Happy (89th) Birthday Bill Hatch

 Most of you are familiar with my neighbor and great Corvette buddy, Bill Hatch.

As near as anyone can tell, Bill holds the World record for the longest running ownership of a single Corvette by one person -- he bought his 1957 Corvette new from Bates Chevrolet in Monrovia, California in 1957 and still owns it today, almost 64 years later!

Here is an article about Bill from 2012

55 Years with a 57 Corvette

Here is the article that appeared in the National Corvette Museum's magazine, "America's Sports Car", about Bill from 2013.

Committed for Life

Monday was Bill's 89th Birthday, so I decided to take him in his favorite car, out for his favorite meal, and to eat it at his favorite place.  We first drove our Corvettes to the In-N-Out Burger in Carlsbad.

With two "Double-Doubles" in hand, we then drove down the I-5 Freeway (will Bill hitting 73 MPH) to Moonlight Beach, and parked our cars.

We then settled on a bluff overlooking the beach to enjoy our burgers, fries and shakes.

Bill and Marylyn have travelled the World, but Moonlight beach is one of Bill's favorite places of all. He has been coming here since 1970 -- 50+ years.  He loves the view, the surf, and (in prior years) riding his bike on the sandy shore.

But most of all, Bill loved playing two-person volleyball on the beach. When we finished our lunch, we took a walk down to the volleyball courts.  While Bill was sharing memories of his adventures there, suddenly a guy yells out, "Hey Bill!"

One of his volleyball buddies recognized him -- what a treat!

It couldn't have been a better day -- the weather was fantastic, the food perfect, and the company superb!

Happy Birthday, Bill!