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If you want to tell someone your Corvette is Top Flight, it’s not only going to take a lot of work on your part, it will need to be evaluated by a group of 10 Corvette experts. And it doesn’t mean you can go out and buy all new parts to rebuild the car. This is about original — as in rolling-off-the-line original.
“A few years back, when the economy was strong, lots of these judging meets were about speculators trying to get the Top Flight status so they could get more money for the car,” explained Mike Mills, one of the coordinators of the chapter judging meet for the Miami Valley chapter of the National Corvette Restorers Society (NCRS).
“But now, it’s returned more to the hobby aspect for us who love our Corvettes, and want to preserve them, but do it correctly and with originality,” he added. “These cars should be as close to the way they came off the line as possible, flaws and all.”
The local NCRS was holding its eighth judging meet recently, and they have moved into the body shop space of Voss Chevrolet to do it. “We were at the Carillon Park for many years, and we had weather issues all the time,” Nick Kammer, judging coordinator said. “Voss is now a sponsor of our chapter, and last year they offered us this indoor space, which is great. It’s nice to be in a facility with clean floors, because these judges crawl down under the car. They are all over them,” he said.
Six cars were up for judging this time, and there were 20 judges. The cars are scrutinized in five categories: operational, mechanical, chassis, interior and exterior. The NCRS has compiled judging books, guidelines for judging and documentation that the judges refer to as they pore over the car in two-person teams for each category.
To get to the Top Flight award, the car must score 94 percent or higher in all categories. Second Flight requires a score of above 85 per cent in all categories.
“In addition to the 20 judges we have working today, we have a number of observers who are learning to be judges,” Kammer said.
Ron Smith was fidgeting as he watched the judges go over his white 1966 Corvette coupe. “It’s weird, but this is really nerve-wracking,” Smith said. “I mean, I know this car is not a Top Flight contender yet, but it’s still really tense watching them go over it.”
Smith, who happens to be employed by Voss in the body shop, has owned this Corvette for nearly 20 years. “I found it in a barn, really, in ’91 or ’92, and I picked it up for $14,000. I did a ground-up rebuild, not a restoration, over the next year or so,” he said.
“This car is pretty original, it’s truly numbers matching. When I bought it, the only thing not original on it was the tires. I have refurbished or reconditioned as many of the original parts as I could. You know, a car is really only original once, but mine is pretty darn close.”
To learn more at the Miami Valley chapter of the NCRS, you can visit their website at www.ncrs.org/mvc
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