CRUZIN RIVER CITY CORVETTE CLUB NEWSLETTER AUGUST 2015 VOLUME 21 ISSUE 8

Transcription

1 CRUZIN RIVER CITY CORVETTE CLUB NEWSLETTER AUGUST 2015 VOLUME 21 ISSUE 8

2 Cruzin is the newsletter of the River City Corvette Club of the Chattanooga, TN and surrounding area; created by appointed members for the benefit of the members. All rights reserved except where expressly waived Officers President- Ron Kellogg Vice President- Bob Seiter Treasure- Robin Peterson Secretary- Anna Lane 2015 Board Of Directors Ron Hasting Guy Morgan Sheila Martin Jerry Davis Cruzin The E-newsletter of the River City Corvette Club of Chattanooga, TN. Table Of Contents 2 Sponsors 3 Presidents Letter 5 River City Corvette Club History 6-15 River City Car Show at Camp Jordan Upcoming Events 21 Birthdays 22 Mailing Address River City Corvette Club P.O. Box 1061 Hixson, TN Membership Chairman Jerry Ray hjerryray@epbfi.com

3 Our Sponsors INTEGRITY CHEVROLET #1 on Automotive Row 2110 Chapman Road Chattanooga, TN Sales: Service: Certified Corvette Technician Chris Williams Insurance Agency Chris Williams-Agent FARMERS Auto * Home * Life * Business 7161 Lee Hwy. STE 600 Chattanooga, TN Bus: Fax: cwilliams8@farmersagent.com Oasis Glass Tinting 2114 Chapman Road Chattanooga, Tennessee (423) info@weshipyourcar.com Dairy Queen 5433 Highway 153 Hixson, TN Discounts for RCCC members West Coast Corvettes ext O'Charley's - Hixson (423) Southern Restaurant - Hixson Pike (423)

4 Twenty Four Years Keep Connected. ndar.html eclub Our meetings are held the 3 rd Thursday of each month at O Charleys on Hixson Pike. Dinner at 6 pm and the meeting starts at 7 pm. Visitors are always welcome. Come and see what we are all about. With 150 members we are one of the largest Corvette Clubs in southeast Tennessee. What do our members enjoy? Organized road trips to the Corvette Museum, Maggie Valley, Gatlinburg, State Parks, etc. Cruises on scenic roads, including the annual spring and fall weekend trips. Participation in local events like cruise-ins, cook-outs, the annual club picnic, local parades, homecomings and other community activities. Friday night lights, an informal gathering on Friday evenings, at a different restaurant each week to kick off the weekend. The club has fund raisers throughout the year and donates the money to local charities. Giving back to the community is a high priority with the club. BUT MOST OF ALL FUN!!!

5 From The President s Desk Ron Kellogg The 5th Annual Classic Car Show at Camp Jordan was a great success thanks to all the members and volunteers that came out to the show at Camp Jordan. This was the most successful one day event in RCCC history. It is great when we can enjoy our love for cars and help others at the same time. We have a great group of selfless members who volunteer to work long hours putting our shows together and seeing them through to the end. If you didn t come out to the show you missed one of the best cars shows around this area. We re having great club participation in all events. Attracting new members and having lots of fun! As soon as the weather cools at little we ll be taking another fun cruise up the Cherohala Skyway to Robbinsville and then down the Dragon s Tail. Just keep in mind that it takes you to make this club a success! Save the Wave Ron Kellogg, President River City Corvette Club, Inc.

6 History of the RCCC By Daniel D. Smith In 1992 a group of Corvette owners, three couples being Dupont employees, formed the River City Corvette Club (RCCC). Among the original officers were, president: Gene Winningham, and secretary: Angela McJunkin. Founding members included Gene Winningham, Kenny Talley, Robert and Sue Handcock, Charley Johnson, Angela McJunkin, David and Linda Bonner and Jerry and Alice Ray. Early members still active in the club are Jerry and Alice Ray, and David and Linda Bonner. In the early days the RCCC met at Gulas Restaurant on Lee Highway, then met at the Country Place Restaurant at Hamilton Place and at the Sonic on Hixson Pike. The club met for a short time at Ryan s in Hixson before finally moving to O Charley s in Hixson. Along with the Mountain City Corvette Association, the newly forming RCCC entered club displays at the 1993 World of Wheels car show. The RCCC has participated in many Chattanooga Area automobile events and has traveled to most surrounding states to participate in Corvette shows. The longest distance the RCCC has traveled to as a club to participate in an event is the Vettes By The Shore show at Biloxi, MS. The club made this trip multiple times. Year President Year President 1992 Gene Winningham 1993 Gene Winningham 1994 Howard Thickman 1995 Howard Thickman 1996 Randy Murdock 1997 Gene Talley 1998 Gene Talley 1999 Jerry Ray 2000 Jerry Ray 2001 Gene Ross / Ron Kellogg 2002 Paul Fitzsimmons 2003 Buddy Johnson 2004 Buddy Johnson 2005 Mike Nabors 2006 Buddy Johnson 2007 R.T. Crutcher / Ernie Pierce 2008 Ernie Pierce 2009 Buddy Johnson 2010 Donnie Beane / Ron Hasting 2011 Tim Nutz 2012 Tim Nutz 2013 Robin Peterson 2014 Robin Peterson 2015 Ron Kellogg

7 In 1999 club membership grew by a very significant 45%. Some attributed the growth to the popularity of the, then new, C5 design, and Corvette s renewed respect in the international sports car world, while others attribute the growth to membership chairman Jerry Ray s penchant for chasing down Corvette drivers wherever he saw them. In February of 2000 the board of directors and the club members voted to accept a new set of club by-laws. The club s by-laws have been significantly revised two times since the 2000 changes. The by-laws are currently being reviewed by a committee who will soon present their proposed changes to be voted on by all club members. Also in 2000, David Bonner and other board members helped pass a vote to split the monies left in the treasury at years end and contribute equal amounts to the U.S. Marine Corps for Toys for Tots, to the Chattanooga Area Food Bank and to the Ronald McDonald House. The original RCCC members had been utilizing a simple crossed flag logo. In March of 2000 the membership reviewed three proposed new club logos. They selected the one currently used on all club identity items. The RCCC logo is a revised version of an old defunct Corvette Chattanooga logo from around The original was designed by Tom Cass and Dan Smith, Corvette Chattanooga s founder and first president. The revised design, also submitted by Tom Cass and Dan Smith, added the crossed flags, the star, denoting Chattanooga s location in the state of Tennessee, changed the horn button to reflect RCCC and the background shade of blue. Temporary club logo used for this 1 st Poker Run only (2000)

8 Club windshield decals were first ordered in There had been some lively discussion over whether the decals should be 4 decals or 3 decals. Then president, Gene Ross won out by ordering 4 decals. In 2004 the RCCC purchased a large brick at the National Corvette Museum and members caravanned to Bowling Green in the Fall to observe the laying of the brick. Larry Harless says, When I first joined the club would travel to Biloxi, MS for the Vettes By The Shore car show. We went down in 2004 and 2005, the last year being when Katrina hit in We would have as many as 20 cars going down for the show. The cars were placed in the convention center on Friday morning and we could not get them out until the show ended on Sunday evening. I recall the famed dinner drive with Pat leading the way on that first evening in Biloxi. We all went and it must have been 30 miles to the casino where Pat swore was the best buffet in town. We returned that night around 11 pm to the motel and the temperature as still in the high 90's. I remember Bob Dempsey cleaning his car at that late hour. This was my and Norma's first trip with the club and we loved it. It was so much fun sitting around the pool of the evenings and swapping stories, attending the awards ceremony dinner and dance. These types of trips are the ones we will always remember. As I recall Buddy Johnson was president at the time. Vettes by the Shore, Biloxi, MS

9 In 2007 ten cars from the River City Corvette Club caravanned to Branson, Missouri. Also, from Larry Harless, My favorite Corvette weekend show was Kickin It on Route 66 in Joplin, MO. We usually departed on a Thursday and returned on Sunday. It was truly a Corvette weekend and the car show was indoors and only lasted a few hours. Friday was a police escort down to old Route 66 through old Joplin where the street was blocked off and over 200 Corvettes parked for a dry-block party and BBQ before departing to the last remaining drive-in theater on Rt 66 for a movie and midnight cruise on RT 66 after the movie. Saturday we enjoyed a golf match and a bowling tournament. There was also shopping for the ladies, a 2-3 hour indoor car show and the big finale that night was an excellent dinner, an awards ceremony and a dance with the live band, The Big Smitty Band was awesome! I loved this weekend. They still have it, even after the big tornado hit.

10 And lastly, from Larry Harless, Another special event for us was the annual Maggie Valley All-Corvette show Memorial Day weekend. RCCC attended 3 or more years until it ended in The drive up through the Ocoee region to Cherokee, NC and into Maggie Valley was awesome. We always had several members attend this show. As you can tell I really like the Corvette weekend trips. We all had a chance to just to sit around in the evenings and see the scenic sights on the way up and back as well as around the local areas. Yeah, I meant you, fella. In 2007, six RCCC members participated in a Time-Speed-Distance rally in Athens, TN. In 2008, members made the trip back to Biloxi, MS for the Vettes by the Shore show. It was the first return visit since the massive hurricane Katrina storm in In 2009, the RCCC Gnome attended a car show at Dairy Queen on Hwy 153. A few members made the trek to the Kentucky Derby. In 2010, the Mountain City Corvette Assn. show and drags, and the Maggie Valley show were well attended by members from the RCCC.

11 In 2012 the club celebrated its 20 th anniversary by gathering for a picnic and club photo at Camp Columbus. Tim Nutz brought a high bucket truck and went up in the bucket to shoot the photo. In 2015, the RCCC had 162 members and 104 Corvettes and gained a 501c3, Jerry Ray continued to be Mr. RCCC Membership Chairman. The RCCC has enjoyed two dealership sponsors during its 23 years of existence. Mountain View Chevrolet was the dealership sponsor from 2009 through Our current dealership sponsor, Integrity Chevrolet, has been with us since RCCC has conducted successful car shows at both dealerships. Integrity Chevrolet offers significant discounts on new vehicles and genuine Corvette parts to all RCCC members. The RCCC generously and enthusiastically shares its good fortune and is honored to give back to the local community. RCCC currently supports, or has supported in the past, the following organizations and charities: Teen Challenge, Vietnam Veterans, Chattanooga Food Bank, Susan G. Komen Race For the Cure, Room In The Inn, Ronald McDonald House, Toys For Tots, East Ridge Needy Child Fund, Mary Ellen Locher Foundation and Hospice of Chattanooga.

12 Past events from : Fall Creek Falls (1999) Our first club poker run (2000)

13 Catfish Cruise (2000) Fall Creek Falls Cruise and Buffet (2001)

14 Hooter s Show (2002) Summer 2003 at Chevrolet and NCM s 50th Anniversary Corvette evolution display, featuring Dan and Betty Smith s 2002 Z06 as the 2002 display car selected by NCM staff.

15 The RCCC has been in many area parades, Chattanooga Christmas (2006) With this exciting history behind it, and with the help of all members, the River City Corvette Club is certain to have an even bigger future! Thanks to Larry Harless, Jerry Ray and Ron Kellogg for photos and other input for the update of the RCCC history article.

16 RiverCity Corvette Club Car Show at Camp Jordan River City broke car show history with our car show at Camp Jordan on August 1 st. We hosted an indoor and outdoor car show. We had a monumental turn out. We managed to fit one hundred cars inside of the arena and we had fifty cars outside. We had a ton of members turn out to volunteer at the show as well.

17 This was a RiverCity Car Show to remember. A huge thank you goes out to Mountain City Corvette Club, Vettes of the Smokies, Middle Tennessee Corvette Club, Huntsvilles Vets with Vettes, and all of the other car clubs that came to our show to support us and our charities.

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19 One of the biggest hits at the car show was the Pink cowboy hats that could be bought in support of one of our charities, the Mary Ellen Locher Foundation. We also had our charity, Hospice of Chattanooga, come in. We are so glad to be able to support these awesome charities.

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21 Upcoming Events September 5 th - Scenic City Serves Car Show September 7 th - Camp Columbus Car Show September 7 th Labor Day September 14 th Board Meeting at DQ September 17 th Monthly Meeting at O Charleys September 17 th -20 th - Mid America Funfest September 19 th - Children's Hospital at Erlanger is hosting a concert at Camp Jordan October 2 nd -3 rd Vette Fest October 10 th RCCC Picnic

22 Happy Birthday From River City!! Ernie Pierce 8/3 David Bonner 8/4 Larry Johnston 8/16 Al Cerrasi 8/18 Brian Pierce 8/25 Nancy Miller 8/25 Ronnie Rogers 8/25 Danny Norton 8/26 Rob Lane 8/31