Huron Valley Corvette Club
Celebrates a 60 Year History
Huron Valley Corvette Club was founded in 1965. Meetings were held at Vincent Chevrolet in Ypsilanti on the 2nd and 4th Sundays at 3:00 p.m. The first known recorded minutes were from December 5, 1965.
At that meeting the election of officers was held. Jim Keegan was elected as the first president. An interesting point in the minutes is that wives of members were called associate members but could not vote. Club names were suggested, and the name Huron Valley Corvette Club (HVCC) won out over several other suggestions.
During the 1970’s and 1980’s HVCC was comprised of young single members and married couples, several with young children. HVCC became a member of the National Council of Corvette Clubs (NCCC) belonging to the Michigan Region. Each competition season (usually late spring to late fall) HVCC sponsored some competition events. Each competition event was a “sanctioned” event through NCCC and Michigan Region.
Corvettes were broken down by class (year and engine type), and several members from other clubs would also attend to vie for a trophy in their respective class. The club had its own timing equipment, which was run out of a club-owned Corvair Van.
• Low Speed event. This event was run in a parking lot. The lot was pyloned down to keep the speeds low and safe. A couple of the parking lots used were Pioneer High School and Washtenaw Community College (with permission of each of the schools).
• Road Rally. This event was timed throughout a printed road course. The entrant who completed the rally in the best time with the fewest penalties won.
• Economy Run. This event is similar to the road rally. The gas tank was topped off at the beginning of the event; and at the end of the printed road course, the gas tank was again filled. The entrant within their class with the best gas economy won.
• Concourse. This is a beauty contest for Corvettes with judging done based on year and condition of the car.
For a few years HVCC also sponsored and ran a drag event at Milan Dragway. This always drew several competitors from all over the state and outlying areas. Each of these events required the participation of several club members to keep the event running smoothly.
During the 1970’s and 1980’s HVCC had a points system with one member serving as the points director. When a member chaired an event and/or worked an event, they were awarded points for that. Points were awarded for running in a competition event as well. At the end of the year the individual’s points were tallied, and a trophy was given out for most worker points and the most competition points.
During the 1970’s and 1980’s, several social events centered around family activities. Some of them were an annual picnic, house parties, and progressive dinners. Aside from family activities, one of the major events was a car show to raise money for the NCCC charity of Spina Bifida. A parts swap meet and car show was held at Rampy Chevrolet in May. The Kidney Foundation was supported with a donation in memory of Bob Mikan, an active member for many years, who passed away from kidney failure.
At the end of the year was the annual Christmas/Awards Banquet. This was a dressy affair with dinner and music. At the banquet, the annual awards for worker and competition were handed out; and a good time was had by all! A fun award was the Golden Pylon Award. This was awarded to the club member who hit the most pylons while running a parking lot event. Also presented was the President’s Award, which is still in existence today.
HVCC published a monthly printed newsletter (before the digital age) called the Glass Caravan. This included a calendar of upcoming competition and social events, minutes from the previous meeting, swap and sell, and any other news of interest. A contest was held for the design of the cover, and our honorary member Betsy Mark was declared the winner! That cover was used throughout the years of the printed copy.
During the 1970’s and 1980’s membership remained at between 30 and 40 members. The meeting location was moved to Rampy Chevrolet in Ann Arbor (later Suburban Chevrolet). During the 1990’s membership dwindled to just a few. HVCC no longer sponsored competition or social events.
By the 2000’s the membership began to increase. Meetings were again being held at Suburban Chevrolet in Ann Arbor. A free one-year membership was given to anyone who bought a Corvette. Also with the digital age and word of mouth, HVCC began to grow and has reached at various times a membership of over 100.
The history of Huron Valley Corvette Club is not complete without the dedication of its past members, one in particular…Jim Keegan. Jim was one of the founding members of HVCC. Jim was the heart and soul of the club until his passing in 2010. He chaired many events and was an active competition participant. He was also HVCC’s Governor to the National Council of Corvette Clubs for many years and was widely known and respected in the Corvette world. Jim co-owned DJ’s Auto in Saline. You could go to Jim with any question(s) about the working and/or detail of any year Corvette, and he would probably know the answer.
In 2019 LaFontaine Chevrolet in Dexter became the club’s sponsor. The first meeting was held there on September 19, 2019. LaFontaine continues to be the sponsor, and they have supported us well. We are very appreciative of all their support.
Today, HVCC is mainly a social club. Examples of club activities include weekly ice cream runs in the summer, attending local car shows, out-of-town trips in the spring and fall, the annual picnic and the Christmas banquet. It is a pleasure to see Huron Valley Corvette Club continuing to survive and thrive today.
Congratulations to those members who work tirelessly to continue its name and for the good of its members and the Chevrolet Corvette!
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60th Anniversary Celebration – June 2025
History Submitted by Pat & Paul Weiner
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