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I also responded to this thread. I also spent 20 years of my life in Crookston, Mn from the 80's to 2000. Don't know how old you are but if you were around in the 80's you probably saw my 1965 coupe, Black, big block, red stinger hood running around town. Sold in in 1989 and replaced it with a black 87. Did some drag racing at the Fargo strip with both the cars. Some very nice cars in the Crookston/Grand Forks area at that time. Not many Corvettes, mainly muscle cars.
Wow, small world. I just missed you! I moved to a warmer climate here in Stillwater MN in 1979 In high school I used to work at my dad's gas station--the 76 station aka Kelly Oil. Changed a lot of tires on trucks and tractors.
[PS: When I was a kid for some reason I was hooked on a 911. As an adult, I finally got one. Lucky it had a warranty--replaced everything from the AC controller to the engine! ]
As a kid all the boys in the neighborhood had motorcycles which opened up a whole new world.
Was impressed with the handling aspect. I moved from top heavy Honda 450's and 750's to Nortons and Triumphs which had superior handling characteristics.
Had a Triumph TR7 which was like a go cart. Fun car but it always had something to fix.
In the 90's I was on a Harley and was hit while stopped at a light. Drove the bike another summer after the repair.
Decided it was time for another toy. Either another bike, a boat, or a car.
Decided on another sports car. Corvette was last on my list. Looked at MR2's, Z's, and older 911's. Came across Corvettes and realized there was way more bang for the buck.
Bought a C4 LT4. Been driving vettes ever since. I have owned a C5, C6 GS, and now a C7 Z06.
After the C7 I may consider a 911 GTS. Not sure about giving up 200HP.
Vettes have power, handling, and way more bang for the buck than anything else.
I was looking to buy a manual transmission sporty type car in 2007.
I looked at the Pontiac GTO, Ford Mustang GT500, BMW Z4 M Coupe, Mercedes SLK350 and a few other cars. I was not a fan of the C6 Corvette until I saw the 2008 interior redesign. Removing the ugly silver center console and adding a full leather interior option pushed me over the top.
I honestly didn't think I could afford one, especially since I wanted almost every option. But I got it, loved it and now I'm a Corvette nut.
I have since acquired an appreciation for some of the C5s, C3s and C2s. Still not really a C1 or C4 fan (except for the ZR-1).
I drove a white/red C2 '63 coupe 4 speed manual in '65 and was hooked, but was going into the army so had to put the dream on hold.. Came back from VIetnam and bought a new '68 Camaro I could afford with a new bride on an army paycheck, but always held the 'vette dream in the recesses of my mind... None of the intervening models really ignited the passion the C2 did till I saw the C7, and it was over...
I always admired Corvettes from a distance. Of course there was the TV show “Route 66”. My elementary/Junior H.S. Gym teacher, Mr. Brooke had a black C2 coupe and that was the first one I saw up close and personal. Fast forward forty something years, we were working at the Auto Show in NYC. There was a 2015 C7 on display about 50 yards away. I was about a year away from ending the lease on a Mercedes C class. I had been driving those for 15 years and was ready for a change. I went and checked out that C7, then sat in it...done deal!
I had to wait 16 months, but I had the bug. I used the time to scout and study and as I have said many times on this forum, I’m a happy owner with zero regrets.
I've always had Japanese sports cars and yes, they handled well but I always had an itch for more power. I decided to try something different and bought a new 2016 Mustang GT. LOVED that car. Sure it was heavy and didn't handle that well but the power and sound made that car FUN. Things have been going well at work so I decided to upgrade to the best that America has to offer, the Corvette!
My uncle came to our family Thanksgiving dinner with a brand new Corvette C4 in Seaspray blue and a wing on the rear spoiler. That did it for me. It was beautiful car. I was hooked at that point.
As a youngster, on the way to school I walked by a house with a C1 in the drive every day. I loved the coves on it...someday I will get a C1 driver. But for now, I will keep making payments on my C7!
I was going to trade my 1979 Z28 in for a Nissan 300Zx but my brother who always loved Corvettes talked me into trading my Z28 in for a Brand NEW 1993 Ruby Red 40th ann.Corvette coupe. It was the best car decision I have ever made and that lead to myself purchasing 11 Corvettes after that first one and this being my 12th will be my last!
Back in 1966 my rich neighbor kid had a Brand New 1966 427 Roadster.
He immediately put a set of Header/Cam/Scattershield/Gears
in it and spun a rod bearing screaming it up to 7000 plus RPM.
I gave him $1000 that I had saved from Summer Jobs and rebuilt it on a blanket on my parents rear patio (California mild winters) with the help of a buddy who was a couple year older!
It ran 11.70 @ 117MPH and nearly killed me a half a dozen times road racing in the Hollywood Hills not to mention Street Racing on Van Nuys Blvd (I was lucky to have good angels watching over me!).
Positively the BEST times of my 70 plus year life so far! I meet my first two wives cruising Whittier Blvd (As well as quite a few other girls I meet that fortunately......I didn't marry)
That was the start of a lifetime love affair with Corvettes!
In the last 50 plus years I have owned well over 40 Corvettes.
I still can not sleep at night without a Corvette in my Garage!
Never been hooked to me they were always an old mans car
a the time discovered tghey cost less than a nice SS Camaro so gave it a shot. Had a love hate thing. Love the way they look....hate the crowd and "Tax". Pos car honestly that looks appealing.
I DIDN"T get hooked on Corvettes! This Z06 is my first Corvette and I love it but I have no loyalty to the brand and would have no problems buying something else. With that being said I've had more enjoyment driving and modifying this car than any other car!
zora had me at “hello!” With his 1961 Corvette recording
My father worked at a Chevy dealership in Clifton Forge VA. I must have been 9 yrs old. He brought home a promotional “45” record featuring a ‘61 Corvette and Zora Duntov. Once he fired up that ‘61 i knew i had to have one. After ahe played it for me. I was instantantly hooked. Dad would would explain the reasons for the upshifts and downshifts. I said to myself, “one of these days...”. I hope this like works for you - it did me!!!
Growing up my dad used to take me to Cecil Country Dragway in Maryland so I was always around fast cars. His dream car was a corvette, and as I got older it became one of mine also. I'm 35 right now and I've been blessed to be on my 4th corvette.
In 1977 (I was 12 at the time) we lived in Germany while my Dad was stationed at Bitburg AFB. My older sister dated a F15 pilot, Air Force Academy grad, who was also starting quarterback of the base football team (American football was a big deal at all of the military bases). He drove I believe a 74 or 75 Corvette that he bought his Senior year at the Academy. That was my introduction to Vettes and if the car itself wasn’t enough, it combined with my “hero worship” was to make me fall in love with Corvettes. I bought my first in 2003 finally, a 65, and have since had a 04, 07, 14 (lost in Hurricane Harvey) and will be taking delivery of a 19 at the museum 3/22.
At the end of 2016 I was looking for a fun performance car and wanted a C6Z but factory warranty was over for the ones I wanted to afford (pay cash for). I went with a 2013 Grabber Blue Boss 302 and have enjoyed it but still wish I went after a Corvette. Right now the Boss is for sale and I am looking at C6Z's and C7 GS's and Z06's. I fell in love with the performance of the car and the looks, that is why I wanted one really. That and the H/C Youtube videos and racing videos haha. The C7 looks epic and if I find a car at the right price I may jump on it. I kind of would feel bad as I would of skipped over a C6Z twice and I do not want to of made the same mistake twice if I did not like the C7!
Growing up in the 1950's and 1960's, we never had a car in my family. So, like any normal kid, I became thoroughly enamored of cars! I built the AMT model cars as a hobby, and my first one was a 1963 Corvette Sting Ray. Never looked back!
I was always into cars and my grandfather had at one point in time a Triumph TR3 and MGB while mother also had a TR3 and my father had an Austin Healey Sprite. Lots of British car maintenance going on back then.
Eight years ago I came across a TR6, which needed some work but was overall a solid car and I figured it would be a good entry for myself and my sons to enter the car hobby.
Fast forward a few years, my sons have grown up and on their own and my wife and I were looking at doing some extended road trips in a sports car and we both decided that maybe the TR6 wouldn’t be the best mode of travel for this, which led to doing some research.
I wasn’t originally thinking Corvette, I was leaning towards a Porsche 911 but after driving a friend’s C7 my mind was completely changed and I never looked back. The C7 is the first Corvette that in my opinion looks real world class and can give the P cars a run for their money. Plus, you can’t beat the bang for your buck factor.
02-20-2018, 09:43 PM
In high school I used to work at my dad's gas station--the 76 station aka Kelly Oil. Changed a lot of tires on trucks and tractors. 
