Before North Coast Corvette Club

Nan and I have been members of the North Coast Corvette Club here in San Diego since 2019.

This is a wonderful group of people who donate to worthy causes, participate in many excellent social events, provide loving support to members, and take some amazing short and long-distance trips.

Before we became members of NCV, we had our own "Corvette Club"!

Below are some of the events we held at our home.

2008, April – 5 Corvettes

Mike and Patty Eddy, Nan, Bob Vollmar and friend, Jeff and Sherrie Smith, Bill and Marylyn Hatch.




2009 May – Crusin’ Grand – 7 Corvettes

Larry and Cindy Barnes, Canon, Nan, Mike and Patty Eddy, Bill Hatch, Jeff Smith, Wayne Cowie, [Husband and wife we met – can’t remember their names]. We caravaned to Escondido for Crusin’ Grand




2010 August – Corvette Diner – 7 Corvettes

Herod Howard and his sister, Ann, [the same couple from 2009 that I can’t remember!], Bob Vollmar, Cary (Nan is somewhere!), Joann and Bill Brandon, Bill and Marylyn Hatch, Sandy and Len Rogerson, Jeff and Sherrie Smith.




2011 July Corvette Party – 10 Corvettes

(front row) Shirley and Don Kingery, Canon, Nan (taking the photo), Cary, Jeff and Sherrie, John and Linda Elder

(back row) Len and Sandy, Herod, Bob Vollmar, Marylyn and Bill




2013 January – Corvette Diner – 7 Corvettes

Matthew Reabold, Jr., Nan, Linda and John, Russ and Peggy Stroika, Marylyn and Bill, Cindy and Larry, Patty and Mike




2013 September – The 60th Anniversary of the Corvette – 14 Corvettes

(front row) Russ, Don, John (Elder), Jan (Nan’s mom), Canon, Nan, Cary, Dan Schrokosch, Sherrie and Jeff

(back row) Sandy, Patty and Mike, Herod, Bob, Bill (Brandon), Larry and Cindy, Bob Rabourne and his son, Phil 

Note: three 50th anniversary Corvettes for Corvette’s 60th birthday!




2014 San Diego Automobile Museum – 6 Corvettes

(front row) Evelyn and Bob Rabourne, John and Linda, Nan

(back row) Jeff and Sherrie, Parvin Russell, Bill Connelly, Sandy, (unknown), Susan Connelly




2015 Party – 13 Corvettes

(sorry – I only have a photo of the cars and not the people!)

(front row) Sandy, Don & Shirley, Nan’56, Cary’s 62, Nan & Cary’s 50th Anniversary car, Bill Connelly, Bill & Marylyn, Jeff & Sherrie

(back row) Bob (Vollmar), Herod, (not sure of the owner of this C5), Larry & Cindy, Vladimir and Rosie Medvinsky (60th Anniversary car)




2017 Seaview Way Car Show (Cary’s 70th birthday) – 8 Corvettes and other cool cars!

It is hard to capture all the Corvettes in one photo, so there are two photos below, but I “think” these are the Corvettes represented:

Herod (white C7), Don & Shirley (grey C7), Cary’s 62, Nan’s 56, Cary & Nan 50th Anniversary car, Bill Hatch 57, Jeff Smith C5, Rick Sing C6 Z06,







 

Then in 2019 and 2020, before the "pandemic", we did many impromptu "Burger Runs". 

Here is a selection of those events.





















Fun times and great memories.

Laguna Seca 2025

When traditions produce fond memories, they tend to self-perpetuate.

For the eighth time since 2016, the "fabulous foursome" (Nan, Shirley, Don, and yours truly) made the traditional trip from Carlsbad to Laguna Seca to watch the Corvettes race in IMSA competition.

As we have done in the past, including last year, we took two C8 Corvettes on a road trip the 400 miles one-way to Monterey for three days of Corvette worship.  We arrived on Friday afternoon early enough for Happy Hour and some beautiful views of the Monterey Bay. 

Last year we took the Nan's Z06, but this year we took Nan's C8 convertible and, each year, Don's C8 coupe.  We arrived early at the Corvette Corral on Saturday morning.

We always love to see the drivers and to get autographed posters and other Corvette swag.

 

The GTDPRO drivers stopped by the corral first -- Tommy Milner, Alexander Sims, Nicky Catsburg, and Antonio Garcia -- all familiar faces to us.

 

Two of the four GTD drivers (below) stopped by for autographs in the late afternoon.  Alex Udell (right in the photo below) was joined by Robert Wickens (on the left).  

Robert's racing history is inspiring. Here is a quote from the DXDT website: "Robert joins DXDT for the team’s IMSA debut in 2025.  His racing career began in 2011 with great success in many racing formats. However, a tragic accident at Pocono in 2018 left him with a spinal injury, sidelining his IndyCar career and leaving him a paraplegic. Despite this, Wickens made an extraordinary return to racing in 2022.  Using adapted hand controls, he clinched a podium finish in his return and dominated the 2023 season, winning the TCR drivers’ championship. Over his return, Wickens has earned 14 podiums, 3 wins, and 4 poles, continuing to inspire others with his passion, perseverance, and dedication to the sport."  The Corvette fans gave Robert an enthusiastic welcome.

 

There was a fourth team At Laguna Seca -- No. 13 AWA Corvette team of Matt Bell and Orey Fidani.  We didn't see them in the Corral, though. 

As is customary, Josh Holder, Corvette Chief Engineer, gave a great presentation. This year he focused on the newly announced Corvette ZR1, describing what it was like to create a passenger car with 1,064 HP.  He shared some humorous and interesting insights about the reactions that drivers have to that much power. I think buyers should be required to attend the Ron Fellows Performance Driving School before getting their hands on one of these cars!

We always love visiting with Doug Fehan, Corvette brand ambassador, and recently retired Corvette Executive Chief Engineer, Tadge Juechter. 

The legacy and history of Corvette Racing is omnipresent.

Saturday's qualifying session proved promising -- Alexander Sims in the GTDPRO class qualified the #3 Corvette in third place, while the #4 Corvette, qualified in fifth place.  In the GTD Class, DTDX Racing qualified second in class with a huge effort by Alec Udell, missing the pole position by only 0.009 seconds!  We left for dinner hopeful for some good results on Sunday. 

We returned to the track early on Sunday morning, just in time for Don and Shirley to join about 75 Corvettes driving parade laps on the Laguna Seca track.

While waiting for the race to begin, Don and Cary drove the Go Karts . . . 

 . . . . and the four of us visited the pits to see the prep of the Corvettes.

 

Finally, the race began.  There were 10 cars competing in the GTDPRO class and 15 cars in the GTD class with two Corvettes in each class.  

It's always so scary watching all 25 cars as they come roaring away from the start/finish line, down the hill toward the first hairpin turn -- this year there weren't any crashes in the first 10 seconds of the race!

 

The two GTDPRO Corvettes ran at the front of the pack at the beginning of the 2 hour and 40 minute race. Then the jerks in the BMW, once again, as they have in other races, needed to run into a Corvette as a "passing maneuver". I have decided that the BMW team needs to leave IMSA and join NASCAR -- where "bumping" is actually legal!

Here is a quote about NASCAR rules . . . .

    In NASCAR, bumping, also known as bump-and-run, is generally permitted as a passing maneuver. However, it's not a free-for-all, and intentional, aggressive bumping that risks significant damage or injury to other drivers is frowned upon and can result in penalties. 

In GTDPRO, the (ugly) pink AO Racing Porsche, and the "Dragon Speed" Ferrari were fierce competitors, trading first and second place throughout the race -- they ended up finishing P1 and P2.  The #3 Corvette, driven by Antonio and  Alexander finished P3 (where they had qualified), and Tommy and Nicky finished P6 behind a Lambo and the (evil) BMW.

In GTD, the DTDX team, with Alex at the wheel, suffered contact by another car as they entered the pits, and had to perform a "drive through", costing them a possible podium finish -- they ended up P10.  The AWA team finished P13. 

After the race, we went to watch the post-race celebrations and Shirley and Nan helped Antonio celebrate his podium finish!

We concluded a good race weekend on Sunday evening with a nice meal at Monterey's Fish House and a good bottle of wine. 

The drive home on Monday was great.  We made very good time, stopped only once for potty, food, and fuel, and were safely parked in our homes before dinner time.

 

Both Corvettes performed beautifully, making the 874 mile trip averaging about 28 MPG.

Thanks, Nan, Shirley, and Don, for another great road trip! 

Nan's Z06 - Road Trip #3

The first Road Trip for Nan's Z06 was to Monterey, California to watch the Corvettes race in May, 2024:

Nan's Z06 - Road Trip #1 

 The second Road Trip was to go to Pahrump, Nevada to attend the Ron Fellows Performance Driving School in also in May, 2024:

Nan's Z06 - Road Trip #2 

Road Trip 3 was in late September 2024 to the Grand Canyon -- our first road trip in the new Z06 with our Corvette Club (North Coast Corvette Club)!

Twelve Corvettes began this trip by meeting at the intersection of I-15 and California Highway 76 at 7:30 AM on Monday, September 23rd. 

Our first trip leg was to drive 206 miles across the Southern California Desert, across the Colorado River to Quartzsite, Arizona for lunch at the Mountain Quail Cafe.

 

Monday was two days after Nan's birthday, and one day after mine. Jan Weber kindly brought birthday cup cakes for everyone and wished us both Happy Birthday.  Such is the kindness and thoughtfulness of this amazing group of people!

After refueling, we were off to Williams, Arizona -- a distance of about 208 miles -- for our first night at the  Grand Canyon Railway Hotel. This historic hotel would be our base of operations for three days.

Once we were all settled in our rooms we gathered together for dinner at the hotel's large conference center.

Tuesday's agenda was accomplished without Corvettes -- we took the Grand Canyon Railway round trip to the South Rim.

Carm, our Club President, had made all the arrangements, including space in the "observation dome" scenic view rail cars.

 

 From this vantage point, the scenery was beautiful for the two hour and 15 minute trip.

We even experienced a train robbery!

Once we reached the Grand Canyon, Carm had arranged for a bus to take us to the various sites along the South Rim. There was plenty of time to experience the majesty of one of the seven natural wonders of the World.

 

 

The bus driver gave us plenty of time for sight-seeing and photos.

 

 

 

In the afternoon we had free time to hike the rim, or to shop for souvenirs before boarding the train for the return trip to the hotel.

Wednesday saw us on the road again, driving to Winslow, Arizona so the we could "stand on the corner"! We visited the public park in Winslow dedicated to the Jackson Browne / Glen Frey song, "Take it Easy", made popular by the Eagles. Each couple had their photo taken with the statue by John Pugh, and as luck would have it, the sculptor was there that morning!  

 Next we went to lunch at the Turquoise Room in the Historic La Posada Hotel and Rail Depot.

Next stop . . . Meteor Crater!  It is the best preserved meteor impact site on the planet.  We watched the video and took the brief tour of the site.

The day ended with a return trip to Williams for the night.  Everyone split up into small groups and went to local restaurants.  We took the advice of the train conductor and went to a small taco shop -- Nany's Tacos -- the food was fabulous.  On our way there we happened upon Pete's Gas Station Museum (I wonder if he has a copy of Beltsville Shell in the museum?).

 

On Thursday, most of our group headed to Sedona for a Corvette car show.  Nan and I decided to return to Carlsbad, and friends Mike and Patty Eddy decided to join us.  

We felt that we didn't want to take either I-40 or I-10 west to the LA area -- too much traffic.  Instead, we decided to use I-8 since it goes directly into San Diego. From Williams we headed East (I know, we were going the wrong direction, but we had a plan!), picking up I-17 at Flagstaff, then headed south toward  Phoenix, skirting their metropolis by taking 308 to the I-10 West for just a short distance.  We next turned south on Arizona Highway 85 toward Gila Bend.

Highway 85 goes about 35 miles from Buckeye to Gila Bend.  When we initially charted the route home, we chose Highway 85 simply because it was a nice connector to I-8.  We didn't realize what a great choice this turned out to be.  As you can see in the map below, once you cross the Gila River, there isn't much of anything until you get to I-8. The highway is divided so that the north-bound traffic is separated from us as we traveled south.  From time to time we would encounter an 18-wheeler going about 65 MPH.  Mike and Patty are great at formation driving, and they kept close pace with the Z06.

After about 20 miles, I couldn't see any traffic ahead, and the map showed no cross streets for miles. So, I decided to attempt a new personal speed record.  My current record, set while coming out of Pahrump, was 151.  It didn't take the Z06 long to pass that speed.  While still in 6th gear (with two more gears to go), and the engine turning at about 5,700 RPM (versus its red line of 8,600) the speedometer went past 163 to a top speed of 164.  There was still plenty of "go" available, and the car was handling beautifully. But I decided "enough is enough".

We announced into the hand-held radio our top speed to Mike and Patty.  Mike replied, "Well, we hit 158!" WOW!  

The remaining drive back to Carlsbad was great.  We stopped for fuel in Yuma -- our only stop for the about 500 mile trip home.

 

In total, we logged 1,187 miles at an average speed of 59.3 MPH and got almost 20 MPG.

 

Not many people would think of a C8 Z06 as a Road Trip car, but we do!