A Bittersweet Day

Yesterday, July 16, 2008, was bittersweet for me. I watched ruefully, a ton of memories flooding my mind while my last Corvair rolled off into the morning sun. I've owned this van since early 1970, literally 38 years of memories:




Some of those include:

• The great deal I got on it from it's previous owner because it wouldn't move - and fixing it in his driveway with borrowed tools!

• All the wonderful little trips Bev & I took in it while we were at Chico State, a couple of which especially stand out in my mind. Care-free days!!
  

• A trip to Colorado with Mom & Barbara to see family, and breaking down in Reno, NV on the return leg - over a $2 part. Fortunately there was an auto parts store just two blocks away and we were back on the road quickly.

• Working with Jim to get the Spyder dashboard and all the other new instruments up and running before we left to attend the big Corvair show in Seattle.

• Taking a break in Redding, CA on the trip to Seattle because it was so hot and Jim & I were concerned about the high engine oil temperatures - never mind that we were hot, too!

• Rolling slowly along the shoulder of I-5 in Northern CA at some point in time while taking photos of the odometer turning 100,000 miles. Still have those photos in a box somewhere. . .
  

• Removing half the interior so I could fit my motorcycle inside and then stuffing the van full all around the bike when I moved to Fresno in the early '70's.

• More trips with Bev as we settled in Fresno, often to Corvair-related events.
  

• All the little customization things I did to it over the years, like the Spyder dashboard and extra instruments, side marker lights all around, Chevy Pick-up exterior mirrors, Chevelle station wagon wheels and the fattest tires I could stuff into the rear wheel wells without cutting up the body, and, of course, the wire wheel covers (on a van??)
  

• Driving it around Laguna Seca racetrack near Monterey, CA - no, not racing, but in a parade lap:
  

• Planning for years to have the two dents in the rear fixed, and the whole van repainted, but never getting it done. . .
  

• Somewhat sadly stopping it's use as my regular daily driver because it was going through a quart of oil with each tank of fuel, and I was getting spoiled by a vehicle with air conditioning.

• All those years of using it as a storage shed alongside the garage on Fourth St.

• Several years of using it as a storage shed inside a mini-storage unit. (Weird, I know. . .)

• Finally having the courage to let it go. . .
  

Good bye, old faithful friend. . .