The April 2017 newsletter - Text Version
Updated 20-Apr-2017 ==== Copyright (c) 2017 Corvairs of New Mexico
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APRIL 2017 / VOLUME 43 / NUMBER 4 / ISSUE #499
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Tony Fiore Memorial Chapter Newsletter Award, First Place, 2005
Tony Fiore Memorial Chapter Newsletter Award, Third Place, 2010
Tony Fiore Memorial Chapter Newsletter Award, First Place, 2012
EDITOR: Jim Pittman
NEXT MEETING: Wednesday, April 5th, 2017 at 7:00 PM
North Domingo Baca Multigenerational Center, Wyoming & Carmel NE
THIS MONTH:
President's Message: Our 43rd Anniversary ............. John Wiker
Dues Due .................................... Membership Committee
March Meeting Minutes .............................. Anne Mae Gold
March Board Meeting Minutes ............................... Editor
Does My Top Have a Disease? .......................... Robert Gold
The Story of MVD Form 10048 .......................... Robert Gold
Taos Tri-State Topics .................... Larry Yoffee's Web Page
Cub Scout Pinewood Derby Day .......................... John Wiker
CORSA Convention, June 27-July 1 .......... Independence, Missouri
It's Just Rude ..................................... Heula Pittman
Birthdays & Anniversaries ..................... Sunshine Committee
Treasury Report ...................................... Robert Gold
The First Signs of Spring - Car Council Report ....... Robert Gold
Movie Saga Ends ....................................... John Wiker
Winterize (Alaska 1966) ... (This article is for Lube) Jim Pittman
Calendar of Coming Events ..................... Board of Directors
Back Issues, 7, 14, 21, 28, 35, 42 Years Ago ...... Club Historian
Boydston Award .............. Nominations Due at April 5th Meeting
COVER: Corvairs in New Mexico Mountains near Chimayo, October 1988
COVER: Robert's Radio Flyer Lakewood at the March Board Meeting
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OFFICERS and VOLUNTEERS
President John Wiker 505-239-3311 wikerj63 yahoo.com
Vice-Pres Lube Lubert 505-256-9331 dirtlube gmail.com
Secretary Anne Mae Gold 505-268-6878 annemae.528 gmail.com
Treasurer Robert Gold 505-268-6878 beisbol30 msn.com
Car Council Robert Gold 505-268-6878 beisbol30 msn.com
Merchandise Vickie Hall 505-865-5574 patandvickiehall q.com
Membership Larry Yoffee 505-321-5909 corsa180 gmail.com
Newsletter Jim Pittman 505-275-2195 jimp unm.edu
Old Route 66 Lube Lubert 505-256-9331 dirtlube2 gmail.com
Past President David Huntoon 505-281-9616 corvair66 aol.com
Past President Ray Trujillo 505-839-7436 ray bpsabq.com
Past VP Tarmo Sutt 505-690-2046 tarmo juno.com
MEETINGS First Wednesday of each Month at 7:00 PM
North Domingo Baca Multigenerational Center, Wyoming & Carmel NE
INTERNET CORSA's home page www.corvair.org/
CNM's newsletters www.unm.edu/~jimp/
Steve Gongora's page www.corvair.org/chapters/chapter871/
Larry Yoffee's home page www.corsaturbo180usa.com/
New Mexico Council of Car Clubs www.nmcarcouncil.com/
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DUES: CNM: 12 months = $25.00 -or- 26 months = $ 50.00
CORSA: 12 months = $45.00 -or- 26 months = $ 90.00
CNM & CORSA: 12 months = $70.00 -or- 26 months = $140.00
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DUES DUE DATES APRIL 2017
DUE LAST MONTH ====================== INACTIVE DATE
2017.03 Carl Johnson 25-APR-2017
2017.03 Kelli & Mark Morgan 25-APR-2017
2017.03 Emma & LeRoy Rogers 25-APR-2017
DUE THIS MONTH ====================== INACTIVE DATE
2017.04 Deborah & John Dinsdale 25-MAY-2017
2017.04 Art Gold 25-MAY-2017
2017.04 Brenda Stickler 25-MAY-2017
DUE NEXT MONTH ====================== INACTIVE DATE
2017.05 (none) 25-JUN-2017
DUE JUNE 2017 ======================= INACTIVE DATE
2017.06 Kathy & Larry Blair 25-JUL-2017
2017.06 Anne & Geoffrey Johnson 25-JUL-2017
INACTIVE ============================ INACTIVE DATE
2016.12 Tibi Scheflow 25-JAN-2017
2017.01 Nancy & Russ McDuffie 25-FEB-2017
2017.01 Brenda & Hurley Wilvert 25-FEB-2017
2017.02 Barbara & Gordon Johnson 25-MAR-2017
2017.02 Victor Sanchez 25-MAR-2017
2017.02 Lilian & Timothy Shortle 25-MAR-2017
Send your Dues to:
CNM Treasurer c/o Robert Gold
1301 Valencia NE Albuquerque, NM 87110
Past due memberships become inactive after a one-month grace period.
The Club will mail in your National Dues if you send us the renewal
form from your Communique.
As of 25-MAR-2017 we have _____ active family memberships.
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PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE (OUR 43rd ANNIVERSARY)
John Wiker
Well, how is everyone doing? Lots of thanks to hand out. First, thanks to Carl
Clasmeyer for reserving the party room for us at Golden Corral. Thanks to the 27
folks who spent their Saturday afternoon eating, talking, celebrating our 43rd
Anniversary party. Thanks to Pat Hall, winner of the 27th Ike Meissner Award for
all he does for the club, as well as what he does for individuals with "unique"
Corvair problems. The award could not have been more appropriately deserved.
There were no fewer than 13 former recipients of the award present at the party!
That's amazing. It was great to see Heula again as well as meeting George and
Sandra Morin, members from before my time.
You may have seen Joyce's message, forwarded by Robert Gold, about a car needed
for a movie that is being filmed in New Mexico. By the time this goes to press,
with the help of Jim Pittman's excellent photography, my car will be among the
three finalists. On Wednesday March 22nd, I get to meet the director of the
movie so he can "evaluate" my car for its part in the movie. On Friday and
Saturday, I may be in Abiquiu at the Ghost Ranch, supervising the use of my car
by the stars who are going on vacation in New Mexico at the ranch and the Plaza
in Santa Fe. Two days of shooting and set up, practice runs and final cuts for
which the car is to be used for about 3 hours each day. If I "win" with the
film's featured 1960s car I will take plenty of pictures to share this
"Hollywood" moment with the club. I will call Jim just before the newsletter
deadline to let him know the "skinny" on how things worked out. See you at the
next membership meeting and if not, at least put the Museum Car show on your
calendar now, so we can have a large showing this year. Till then, so long for
now. -- John
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MARCH MEMBERSHIP MEETING -- 2017.03.01
Anne Mae Gold
Approval of Past Minutes: Approved
Officer Reports:
President (John) thanked the members who attended the Garage Tour. He is
healthy, not so wealthy and as wise as he can be. He introduced Natalie Robison,
our newest member.
Vice President (Lube) corrected himself... Pat didn't get a new hydraulic press.
They used a bottle jack. On June 8-11 there will be a Train Convention in
Durango.
Treasurer (Robert) reported $5,072.44
Secretary (Anne Mae) had nothing to report
Committee Reports:
Merchandise (Vickie) was not present. Pat said she had nothing new to report. He
added that she will be calling for help with putting together the Tri-State bags
if she needs it.
Car Council (Robert) did not attend the last CC meeting. The next meeting will
be the envelope stuffing meeting for the Museum Car show.
Editor (Jim) said the newsletter deadline is Friday March 24, send in your cards
and letters! The Communique is online and available for downloading or perusing
as you wish. It features pictures of a 1960 Corvair with spectacular landscapes
taken by a drone! Since Natalie, our new member, spent many years in Alaska, Jim
shared a Corvair-in-Alaska story.
Membership (Larry) said we lost one member. David Feasel will not be renewing
due to illness.
Tri-State (Terry) asked all to please sign up for the Tri-State on Larry
Yoffee's website. Joe Casey will be coming to the Tri-State as our guest
speaker. He was one of the supervisors of one of the Corvair rooms where some of
the 1969 Corvairs were hand assembled. Pikes Peak Corvair Club has started
publishing their newsletter on a quarterly basis, so news may not be appearing
in the newsletter on a timely basis. However, their publicity for the Tri-State
is very active on-line. Rita brought a sample of a food basket type table
centerpiece which she plans to make for each table. Membership agreed that was a
great idea.
Larry gave us his website address (www.corsaturbo180usa.com) which goes directly
to Tri-State on-line headquarters. Please go to the website to sign up for your
banquet meal choice and to order any T-shirts. May 1 will be the absolute
deadline for ordering T-shirts -- do not count on any late orders! Please call
the hotel to book your room. This is how Terry and Larry are keeping track of
who is coming to the Tri-State. Two other interesting sites he shared with us
are corvaircenter.com and Corvair Owners Group on Facebook. This is a site that
was started by a member of Pikes Peak!
Old Business:
Garage Tour - John thanked Jim for sending out photos of the 2017 visit and
photos of the 2007 event. It was 10 years since our last visit at the Jay Hertz
garage and museum. Lunch at the Range Cafe was wonderful.
New Business:
MAR 11 2:00 PM = Anniversary Dinner at Golden Corral at Central and Eubank;
APR xx TBA = Joint Club breakfast or lunch - David Huntoon;
MAY 21 7:00 AM = Museum Car Show - meet at the big hotel in Old Town;
JUN 2-3-4 = Tri-State in Taos. Those going up on Thursday can meet as
before at the Sandia Casino gas station on Tramway. Others will go up on Friday
and may make arrangements to caravan.
Miscellaneous:
Nominations for the Boydston Award were requested.
The 50/50 drawing winner of $9.00 was Pat Hall.
Adjourned.
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MARCH BOARD MEETING MINUTES -- 2017.03.15
Editor
Present: John Wiker, Larry Yoffee, Robert Gold, Lube Lubert, Terry Price, Jim
Pittman. Anne Mae Gold was out sick and Vickie Hall was not present.
Larry told about the travails he was having getting his cherished Ford truck
decontaminated and repaired after it was broken into, stolen, crashed and used
as a drug den back in January.
John said the Anniversary lunch went very well with some 27 people attending.
Pat Hall received the Ike Meissner Award. Sandy & George Morin, former members
from back in the 1990s, attended. John said that David Huntoon was planning to
arrange for us to attend a breakfast with the VMCCA (Veterans Motor Car Club)
but we don't have a date and time yet. Could we do it in April? We had a
discussion of "valve cover racing" events, past and recent.
Lube said he arrived late because he misplaced carburetor parts and had to find
them before having his carbs rebuilt. We'll set our first Old Route 66 cleanup
on Saturday April 8th at 9:00 AM.
Robert reported $4,910.74 and someone asked if we had members delinquent in
paying their dues. Yes we do. Jim said he never had before, but could start
sending monthly reminders via email to delinquent members. Robert said the next
Car Council meeting would involve stuffing envelopes for the May car show.
Larry said, no new members. Our newest member is Natalie Robison. People
sometimes want to post services or for sale information on his web site
(www.corsaturbo180usa.com) and so far he has allowed this. So far there are 37
meals requested for the Tri-State by people signing up on his web page which is
the official web page for the Tri-State. There is some worry about people
waiting until the last minute to request meals. Robert reported that Art will
indeed be at the Tri-State and will bring one of his nice Corvairs.
Jim said the April newsletter deadline is Friday March 24th at 9:00 PM. Jim said
Vickie has submitted our newsletter to CORSA for the newsletter judging for
several years and this year (1) CORSA is allowing newsletters to be submitted as
PDFs via email and (2) the deadline for submitting them was changed to April
1st. She will select three newsletters from 2016 and send them in soon.
Terry reported that at the Taos Tri-State we will have Joe Casey as a speaker
and he and his wife will be driving to Taos. We are paying for their room, their
gasoline, a T-shirt and other expenses. He showed us his projected budget. Parts
of it were guesses and parts required decisions not yet made. Larry said we need
a decision on whether to order extra T-shirts "on spec" to sell at the event. He
did not want to, but we can do it. Terry has several raffle items and expects to
get more. Will we have both dash plaques and jacket patches or one or the other?
John said most local car show people seem to prefer dash plaques. Will we have
award plaques or framed certificates? Some wanted plaques. How many classes?
What classes will we have?
After a free-for-all discussion including how to hold down costs, whether we
made or lost money at previous events, what to do about table "center piece"
decorations, having music at the car show, getting a suitable sound system for
the banquet, and how the features and expenses we choose to do at one Tri-State
may influence what clubs feel obligated to do at future Tri-States in a
"keeping-up-with-the-Joneses" sense, we ran out of time and adjourned with
little discussion of past and upcoming events. In the parking lot we marveled
over Robert's highly modified red Lakewood. It has a very neat custom air
conditioner installation. Due to the wonders of Daylight Saving Time some of us
were able to get home before dark. Maybe Daylight Time is not completely evil
after all.
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DOES MY TOP HAVE A DISEASE?
Robert Gold
I have a 1965 convertible that I bought from my son, Art. It's a nice running
car. In fact it made the trip to the Tri-State in Chama without a problem. An
outstanding part of this groovy car is the white top. I don't know much about
where the top came from. I do know it looks great because it is laser straight.
I always thought that even an average convertible looks soooo much better with a
good fitting top.
I've had this car and top for years and have religiously applied the dressing I
got from Steve Gongora. It really shines with that stuff! So you've heard how
nice the top is, I bet you wonder what went wrong? Here's the story:
I was admiring the car one day when something on the top caught my eye. In a
couple of spots were these spiral cracks. I didn't like them, but I still
thought the top was usable. Ok, up comes the next day. I look at the top, and
(what the heck) there were more of those spirals. Huh? Next day, the top was
covered with these guys!! It was like some sort of bug had hatched all over my
top. I looked underneath and everything looked great. Then a thought occurred to
me... my top has a disease. With that thought I backed up. What is that thing?
The top remained in isolation until, my one and only, Anne Mae, figured it out.
No, it wasn't bugs. No, it isn't the beginning of a disease that will destroy
convertible tops. Nope. It had a simple origin. As Sam Spade would say, "It all
began with" the CNM Bingo Night at Steve's place.
That doesn't make sense, how can a bunch of bingo players ruin my top? Ok, the
players are innocent. What wasn't innocent was the weather. It turns out that on
Bingo Night there was a nasty hail storm at my place. I didn't realize it
happened until my bro, Alan, told me about it. Luckily for my son, Art, he drove
his Subaru to the event (I know, he should have been in a Corvair) so his BRAND
NEW vehicle wasn't damaged. I couldn't say that for the vert, which was sitting
at the curb in the front of my house.
But the damage didn't appear until much later when the cracks began. The result
is that I need a new top.
DARN! -- Robert Gold
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THE STORY OF MVD FORM 10048
Robert Gold
There is an old saying that goes: "You learn something new every day." Well,
early on a Monday morning, March 13, the Albuquerque Journal taught me something
new about selling a car.
Ms. D'Val Wesphal, in her "Road Warrior" column, answered a question from a
reader about the procedure to make sure the car you sell doesn't haunt you again
in the future. Sorta like when my brother, Alan, bought a Rampside from me and
ten years later the vehicle was still titled under my name. Technically,
anything Alan did with that vehicle could have come back on me. Luckily for me,
nothing did happen.
Ms. Wesphal related the tale from a reader who had sold a vehicle only to be
contacted some time later about a number of tickets that had been written on the
car in another city. They had tracked him down through the VIN. He wanted to
know how he could avoid such a situation in the future. The solution was MVD
Form 10048.
It turns out that in New Mexico, when we sell a vehicle, we are required to do
two things: 1. Turn in the tag to have it destroyed by MVD or transfer it to
another vehicle, and 2. Fill out Form 10048 Notice of Vehicle Sold. This will
protect you from what the buyer might subsequently do with the car and also
prevent MVD from contacting you about not having insurance on the car that you
no longer own.
I didn't know that! In my 30-plus years in New Mexico I have NEVER done that.
Maybe if I had known I wouldn't have been angry at my brother for not
registering the Rampside in his name. A word to the wise... Robert Gold
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33rd Annual Tri-State Corvair Meet
Taos, New Mexico --- June 2-4, 2017
The Rocky Mountain annual Corvair event of the year!
Corvairs of New Mexico welcomes all of our regional and national
extended Corvair family to the 33rd Tri-State Corvair Meet!
Please pre-register at:
http://www.corsaturbo180usa.com/
Our host hotel in Taos, New Mexico is
KACHINA LODGE 413 Paseo del Pueblo Norte, Taos, NM, 87571
Special room rate $89.99 + tax per night (includes full hot breakfast)
To get this rate, you must let them know that
you are with the "Corvair event." 575-758-2275 / 1-800-522-4462
http://www.kachinalodge.com/
SCHEDULED EVENTS:
Guest reception on Friday, June 2, 2017
Police escort Corvair parade through town
Show and Shine Car Show at Kachina Lodge
Awards banquet at Kachina Lodge
Bonfire get together evenings at Kachina Lodge
Our awards banquet guest speaker is Mr. Joe Casey
Willow Run Corvair plant supervisor for the final
production of the hand assembled 1969's.
BANQUET INFORMATION:
$25.00 per person
$12.50 for 12 years old and under
Please use the contact form at
http://www.corsaturbo180usa.com/
to indicate who will be attending the awards banquet and
their meal choice of: BEEF / CHICKEN / MEXICAN.
Make one choice per person in the contact box.
In addition, please indicate on the contact form if you
are showing a Corvair including the year and model.
Please indicate your hometown and club affiliation.
Providing this information on-line will help us to plan
and will serve as pre-registration.
T-SHIRT INFORMATION:
Please use the form at
http://www.corsaturbo180usa.com/
to order your T-shirt.
Style: short sleeve or long sleeve men's or women's
Color: Black / Navy Blue / White / Gray
Sizes: S - M - L - XL - XX / XXX ( add $2.00 per shirt )
All shirts will be 100% cotton.
Pricing:
men's short sleeve $ 20.00 + tax
women's short sleeve $ 21.00 + tax
men's long sleeve $ 23.00 + tax
women's long sleeve $ 24.00 + tax
(add $2.00 per each for XX/XXX)
You will receive an email that your order was
received and your total Payment is due by cash
or check when you pick up your order at registration.
Deadline for ordering T-Shirts: May 1, 2017
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CUB SCOUT PINEWOOD DERBY DAY
John Wiker
Thanks to Robert Gold who forwarded an e-mail about this event to me not once
but twice, I decided to represent the Club at this event. Joyce had hoped for 10
cars to show up. I was number 3 and the group grew to 21 by the time the event
started.
Things have certainly changed from when I was a scout involved with the Derby.
We had a 4x6 block of wood, two steel rods for axles and 4 wooden wheels. Our
track was 2 4x8's with the slope created by two tiers of cinder blocks. The
scout leaders launched the cars and whoever got to the bottom won. Sometimes
they did not make it and crashed off the side.
Today there are modern tracks with automatic launchers with timers and cameras
at the track end to record the time in hundredths of seconds with instant replay
by cameras and large screens so the audience can follow the action and there is
no doubt as to winners.
As you can see by the pictures, there were about 100 Cub Scouts and numerous
family members in attendance. It reminded me of my days in JROTC and parents
watching their kids at Drill Meets I had organized.
As most of you know, I always let kids sit in my car, pretend to drive and blow
the horn as well as sit in the trunk for pictures. Well, I have a new first.
Some grandparents had their dog along and asked to get a picture of her in the
trunk. There it is, something new!!
At the end of the day the Cubs voted for their one favorite vehicle. No surprise
that the Hummer from Kirtland AFB with all its gagets, and weapons that they
could play with won the only trophy offered. Joyce was there to present and let
me know that I was third behind a mint MG. I guess I did not get enough kids in
the car for pictures as a bribe.
Oh well, the car show season has begun. What a great day it was for everyone.
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Corvair Society of America International Convention June 27-July 1, 2017
The Vairs Stop Here -- Independence, MO -- Home of Harry Truman
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This New Wrench is Amazing. One Side is "Standard," the other side is "Metric."
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IT'S JUST RUDE
Heula Pittman
Some of us teach in our school system; many of us are retired. I taught in early
childhood education for 40 or so years. My mother was a teacher for many years.
Her lessons on spelling, grammar, civil behavior and respect for others live in
me to this day. I know what teachers teach and what children learn.
Many of us teach our children and grandchildren to be respectful. We teach such
things as not interrupting when others are speaking and not making a disturbance
when others are speaking. So why is it then that so often when we attend a CNM
event there are so many conversations going on while someone is attempting to
speak to the group?
This continually happens at our meetings and events. It is often impossible to
hear what an emcee is trying to say during a meeting. It is embarrassing to many
of us who are trying to follow the flow of the meeting but find it difficult
because some of us are holding private conversations during the meeting. It's
just rude. It is bad manners and disrespectful. We didn't learn it from our
mothers or our teachers. Did we?
Most of our meetings and events don't last long, perhaps an hour or so. Why
can't we wait until after the meeting to talk? Why can't we show some respect to
the person who is trying to speak to us? It's not too late in our lives to learn
to show this simple courtesy.
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Happy Birthday Wishes to Five CNM'ers born in April:
Elizabeth Domzalski
Mark Martinek
Robert McBreen
Emma Rogers
Ray Trujillo
Happy Anniversary Wishes to Three Couples this April:
Connie & Floyde Adams
Connie & Robert McBreen
Lillian & Tim Shortle
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TREASURY REPORT FOR 02-25-2017 to 03-24-2017 Robert Gold
========== ==== ========== =========== =========================================
DATE CHECK# AMOUNT PAYEE DESCRIPTION BALANCE = $5,114.28
========== ==== ========== =========== =========================================
2017.02.17 2274 -$ 41.84 H.Pittman Newsletter Printing FEB 2017 -$ 41.81
2017.03.02 2275 -$ 35.75 J.Wiker Meissner Plaque, one Nametag -$ 35.75
2017.03.06 2276 -$ 35.95 H.Pittman Newsletter Printing MAR 2017 -$ 35.95
2017.03.10 2273 -$ 90.00 CORSA N.Robison 26 m CORSA -$ 90.00
========== ==== ========== =========== =========================================
2017.04.01 APR NEWSLETTER ============================================ $4,910.74
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THE FIRST SIGNS OF SPRING
March Car Council Report
Robert Gold
In case you've been stuck inside, lately there have been all sorts of signs that
spring is upon us. I only need to point to the goings on at our Car Council
meeting to prove my point. Here is what happened at the March meeting.
When I showed up with my son Art, we were pleased to see a near capacity group
ready to show their support for the Museum Car Show. Their job was to fill
several hundred envelopes for the show. By the way, the Museum Car Show takes
place on Sunday, May 21. One, two, and away we went into a stuffing frenzy.
So, with the car show season at hand, combined with the talk of all things cars
with our Car Council friends, you have the sure signs that spring is here.
After we finished up the envelopes and cleared off the tables, we prepared for
our pizza reward from Mario's. But wait, we had to wait a bit until we completed
a quick business meeting.
First, we heard from Vickie, the representative of Operation Lifesaver, who told
us about their work to promote car safety at railroad crossing. She is even
willing to put on a talk at any car club meeting to spread the word.
Next up, was the introduction of a new member of the Car Council, the tandem of
the "New Mexico Car Club" (lowriders) and "Full Throttle Car Club" (drag
racers). Welcome to our happy group!
Our treasurer reported we have lots of money. I then told the assembly there
were close to 500 views of our webpage (nmcarcouncil.com) in the previous week.
Jamie Saavedra reported that our Facebook page has 50 million likes, or
something like that.
Joyce Clements then talked for a short time about this year's Albuquerque Museum
Car Show. She first distributed some show posters. Remember, this is the 50th
anniversary of the Albuquerque Museum, so 1967 cars get special treatment at the
show as long as they arrive before 8:00 AM.
We finished up with a discussion of the many car shows already planned for the
upcoming year. As part of that I had a funny story for the group about a car
show listing on our website. While updating the site, I noticed a show titled
"Buff and Shine." The unique thing about the show was that it was being held at
a NUDIST colony. WOW. I love car guys and gals! Joyce then told us that it was a
gag that she planted in the listing and that I was the first person to notice
it. That Joyce, such a kidder!!
With that we adjourned and went home. See ya next month.
Oh yes, next month I'll be chairing the meeting. I finally get to do my job as
Vice President.
-- Robert Gold
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MOVIE SAGA ENDS
John Wiker
Thursday, March 23, 2017 -- Today I spent the day in Tanoan at the house used to
house the crew and as the home to the main characters of the movie. They had the
three final cars so the crew could pick the one they wanted for the "part."
Surprisingly, they chose my bright "yeller" Corvair over a 1957 Chevy Bel-Aire
4-door with an ugly green and white paint job and a 1960 Chevy Impala with a
great silver blue paint job with interior to match.
After lunch, we began some filming of stills from inside the cars and that's
when the problems showed up. The camera was being held in the back seat and
filming of the driver and passenger was attempted. The seats in my Corvair were
too close together from front to rear for the camera to get a good focus. I
asked if I could help by putting the front seats as far forward as they could be
and by lowering the back seat. We improved the distance by about a foot. That
seemed to work until the next sequence of filming began.Now they wanted the two
leading characters to get close to each other in the front seat. With split
bucket seats that can't move laterally, we met another obstacle. Unfortunately,
I could not overcome this one and the 1960 Chevy could not either as it was a
2-door with bucket seats. The 1957 Chevy was a four-door with bench seats front
and rear and plenty of "focus" room. So the director decided to use it and
"photoshop" the paint job with the color from the 1960 Chevy.
So you see, my Corvair started out as everyone's favorite and ended up
completely out of the picture. Where have we heard and seen that story before?
Too many times to mention. Oh well, I tried. Sorry, club members, maybe next
time.
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WINTERIZE (ALASKA 1966)
Jim Pittman
In June 1966 I left Ohio with my new turbo Corsa coupe on a circuitous trip to
Alaska. Since I had never been "out west" I wanted to see some of the country
and tourist sites I had only read about. From Dayton I headed west to Colorado
Springs, then north to Jackson Hole and Yellowstone, west through Oregon and
north to Seattle. I wanted to see legendary Grand Coulee Dam and headed for
eastern Washington. It was in a vast desert and I was somewhat disappointed.
From there I continued north into Canada and along the Rocky Mountains to Prince
George, then west again to Prince Rupert. I boarded a car ferry to avoid the
infamous Alaska Highway. Eighteen hours later I left the ferry in Skagway,
Alaska, drove into Yukon Territory then northwest to Fairbanks and Fort
Wainwright. The trip from Dayton to Fairbanks took me 12 days, maybe 500 ferry
miles and 5,240 driving miles.
I had been warned that air-cooled VWs and Corvairs did not do well in Fairbanks
because the winter temperatures did not let the engine fully warm up. I set out
to methodically "winterize" my new Corvair so it would survive the winters.
The GI lore for "winterizing" your car at Fort Wainwright: Put in light-weight
engine oil, transaxle oil and front wheel bearing lube. Cchange the oil and
filter every month. Pump up the tires an extra 20-psi. Install an engine block
heater. Plug the car in to an electric receptacle every time you park. The
engine heater for a "normal" car was either an electrically-heated special oil
dipstick, or, much better, a circulating electric heater that was installed in a
spliced coolant hose. For my non-liquid-cooled Corvair I got an engine heater
that was a flat plate bolted to the bottom of the engine (remove four oil pan
bolts and install the heater with longer bolts) and as I recall the one I got
was manufactured in Canada. Of course after spring breakup you'd have to replace
those light-weight lubricants with standard oil and grease for summer. The oil
pan heater could be left in place, you'd just not bother to plug it in.
I was not convinced that this would be enough so I sought more protection. Since
the enemy was the forty-below air being sucked into the engine, I thought I
needed to minimize the amount of air getting in. Removing the fan belt was not
an option and installing one of those low-speed fan pulleys seemed like a bad
idea. I got some insulating material and fabricated a removable panel to block
three of the four openings just above the engine. I left the one on the right
side partly open to let some air in for the carburetor. I obtained a "battery
blanket" which wrapped around the battery and was electrically heated. I
obtained an extension cord made with low-temperature insulation so it would not
freeze into a solid helical coil at forty below. When I started the car to drive
away I'd just coil up the extension cord and stuff it into the fender well
behind the battery. I vowed to never forget to plug in the extension cord.
With all these precautions, the Corvair never failed to start during the winter
I was in Fairbanks.
I did two more things. First, I bummed rides from other people when convenient
so I did not have to start my car. Second, I always allowed time to warm up the
engine before driving anywhere, even just across the post. The drill for
starting the car was, plug in the electric heaters the night before and leave
the shifter in neutral. In the morning I would get in the car, push in the
clutch and crank over the engine. It always started. I'd goose the throttle
until it would run at fast idle, then sit for a while until I could let the
clutch out without stalling the engine. Then I could set the heater controls to
"high" and go inside for another cup of coffee. About fifteen minutes running at
fast idle was usually enough. Unplug the extension cord and dump it behind the
battery, then drive to work. To drive around the post's perimeter road to our
lab I'd stay in second gear the whole way at the speed limit of 25 miles per
hour.
My tour was supposed to be four years but the Air Force closed down our lab and
I was transferred out after only one year, so I don't know if my winterizing
tactics would have kept my Corvair happy through four arctic winters. I left
Fairbanks in August 1967 for a 5,000-mile drive down the Alaska Highway (yes it
was just as rocky, dusty, muddy and potholed as they said it would be) to New
Mexico and Holloman AFB near Alamogordo.
It was not until years later that I began to realize that "winterizing" your car
in Alaska would not be a strange concept to anyone who grew up in upstate New
York or Minnesota or North Dakota. But for a southern boy like me, driving to
Alaska and surviving a winter was a great adventure and accomplishment! Thanks
to my "winterization" efforts, the Corvair survived okay too.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
THE FIRST SIGNS OF SPRING
MARCH CAR COUNCIL REPORT
Robert Gold
In case you've been stuck inside, lately there have been all sorts of signs that
spring is upon us. I only need to point to the goings on at our Car Council
meeting to prove my point. Here is what happened at the March meeting.
When I showed up with my son Art, we were pleased to see a near capacity group
ready to show their support for the Museum Car Show. Their job was to fill
several hundred envelopes for the show. By the way, the Museum Car Show takes
place on Sunday, May 21. One, two, and away we went into a stuffing frenzy.
So, with the car show season at hand, combined with the talk of all things cars
with our Car Council friends, you have the sure signs that spring is here.
After we finished up the envelopes and cleared off the tables, we prepared for
our pizza reward from Mario's. But wait, we had to wait a bit until we completed
a quick business meeting.
First, we heard from Vickie, the representative of Operation Lifesaver, who told
us about their work to promote car safety at railroad crossing. She is even
willing to put on a talk at any car club meeting to spread the word.
Next up, was the introduction of a new member of the Car Council, the tandem of
the "New Mexico Car Club" (lowriders) and "Full Throttle Car Club" (drag
racers). Welcome to our happy group!
Our treasurer reported we have lots of money. I then told the assembly there
were close to 500 views of our webpage (nmcarcouncil.com) in the previous week.
Jamie Saavedra reported that our Facebook page has 50 million likes, or
something like that.
Joyce Clements then talked for a short time about this year's Albuquerque Museum
Car Show. She first distributed some show posters. Remember, this is the 50th
anniversary of the Albuquerque Museum, so 1967 cars get special treatment at the
show as long as they arrive before 8:00 AM.
We finished up with a discussion of the many car shows already planned for the
upcoming year. As part of that I had a funny story for the group about a car
show listing on our website. While updating the site, I noticed a show titled
"Buff and Shine." The unique thing about the show was that it was being held at
a NUDIST colony. WOW. I love car guys and gals! Joyce then told us that it was a
gag that she planted in the listing and that I was the first person to notice
it. That Joyce, such a kidder!!
With that we adjourned and went home. See ya next month.
Oh yes, next month I'll be chairing the meeting. I finally get to do my job as
Vice President.
-- Robert Gold
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| April 2017 | May 2017 | June 2017 |
| Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa | Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa | Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa |
| 1 | 1 2 3 4 5 6 | 1 2 3 |
| 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 | 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 | 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 |
| 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 | 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 | 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 |
| 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 | 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 | 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 |
| 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 | 28 29 30 31 | 25 26 27 28 29 30 |
| 30 | | |
============================================================================
WED 05 APR 7:00 PM Nominations for the BOYDSTON AWARD are due tonight.
WED 05 APR 7:00 PM Meeting: NORTH DOMINGO BACA MULTIGENERATIONAL CENTER,
at Wyoming & Carmel, north of Wyoming & Paseo del Norte NE.
After the meeting, we may go to "JASON'S DELI" at 5920 Holly Ave. NE.
SAT 08 APR 9:00 AM - Old Route 66 Cleanup - NM 333 and I-40 "Triangle"
TENTATIVE:
SAT xx APR Breakfast with VMCCA at Monroe's on Osuna NE east of San Mateo
WED 19 APR 5:00 PM Board Meeting: HIGHLAND SENIOR CENTER at 131 Monroe NE
FRI 21 APR 9:00 PM Deadline for items for May newsletter
SAT 22 APR Annual Spring Thaw at Old Car Garage ---- Classic Car Tune-up!
WED 26 APR 7:30 PM NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL MEETING OLD CAR GARAGE 3232 GIRARD NE
============================================================================
WED 03 MAY 7:00 PM Meeting: NORTH DOMINGO BACA MULTIGENERATIONAL CENTER
WED 17 MAY 5:00 PM Board Meeting: HIGHLAND SENIOR CENTER at 131 Monroe NE
SUN 21 MAY Annual Albuquerque Museum / Car Council Car Show in Old Town
WED 24 MAY 7:30 PM NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL MEETING OLD CAR GARAGE 3232 GIRARD NE
FRI 26 MAY 9:00 PM Deadline for items for June newsletter
============================================================================
FRI 02 JUN Tri-State == Sponsored by Corvairs of New Mexico. Location: Taos, NM
SAT 03 JUN Tri-State
SUN 04 JUN Tri-State == Stay tuned for phone numbers, T-shirts, other details
WED 07 JUN 7:00 PM Meeting: NORTH DOMINGO BACA MULTIGENERATIONAL CENTER
WED 21 JUN 5:00 PM Board Meeting: HIGHLAND SENIOR CENTER at 131 Monroe NE
FRI 23 JUN 9:00 PM Deadline for items for July newsletter
WED 28 JUN 7:30 PM NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL MEETING OLD CAR GARAGE 3232 GIRARD NE
============================================================================
WED 05 JUL 7:00 PM Meeting: NORTH DOMINGO BACA MULTIGENERATIONAL CENTER
WED 19 JUL 5:00 PM Board Meeting: HIGHLAND SENIOR CENTER at 131 Monroe NE
FRI 21 JUL 9:00 PM Deadline for items for August newsletter
WED 26 JUL 7:30 PM NEW MEXICO CAR COUNCIL MEETING OLD CAR GARAGE 3232 GIRARD NE
============================================================================
See the New Mexico Council of Car Clubs Web Site for more "NMCCC" activities
======================== http://www.nmcarcouncil.com/ ======================
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SEVEN YEARS AGO [ APRIL 2017 VOL 43 NR 4 ISSUE 499 ] Jim Pittman
2010 Vol 36 Nr 4 # 415
We recycled scrap metal. President Pat gave a history of the Pony Express. We
planned a Tri-State in Red River. Jim Clements discussed the Museum Car Show:
Hudson 100th birthday, Corvair 50th birthday. We reported $4,018.11. Chuck
Vertrees planned a road tour. Robert Gold reported on our 36th Anniversary
Party. Heula Pittman called Ruth Boydston our Den Mother as she received the
2010 Boydston Award. Steve Goodman described installing extra gauges in your
Corvair. "Encounter in 1964" described an imaginary test drive of a Spyder by a
young lawyer named Ralph. Tech tips included the effectiveness of several
liquids at freeing up rusted bolts. Our April Fool back cover showed Carey
Hubbard with two Citroens at a car show.
2003 Vol 29 Nr 4 # 331
The Old Route 66 clean-up crew discussed their finds. Guests were Joan Myers and
Morton Bicoll. Wendell reported $5741. Mark said CORSA was considering a dues
increase. Ollie had a hip replacement so Dave was going to run the Old Route 66
cleanup. LeRoy had the Library Van back at his house where he was cleaning
rodent leavings. Bill showed his Tri-State logo. Larry described cutting a 110
top shroud to fit a 140. Robert thanked Steve Johnson for a great garage tour at
Double Eagle airport and mentioned that both Don Yenko and Ed Cole died in light
airplane accidents.
Our speaker for April was to be a pilot who flew as spotter for fire-fighting
slurry bombers. We planned a tour to Trinity Site. Plans for the Raton Tri-State
were good. Anne Mae Gold received the 2003 Meissner Award. Heula reported on the
Progressive Dinner, a big success even if some got lost in Rio Rancho. Richard
told why he hated electric fuel pumps (fire danger) and a story from the
Internet described the insanity of growing, then cutting grass. Your editor
could not resist quoting a variety of comments from the media on the
ever-growing war in Iraq.
Finally, this April Fool issue featured a totally bogus "back cover" complete
with a picture of a Mustang.
1996 Vol 22 Nr 4 # 247
The cover showed CNM members giving a final polish to our convention raffle car,
shaded by giant hot-air balloons. Jerry was about to shoot a cover photo for
CORSA Communique. At our March meeting we welcomed guest Lisa Meissner, Ike's
daughter, who owned a late model. We had $1184 in the bank. We planned a trip to
Trinity Site in April. We already had twelve registrations for the convention.
Larry gave an excellent tech talk, having brought in his early suspension for a
show-and-tell. We hoped to get one or two special interest Corvair vehicles to
display at the convention. We had several choices for sections of highway to be
adopted but had no decision as yet. Brenda organized a "Ladies' Night Out" to be
held at the Pleau residence. Steve Goodman of Pikes Peak Corvair Club provided a
short history of the Tri-State event. This year we looked forward to going to
Montrose, Colorado.
Mark Domzalski reported on the fun-filled photo rally which served as a dry run
for the convention rally. He also gave us a couple of tech tips on FC front
suspension rebuilding. Chuck Vertrees reported in depth on the Photo Rally (a
Corvette won it) and Bill Reider told us some more about the how and why of
recurving a distributor.
1989 Vol 15 Nr 4 # 163
On the cover there was ... a Mustang?! Well, why not, since it beat out the
Corvair fair and square. Well, maybe not fair. We had $392 in the bank. New
members: Joe Ashton, Neil Alessio, Wendell Walker, Jim Gould, Mark Deters, James
Scoughton and Ernest Preciado. We were working on a fifteenth anniversary party
and a special jacket patch. Work on the library van was proceeding. Our guest
speaker, Scott Stapp, told us about oxygenated fuels. Some of us still wonder if
smog was really reduced, and whether EtOH has damaged our old cars? We planned
an auction for April. Kem Owen told us about installing a rack-and-pinion
steering unit on his V-8 powered Corvair. And Jim told how the Mustang led to
his infatuation with sports cars and to his career as a Corvair owner.
1982 Vol 8 Nr 4 # 79
The cover was an April Fool joke showing rare Corvair parts available only from
a Tatra dealership in Tibet. Jim told about selling his 1964 Austin-Healey to
buy a 1966 turbo Corvair Corsa coupe. Corvair fans agree this was NOT a case of
temporary insanity. This issue also reported on another April Fool joke: our
March Fun-Run. Most of the participants got lost.
1975 Vol 1 Nr 4 # 4
The cover featured views of Mark Morgan's fabled 1965 Monza. Our March meeting
was held at House of Covers and 20 members showed up. A "birthday tour" to
Bosque del Apache was snowed out; five members went to a pancake house for
breakfast instead of braving an icy I-25 in search of snow geese and the odd
whooping crane. Francis provided a "How much is your Corvair worth" printout. A
1966 Corsa coupe might bring about $1600.
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Enchanted Corvairs Newsletter is published monthly by Corvairs of New Mexico,
chartered Chapter #871 of CORSA, the Corvair Society of America. Copyright by
the Authors and by Corvairs of New Mexico. Articles may be reprinted in any
CORSA publication as a service to CORSA members, provided credit to the Author
and this Newsletter is clearly stated. All opinions are those of the Author or
Editor and are not necessarily endorsed by Corvairs of New Mexico or CORSA.
Material for publication should reach the Editor by the 15th of the month. Send
material via e-mail ( jimp @ unm.edu ) or submit a readable manuscript. I prefer
ASCII TEXT, but MS Word or RTF are fine. Photographs are welcome. The newsletter
is composed using Apple computers. Software includes Mac OS-X, AppleWorks,
Photoshop CS, GraphicConverter, BBEdit and InDesign CS. If you care, ask for
details. Transportation: 1965 Corvair Monza, 1990 Honda Civic, 1996 Mazda Miata,
2016 Honda Civic. When I'm 64, I'll get by with a little help from my friends.
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=END=