored in. Wait, I made that up.
Debbie chaired a committee to make a bid for a CORSA national convention. We
planned our participation in the Museum car show and the Alamosa Tri-State.
There was to be a Kaiser-Frazier car show in June. LeRoy reported on the Museum
car show; 200 cars showed up, nine of them CNM Corvairs. Del Patten discussed
"restification" as it applies to Corvairs. What's that, you ask? "What the
original might have been if the factory had hand-built a car for a specific
owner." If you ever wanted an index of Larry Claypool's "Stock is..." columns
from the CORSA Communique, 1987-1993 you can find it in this issue. Quite a
variety of topics! A pirated cartoon feature had Otto Mechanic taking Reo to the
"filling station." Finally, we borrowed another publication's article, "Changing
Coil Springs" by J. Garrison so that if you need to do this dangerous job you
can do it correctly.
1986 V.12 N.6 #129
A drawing made from a 35-mm photo taken at the 1985 Museum car show. Maybe we'll
see more of this some day. President Clayborne presided; Treasurer LeRoy
reported $732; Bill Reider said CNM members were responsible for parking cars at
the Museum car show. New Otto Parts catalogs were available. Karen Jackson gave
us a report on her "My first car" research and included a quiz to match the
person's name with the described adventure. At the Museum car show 245 vehicles
showed up and twenty were Corvairs. Finally, a newspaper blurb told us "That
Auto Mechanic May Not Think Much of You, Either" and offered us insights on
automobile maintenance from a decidedly different point of view, that of your
mechanic.
1979 V.5 N.6 #45
Many photos of Corvairs at our April Winrock Car Show. The show was our third
(and last) at Winrock shopping center. It was a great success. Comments from the
crowd: Are these new 1980 cars? Where can I buy one? Weren't these unsafe at any
speed? My uncle had one of those, the model with the four-cylinder engine.
Thanks to Francis Boydston and Clay Keen for their thorough preparations. We
planned a club birthday party for May 13th at Cutler Park. We discussed whether
the Club should obtain special tools for members to use. We had two poems in
this issue: one lamented a bashed fender inflicted by a falling tree and the
other expressed the wish that a Honda Accord would arrive in your editor's
driveway. (Eleven years later a Honda Civic did just that.) Tech tip: George
Morin suggested if your heater motor was blowing fuses, instead of installing a
new one from a Vega, you could try taking it out and lubricating the bushings.
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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. The newsletter
is composed using Apple computers. Software includes Mac OS-X, AppleWorks,
Photoshop CS, GraphicConverter, BBEdit and InDesign CS. If you care, ask for
more details. When I'm 64, I'll get by with a little help from my friends.
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