VETTE NEWS Volume, 34 Issue 6 President s Corner Hello everyone, We have come to June and C.O.B. is off and running. Although May wasn t a bad month, we found some of our members at Hoovers Dairy on Sunday s, even the South Towner s. John and Donna Biggie had their first dinner cruise of the year. We had 19 cars, with seven C-7 s including the newest purchases by Frank & Marianne Pastore, Skip & Maureen Polowy, and Pete & Rose Ricigliano. We want to also congratulate Bruce Epolito and to everyone else who has purchased a C-7, great choice. We ended the month of May with the Memorial Day Parade in Williamsville. We had around 30 beautiful corvettes for all to see. Thanks to John Heffernan for the invite. Our Super Cruise at Salvatore s is coming up quick on June 24 th and we would like everyone to attend and to contact John Biggie to see if there is anything you could help out with to make our show a huge success. As always it goes without saying please take advantage of our summer weather. It is such a short season so get out there and enjoy those wonderful cars at a cruise night or parade or a car show. It s always fun to be with other car enthusiast. So get in those cars and drive the out of them Drive safe-----mike B. June -- 2015 What s Happening This Month See page three. JUNE ANNIVERSARIES 1 st Bob & Donna Harrer 4 th Reas & Nancy Graber 5 th Skip & Maureen Polowy 13 th Mike & Lee Buccilli 20 th Dick & Sue Brownlee 24th Jim & Lynn Kelly 28 th Lowell & Karen Rothenberger 29 th Dennis & Mary Ann Buckley OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF www.corvettesofbuffalo.com CORVETTES of BUFFALO 1
Officers President Vice President Secretary Treasurer Mike Buccilli 716-648-2037 Bob Kaczmarek 716-592-2619 John Biggie 585-492-2927 Marianne Pastore 716-694-9024 Board of Directors Sue Brownlee 716-693-4654 Dick Brownlee 716-693-4654 Jim Kelly 716-681-7931 Frank Pastore 716-694-9024 Skip Polowy 716-201-1889 Wayne Scudder 716-692-8178 Rich Zahner 716-225-1188 Committees Membership Newsletter Phone Comm. Sunshine Comm. Webmaster Activities Dir. Club Photographer Or Barbara Lipome 716-691-8845 Dennis Buckley 716-759-2972 Sue Brownlee 716-693-4654 Karen Rothenberger 716-675-9467 Diane Skeide 716-876-1197 Jim Bonus 716-695-7643 Patti Parrish 716-831-0729 or 716-432-7280 Dan Krakowski 716-675-5880 Meeting every second Saturday of the month at First Presbyterian Church 9675 Main St. Clarence, NY, 14031 Meeting starts 7:00 p.m. Corvettes of Buffalo is open to all Corvette owners and enthusiasts over the age of 21 Visit us at http://www.corvettesofbuffalo.com/ Send Articles To: Dennis Buckley E-Mail : djbuckley40@yahoo.com Submissions must be in by the 26 th JUNE BIRTHDAYS 1 st Marie Fetes 5 th Ron Rusin 13 th Jim Fetes 20 th Rodney Mitchell 21st John Meyerhoff 22th Paulette Krakowski 24th Pamm Seifert 25th Diane Skeide 28 th Sally Scudder JUNE TRIVIA QUESTIONS 1. Where did the name Corvette come from? 2. What was the name of Hopalong Cassidy's horse? 3. The Gulf of Mexico is bordered by how many U.S. states? 4. What was the name of the first female corvette race driver and in what year? 5. Hollywood star Clark Gable was the inspiration for what cartoon character? ANSWERS ON PAGE 11 CORVETTES of BUFFALO 2
WHAT S HAPPENING IN JUNE June 4 June 6 June 7 June 10 June 13 June 14 June 17 June 17 June 18 June 18 June 19 Akron All Corvettes Cruise night 5pm COB - ACE Hardware Cruise 5726 South Park Ave. 12pm- 4pm Hoovers Dairy - Sunday Cruise 5pm Roadhouse Super Cruise Youngs Street, Tonawanda, NY 4:30pm COB Club Meeting Clarence Church 7 pm Street Machines of Rochester Car Show, 1120 Latta Rd. Greece, NY 9am- 4pm West Herr Corvette Cruise Transit Rd. 4 pm Elderwood Cruise, 2600 NF Blvd. Wheatfield, NY 6pm-8pm Academy Park Charity Cruise Lewiston, NY 5pm Charcoal Corral Cruise - 4pm Dave Smith Super Cruise Transit Rd. Williamsville, NY - 5:00pm June 20-21 Niagara County Swap Meet & Car Show Rt. 78 Lockport, NY 8am- 5pm June 21 June 24 June 26 Miller Hose Father s Day Show Vol. Fire Hall, Newfane, NY 9am 3pm COB- Salvatore s Car Show 5 pm Olcott Cruise Night 5pm June 26-28 Watkins Glen Corvette Weekend see Jim Lawson June 26 June 27 June 28 Wilson Grow Super Cruise Rt. 425 5:30 pm Central Terminal Car Show 495 Paderewski Drive, Buffalo 11am -4pm COB Dinner Cruise John & Donna Biggie - TBD CORVETTES of BUFFALO 3
ANNUAL DINNER DANCE On April 25 th our annual Dinner Dance was held at Salvatore s Italian Restaurant. As usual Salvatore s did a great job. Thanks to Bob Kaczmarek and Sue Krezmien for a great job. Frank Pastore made up a couple of picture boards of past events that the club had been to since he and Marianne were members, and Mel Skeide had pictures going back a little further of club events they attended. CORVETTES of BUFFALO 4
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SPRINGVILLE PARADE Cavalcade of Bands 2015 Saturday, May 16 th, we were heading south on Rt. 219 toward Springville. I was driving my 1966 Corvette Stingray convertible and Karen was driving her 2002 C-5 convertible. It was a gray day, so we were watching the weather all the way down. We noticed the shoulders of the road were wet and so was the passing lane. With luck, we got to the Burger King in good shape. There we met Mel and Diane Skeide, John Kowalske, Pete Ricigliano and Joe Dionne. Mel and Diane also brought their two Corvettes, the 1958 and 2001. I really thank all you club members for attending this event on such an iffy day! Once at the school, we lined up to get our Queen for the Day. The parade was just about to start at 1:00 PM and it started to drizzle, not hard but enough that the convertible tops and the tee roofs had to go back on. So the girls rode in the cars along the parade route. Three drivers carried queens on a second run through because we were short on cars. The drizzle had stopped so the last girls got to ride in open Corvettes. Pete gave his riders a real thrill. He let them drive his Corvette in the parade to wave to the crowd in town. Once the parade was over, Lyle Manchester and Suzanne Manchester invited us to Papa Jake s Bar & Grill for lunch. The Kiwanis club of Springville, who sponsored Corvettes of Buffalo drivers, treated us to double orders of appetizers. We had chicken wings, mozzarella sticks & sauce, artichoke & spinach dip and a super chicken taco salad. Even after all of that, some of us still ordered Papa Jake s famous burgers off the menu. Karen and Diane each received a red rose from Suzanne because the two ladies drove their Corvettes in the parade. Joe Dionne had a battery problem with his red C-4 coupe, so Pete had to jump- start his Vette for him. Once started, Joe decided to head home and didn t stay for lunch. Some of the queens also ate lunch at Papa Jake s as did Mrs. New York State who rode in a new Camaro convertible in the parade. We had a chance to visit with them all and had our pictures taken. We had a good time! A rain shower passed through while we were in the restaurant, but by the time we left, it had stopped and the roads were all dry. It was a very good day!! Lowell and Karen Rothenberger CORVETTES of BUFFALO 7
1967 Corvette Restoration The 1967 Corvette has been in hiatus for over 2 decades and as my friend Bill says" Gene, It's time" ; so when the year turned, I had the gumption to 'pull her out of the barn' and start the PROCESS. I took a few shots of her to document the way I got her in 1982. This year she (ie: the engine) started reluctantly with a little coaxing and as a result, I had to rebuild the OE Holley carb as well as the fuel pump. Took a look at the 'gas door filler area' and guess what - the tank sticker was visible and still in virginplace. The left rear caliper needed rebuilding, so with that behind me, the restoration PROCESS of body-off will begin, and back to silver pearl paint as she was born with. Keep you all posted, as the timeline restoration continues on this un-molested numbers match 1967 Vette; again as Bill states "Gene, you've got a lot to work with here"! Save-the-Wave, Gene Colucci CORVETTES of BUFFALO 8
To My Extended Corvette family, At May s meeting we met with Joe DeMarco the founder and one of the many pilots who fly the Wings Flights of Hope planes. After watching the five minute presentation on exactly what they do, we were all pretty amazed on how they fly people in need of medical transport all over the Country, from the average poor soul to the Hall of Fame quarter back of the Buffalo Bills and It doesn t cost anyone a single penny. These are real pilots doing good deed s at no cost to the patient. The donation that Corvettes of Buffalo gave them was very much appreciated by Joe and the Wings crew. Let me thank everyone again for choosing them as our charity this year and hopefully for more years to come. We were looking for a charity with low or no overhead, and a good cause, I think we found a winner in Wings Flights of Hope. Thanks, Mike B. CORVETTES of BUFFALO 9
Save the Date: Sunday, September 20, 2015 11the Annual All Corvette Caravan is scheduled on September 20 th and the Caravan Flyer is now available on the COB website! We are working with the Grapevine Banquet to get the Bills vs. the Patriots game on live on the BIG Screen, during Caravan brunch from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm. More information will be available soon. Save the Wave! Co-Chairman Pete Ricigliano & Skip Polowy CORVETTES of BUFFALO 10
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FOR SALE C5 Corvette Torch Red Accessories Front Bumper Mask & Polyester knit matching Mirror Covers-----$40.00 [Original Cost $189.90] Engine Dress up Kit includes Chrome covers for the Reservoir Tank, Window Squirt Tank, Oil Cap, Oil Filler Tube, Brake Fluid Reservoir, and Chrome Dip Stick-----$25.00 Call Lowell at 716-675-9467 **************************************************************************** On Tuesday May 19 th fourteen COB men attended a luncheon at Brennan s Bowery. **************************************************************************** CORVETTES of BUFFALO 13
****************************************************** On May 2 nd 15 COB ladies attended a luncheon at Danny s South. ****************************************************** JUNE TRIVIA ANSWERS 1. It was named after a class of British speedy warships from WWII by Myron Scott, who was Chevrolet's Chief photographer. 2. Topper 3. Five 4. Betty Skelton in 1956 was an official Corvette driver and aviator. 5. Bugs Bunny---the cartoons nonchalant carrot-chewing standing position, as explained by Chuck Jones, Friz Freleng, and Bob Clampett, originated in a scene in the film It Happened One Night, in which Clark Gable's character leans against a fence, eating carrots rapidly and talking with his mouth full to Claudette Colbert's character. CORVETTES of BUFFALO 14
PROSPECTIVE MEMBER Michael Benaquist When I was a youngster my dream car was a corvette. My neighbor had a corvette, and I always said I would own a corvette someday. I stopped by one day in the afternoon to ask him what year the car was, and so I could see it close up. They also had a Buffalo news paper station at their house so in the afternoon the car wasn't there. It was a 1967 corvette. I eventually grew up and had some Camaros, and always said I would own a corvette someday. I inherited a 50th anniversary Z06 and I now work at Paddock Chevrolet and sell many corvettes. When they started to sell the C7 at Paddock Chevrolet, I definitely didn't want a first year, new generation corvette. When they started to park them in front of my desk they grew on me. They parked a Laguna Blue corvette in front of my desk and it didn't take long before I sold mine on craigslist in three days. Then I placed a factory order. I am now a corvette owner for life!!!! Michael Benaquist CORVETTES of BUFFALO 15
The Next Generation? We are all corvette enthusiasts and we love to drive, show off, wash, wax, rebuild, do routine maintenance, upgrade and protect our beautiful corvettes from all the little bugs and/or the big birds that can make a mess on them. And occasionally we get to add another member to our family. This is a short story about my corvette family. It all started in 1962 when my Dad bought a new 1962 roadster, my Uncle Jim was driving a red 1957 fuelie and in 1965 my brother-in-law drove up in a new midnight blue coupe with loud side pipes. I was hooked and wanted a corvette as soon as I could afford one! It took me awhile, but it finally happened in 1968, when I fell in love with a dark green 1967 roadster with side pipes. I put a deposit on my dream corvette but since I was under 21 at that time, my Mother would have to co-sign for the loan. She refused, saying it was too fast and dangerous. So I ended up having to wait for my corvette. So a few years later when it was my 50 th birthday, I bought my first corvette! It was a 1998 C5 pewter Coupe, and it was a beauty and I loved it! I always kept thinking about my dream car, the 1967 roadster with side pipes!!!!! I looked each trip to Carlisle for a nice 1967 but just couldn t find it. Then in 2005, some COB members suggested I forget about the 1967 and get the new C6 roadster. After looking at the C6 and doing some homework, I bought a 2005 Monterey red roadster and was not sorry at all. It was a beauty and I loved everything about it. CORVETTES of BUFFALO 16
But wouldn t you know it that in the spring of 2006, a green 1967 roadster with only 32,000 original miles came calling my name! After, I asked Pete Ricigliano to help me inspect the frame, engine, etc I bought it and yes it was a beauty and I love it! Well, having two corvettes was great but Maureen said three is a crowd, so with a tear in my eye, I parted with my 98 Coupe and began restoring my 1967 dream car. That restoration is a long story and I do not like talking about the details. But like most fairy tale stories everything turned out great! After That brings me to the Next Generation. When the new C7 was introduced at the 2013 Detroit International Auto Show, a group of COB members went to see them. I must admit, I liked what I saw and heard but decided not to be the first in the club to get a C7. So I waited until February 2015, and decided to order a new C7 for my birthday. I considered the new Z06 but quickly decided that it was not practical for traveling or wet roads. I ordered the LT3 metallic Shark gray with Adrenaline red interior, and ZF1 option but the big question is will I be happy with an 8 Speed Automatic paddle shift transmission? All of my corvettes prior to this have been standard transmission I will let you know later this summer. As Maureen and I drove this beauty home from Paddock Chevrolet, I made another executive decision. I predicted that my Shark gray C7 will likely be upgraded to the new C8 when they are available. But for the next 3-4 years I will drive and enjoy the C7 as I begin my retirement! Save the Wave! Skip Polowy CORVETTES of BUFFALO 17
GM s $439M Paint Cover-up? Is the funding for the paint shop merely masking the first mid-engine plant preparations? Rick Tavel Corvette May 23, 2015 Yesterday we reported a story released by GM about their $439M Bowling Green Assembly plant expansion and upgrades with most of the funds earmarked for a state of the art paint facility. ( $439M Corvette Paint Shop Announced ). But after much thought and consideration the almost half billion dollar financial investment, one of the largest expenditures in plant history and four times the investment GM made gearing up for the new generation C7, Corvette believes the new paint shop is part of an elaborate paint cover-up merely masking even more important upgrades for future production. Based on the size of the investment it is hard to justify for merely paint and Corvette wonders if much of the $439M will not be used for preparing the plant for the Corvette C8, which is rumored to include a new mid-engine design. To get Bowling Green ready to produce a mid-engine platform would take this type of massive investment. Earlier this year on an episode of Autoline Detroit the Corvette s Chief Engineer Tadge Juechter denied a midengine Corvette is being developed for the next generation Corvette there have been several stories disputing his claims. Perhaps the best case for the mid-engine concept has been made by long time automotive journalist, technical director of Car & Driver and Corvette owner Don Sherman. Corvette detailed our position in articles earlier this year, The Inevitable Mid-Engine Corvette and a later article The Most Compelling Argument in Support of a Mid- Engine Corvette. If there were a mid-engine Corvette in the works, one of the biggest obstacles to keeping it under wraps would be the massive plant upgrades necessary to produce an all new mid-engine platform well in advance of the production. With an investment of $439M, four times the amount needed for the C7 plant upgrade, it may be easy to hide the funding and mask the work for the upgrades necessary to produce a mid-engine platform. So Corvette wouldn t be surprised to learn down the road that this plant upgrade encompasses far more than the state of the art paint shop. We think it may very well include the first upgrades necessary for the inevitable forthcoming mid-engine GM sports car. Photo source: Car & Driver CORVETTES of BUFFALO 18
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