Investment Portfolio: C2 Corvette, 427/435 Big-Block Chevy, Tri-Power

(Lynndale) Blue-Chip Investment

Though spared the rigors of racing, the Watson family roadster has amassed quite the track record

 

One could hardly (if at all) option a Corvette better: 427-cubic-inch, 435-horse L71; Muncie M21; Transistorized ignition; Positraction with a 4.11:1 screw; Side pipes; F41 suspension; Kelseys and Uncommon Lynndale Blue.

And one could hardly ask for a better example: 36,000 miles on the original drivetrain, unblemished body, intact factory paint and a tank sheet to prove it all.

But in 1984, here’s what all that amounted to: Man, that would make such a great race car.

“Our family was in Steamboat for the vintage race weekend in 1984, which we attended every Labor Day weekend,” Chris Watson begins. While there, Chris and co., touched bases with family friend Eddie O’Brien. O’Brien proudly showed off his would-be racer. This car.

Chris withheld his horror. “I was looking for a 1967 project and convinced Eddie that this car was too good to race. Every part was original and in great shape.”

That meant a lot to the Watson clan. “Our family was heavily involved in NCRS,” he says. Chris judged; his wife, JoAnn, tabulated and their son Brett helped with judging. “We really wanted this car as it was the nicest we had come across, which would make the project go more smoothly.”

To call the Watsons’ task effortless doesn’t exactly do justice to the family’s discipline. Time more than use took its toll on engine components like valvesprings and piston rings. So Chris had Denver’s Madcap Racing freshen up the machined surfaces before reassembly with fresh components. Rather than repaint, they touched-up. Al Knoch Interiors replaced a few pieces in the teal interior. The 7.75-15 Firestone Deluxe Champions were no longer available when this car underwent its cosmetic cleanup, leaving Chris to find a long-forgotten set sitting on some dealer’s shelves. Chris notes, “We used mostly N.O.S. parts, which were still available from dealer stock.” (Sort of like restoring a 2002 today—would-be collectors take note!)

“We restored the car as a family project. Our son Brett was only six at the time and was all in to help,” Chris continues. “The project taught him at a very young age about applying authenticity and quality while keeping the originality of the car while working on it.” All grown up now, Brett co-operates Timeless Horse Power, a collector-car dealer/broker in Arvada, Colorado. Just as Chris did with his, Brett brought his family into the fold (that’s him with his wife, Sheila, and their daughter Lucy).

“Family vacations were typically NCRS events all over the U.S., where we met many great people, including Zora Duntov and Larry Shinoda,” Chris continues. “We developed lifelong friendships with many of the early NCRS members.”

The car scored very well: six Top Flight awards, a Performance Verification, the Zora Duntov Award and, because of the car’s intact nature and the Watsons’ dedication to it, a Bloomington Gold certificate. “One of our most memorable trips was to Bend, Oregon, NCRS Nationals, where Zora and Elfie were in attendance and personally handed us our Duntov Award,” Chris notes. And the car did actually see some track time. The year Corvette was the featured marque at the Monterey Historics, the promoters invited the Watsons to make a parade lap at Laguna Seca. It then went on display in the host hotel’s lobby.

To be fair to Eddie, who intended to race the car, the car’s original owner seemingly ordered it for competition. I mean 4.11 gears aren’t exactly daily-driver material. Furthermore, he ordered the car from Ammon R. Smith Auto Co. in York [Pennsylvania].

Now, if that name doesn’t ring a bell, know this: Ammon’s granddaughter married a guy named Dave Strickler. Strickler was a drag racer of considerable note who, with none other than Bill “Grumpy” Jenkins, campaigned the Old Reliable series of race cars sponsored by Ammon Smith Auto Co. So you could say that this was a blue-blooded racer. A Lynndale Blue-blooded racer if you will.

“A week after selling us the car, Eddie bought a small-block AC Cobra,” Chris says. “To this day he jokingly tells me I stole the Corvette from him.” Chris’ response, “Okay, you can have it back. I will take the Cobra and pay you the difference of what we paid for the cars back then.” Suffice it to say, it’s a conversation ender. Vette

































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