On Spring Break of 1999, our family piled into the minivan and made a trip I've been wanting to make for a long time. We went to Kentucky.
One thoroughly surprised friend asked what in the world we would want to do in Kentucky! Well, there are several things. First, it's the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln was born in LaRue county, named for my ancestors who lived there, so I was especially interested. Secondly, there's Mammoth Cave, the largest cave system in North America.
And then, of course, there's Bowling Green, home of the General Motors plant that builds Corvettes, and the National Corvette Museum.
Here are some photos from the NCM. Click on the thumbnailed photos to enlarge. Better description to come later (I'm in a hurry tonight).
-Alan LaRue
This is the museum. |
At the base of the sign is what appears to be a '53-'55 Corvette body, painted silver. I don't know if this is real or not. |
When you first enter, there's a new convertible you can sit in. The woman is my wife. (Am I lucky, or am I lucky?) |
What's an MG doing here? If you were in Europe during the occupation after WW II, you probably wanted to bring one of these MG TC's home with you. This car started the interest in sports cars in the U.S. |
And this is the beginning... a 1953 Corvette. |
And the bicycle it inspired! I knew of Schwinn Stingray bikes when I was a kid, but I didn't know about the Schwinn Corvette from the 50's. |
My wife in front of a '55 This '55 is serial number 3, and probably the first V8 Corvette ever built. |
Notice the large gold "V" in the emblem, emphasizing what's under the hood. |
You can see the top of the 265 V8 in this shot. |
This car has the 283 Fuel Injected V8. I'm not sure of the year; either a '59 or '60. |
One of my favorites, a '63 "Split Window" Coupe, the first Sting Ray. |
Mickey Thompson's racing '63 Sting Ray |
1967 LeMans Competitor |
1967 LeMans Competitor |
 |
This Corvette was in the movie "Death Race 2000" |
And this one was in "Corvette Summer," a 1978 movie starring Mark Hamill and Annie Potts. |
CERV's -- Chevrolet Experimental Research Vehicles |
A Callaway Corvette |
Another CERV |
Something interesting about this car... 4 exhaust pipes. This is a "ZR-12," an experimental V12 Corvette. |
C5 Test Mule |
This is the plant, near the museum, and the only place since the middle of the '81 model year where Corvettes are built. (From '54 through mid-81 they were built in St. Louis. |
The plant again. Look at all of the 'Vettes the employees drive! |
Return to the Corvette page
