Tag: hall of fame

Bench Racing with John Greenwood, Free PDF Booklet & Video

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Inside the Mind of John Greenwood

Dateline: 10.8.21  To download the free PDF, CLICK HERE. NOTE: When your PDF Reader opens, change the “View” setting to 100% to more easily read the article pages. 

John Greenwood is a legend in the world of Corvettes. Through the ’70s, while production Corvettes struggled to maintain as much performance as possible, John and his brother Burt built a series of stunning C3 Corvette race cars. Arguably, the most famous of the Greenwood Brothers Corvettes was their famous “Batmobile” very wide-body Corvette that was more aerodynamic and produced lots of down-force on the car’s huge racing slicks. Greenwood needed as much traction as he could get to better work his ZL-1 427 engines, rumored to be making upwards of 700-hp, perhaps more. Continue reading “Bench Racing with John Greenwood, Free PDF Booklet & Video” →

CONGRATULATIONS Burt & John Greenwood, Tom Wallace, and Mike Yager on Your Induction Into the 2018 National Corvette Museum’s Hall of Fame – Videos

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Tom Wallace, Burt & John Greenwood, and Mike Yager Inducted into the 2018 National Corvette Museum Hall of Fame!

Photo: www.CorvetteBlogger.com

Every year the National Corvette Museum inducts three members of the Corvette community into their Hall of Fame’s three categories; GM / Chevrolet, Corvette Racing, and Corvette Enthusiast.

In the GM / Chevrolet category, Tom Wallace, Corvette’s fourth Chief Engineer was inducted.

In the Corvette Racing category two men were inducted, Burt Greenwood & John Greenwood. Continue reading “CONGRATULATIONS Burt & John Greenwood, Tom Wallace, and Mike Yager on Your Induction Into the 2018 National Corvette Museum’s Hall of Fame – Videos” →

Inside Bill Mitchell’s Secret Garage – 2 VIDEOS

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A walk on “hallowed ground” of Corvette design.

Image: GM Archives

Dateline: 11.18.17 – My monthly column in VETTE Magazine, “The Illustrated Corvette Series” is now in its 21st year. I’m in the middle of a series I’m calling, “The Corvette’s Founding Fathers” that covers the careers of Harley Earl, Ed Cole, Bill Mitchell, Zora Arkus Duntov, Larry Shinoda, and Peter Brock. Each of these men played a foundational roll in setting the pattern and personality of the Corvette. Without them, the Corvette might not have survived the 1950s.

I’m now working on installment number three, covering Bill Mitchell that will appear in the May 2018 issue of VETTE Magazine and will be out in March 2018. While researching Mitchell Continue reading “

Inside Bill Mitchell’s Secret Garage – 2 VIDEOS” →

Corvette People: 2015 Corvette Hall of Fame — Rick Hendrick

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A Video Overview of the Career of National Corvette Museum 2015 Hall of Fame Inductee, Rick Hendrick Rick-Hendrick-3

Dateline: 9.5.15 – Once a year the National Corvette Museum inducts three individuals that have made a significant contribution to the Corvette Community. In 2015 the following people were inducted into The Hall of Fame: Herb Fishel, Corvette Engineer, Russ McLean, GM/Corvette Operations Engineer , and Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports.

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Corvette People: 2015 Corvette Hall of Fame — Rick Hendrick” →

Corvette Timeline Tales: NCM inducts James Jeffords, Myron E. Scott, & John A. Cafaro to the Hall of Fame

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August 30, 2002 – National Corvette Museum, inducts James Jeffords, Myron E. Scott, and John A. Cafaro into the Hall of Fame.

7-2002-NCM-Hall-of-Fame-TNDateline: 8.30.15 – The Corvette has lasted longer than Harley Earl, Ed Cole, Zora Arkus-Duntov, and Bill Mitchell ever imagined back in the 1950s, thanks to the continuing passion of men and women that understand the soul of the Corvette. The National Corvette Museum’s Hall of Fame induction ceremony has become a much-anticipated annual event in the Corvette community, as a “Thank You” to those that have carried the flame forward.

Purple-People-Eater
James “Jim” Jeffords was two-time SCCA B-production champion and pioneered the successful use of Duntov’s first “racer kit” the RPO 684 that helped him be unbeatable in 1958 and 1959 driving the Nickey Chevrolet “Purple People Eater” 1958 Corvette.. Jeffords also drove Jerry Earl’s 1956 SR-2, as well as some of the top sports cars of the day including a Scarab, a Maserrati Birdcage, and Jaguar. Continue reading “

Corvette Timeline Tales: NCM inducts James Jeffords, Myron E. Scott, & John A. Cafaro to the Hall of Fame” →

1961 Chevrolet Corvette Special – Dave MacDonald and Jim Simpson

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The First Independent Purpose-Built Corvette Race Car

1961-chevrolet-corvette-sketch-side-viewThe Corvette Racing Team has proven that the Corvette is more than a match for any sports car on the planet. But in the early days, racing a production Corvette would only get you so far. To get to the next level, “purpose-built” race cars were the order of the day. Tube frames (aka “bird cages”) with a thin fiberglass or aluminum body were super lightweight and the low power-to-weight ratio made for a race car that was a handful.

Dave MacDonald was one of the young lions of Southern California sports car racing. He was a natural and quickly earned the nickname, “Master of the Oversteer.” Dave and his racing partner Jim Simpson started racing in 1960 and in their first year won 3 out of 15 races and never finished lower than 4th. In his second year Dave racked up 15 wins and three 2nd place finishes in 24 races and was on his way to being a dominant force. But like all racers, Dave and Jim wanted to move up into something faster. It was Carroll Shelby who suggested the guys get a Max Balchowsky chassis and build a purpose-built car. (Be sure to check out the video of this car. Click the “Continue reading” link)
Continue reading “1961 Chevrolet Corvette Special – Dave MacDonald and Jim Simpson” →