March 2021 REView

March 2021

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June 18-19, 2021

March is here and Corvette weather is in the air! We are excited to say that Bloomington Gold is back full force this June! We are returning to Lucas Oil Stadium, home of the Indianapolis Colts, in 2021 and will once again hold the largest indoor Corvette Show! If you made it to the 2020 Show, you have to admit seeing almost 100 Corvettes parked on the concourse of a football stadium was quite an experience. From the concourse to the exhibit hall full of vendors, you were able to leisurely stroll parts of the stadium that are usually off limits. In addition to the inside displays and vendors, we will also have outside activities including numerous special display parking for C8’s and Camaros. And, returning in 2021 is the Silver Salute! All 1996 Corvettes are invited to join as we give the 1996 Corvette a Silver Salute!

Looking for something new in the certification field? Resto Mod certification is back again, offering attendees a great opportunity to learn more about this new hobby that is growing in popularity each year. And we can’t forget this year’s Special Collection: Tribute to the LS6.

So, mark your calendars for June 18th & 19th, buy your tickets, REV up your Corvette and start counting down….Because we are back in June full throttle!

Happy Driving.

Guy Larsen Corvette Enthusiast and President Bloomington Gold Corvettes

This year’s Gold Collection will feature one of the rarest high-performance Corvettes: The 1971 LS6.

2021

2021 marks the 50th anniversary of this very rare production Corvette in which only 188 were ever produced. Of the original 188, less than 100 still remain.

Bloomington Gold’s 2021 Gold Collection will be the largest gathering of the remaining 1971 LS6 Corvettes in one location.

What makes the LS6 so special?

As mentioned, a very limited number were produced - 188. Until the launch of the Z06 thirty years later, the LS6 was the most powerful Corvette on the market.

The Official Car Care Company of Bloomington Gold.

GriotsGarage.com

Are you ready for Spring?

Before the first drive of the Spring, make sure you...

Call Coker Tires for replacement tires as well as tire upgrades…New tires will make you want to detail and polish using products from Griots Garage…Once you have it cleaned, you are going to want to protect your paint from chips and other road related damage, which means you will need to schedule an install with XPEL. To get your clean car to XPEL, you will need a new trailer from Trailex.

Once you have your new Trailex trailer, you need to make room in your garage by buying a Titan Lift. Now you will need to keep your car clean in your garage, so you will need to order a Car Capsule….And before you do any of this, make sure your insurance is active with American Collectors Insurance. Once you are ready for spring, it’s time to look forward a few months…So…. hire Mecum Transport to transport your car to a Mecum Auction to sell it so that you can order a brand new C8 from City Chevrolet. Once you get it, you will want to learn how to drive it like a race car at Ron Fellows Driving School.

Whew, you’ve got a lot to do to get ready for Corvette Season!

It’s a good thing Bloomington Gold Sponsors have every aspect of caring for your Corvette covered!

The 60th Anniversary Cunningham C8 Corvette Gets a Preview of the 600-HP Lingenfelter LT2

By Keith Cornett

For the last few months, We’ve been talking about the 60th Anniversary Cunningham Corvette that you can win when you make a donation to the Chip Miller Amyloidosis Foundation. Bloomington Gold readers can get 30% bonus entries on ticket orders of $25 or more, so get your tickets now!

This limited-edition C8 model is a modern-day tribute to the Briggs Cunningham 1960 Corvette that won its class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Only 60 of these will be offered with the Chip Miller Amyloidosis Foundation winner bringing home number 33. Here is the backstory on the connection between Chip Miller and Cunningham Corvette.

Briggs Cunningham was a gentleman racer who fielded three specially modified 1960 Corvettes at the 24 Hours of Le Mans where they would compete on the world stage of racing. Of the three Corvettes, it was the No.3 Corvette that would take the checkered flag, winning its class and finishing 8th overall. Following the race, those 1960 Corvettes were returned to the USA where they were reverted to nearly stock form and sold.

Chip Miller was one of the co-founders of the Corvettes at Carlisle show with an impressive Corvette collection in his own right, but missing was that Le Mans-winning #3 1960 Corvette. A multi-year pursuit of the car by the “Corvette Hunter” Kevin Mackay finally paid off. Chip purchased the car and had Kevin restore it back to its 1960 Le Mans specs.

Sadly, Chip passed away in 2004 from a rare disease known as amyloidosis. Today, the Chip Miller Amyloidosis Foundation raises funds for the research, education, and awareness of amyloidosis and related diseases.

The 60th Anniversary Cunningham C8 Corvette can be the centerpiece of your collection just as the 1960 #3 Le Mans Corvette was for Chip Miller. But this special C8 Corvette isn’t just a run-of-the-mill C8 Corvette as these planned changes show.

One of the exciting aspects of the 60th Anniversary Cunningham Corvette project is the performance upgrades by Lingenfelter Performance Engineering. Planned upgrades include a high-flow carbon fiber intake manifold, CORSA Performance headers, a tuned suspension with motorsport-inspired aerodynamics, as well as specially-created HRE forged aluminum wheels modeled after the Halibrand racing wheels used on the original Cunningham Corvettes.

When the upgrades are complete, the naturally aspirated LT2 engine will be making nearly 600-hp. Early photos of the Cunningham C8 shows a Carbon pTR intake manifold on top of the LT2 engine and now Lingenfelter has a new video showing off the intake from inside the engine bay during a recent track test session: https://youtu.be/UIY2gRb1Z7I In order to have the opportunity to bring home this limited-edition 60th Anniversary Cunningham C8 Corvette, all you have to do is to make a donation to the Chip Miller Amyloidosis Foundation. Bloomington Gold readers can get 30% bonus entries on ticket orders of $25 or more.

Source: Chip Miller Amyloidosis Foundation

GOLD CERTIFIED® Do you think your Corvette is close to being the way it appeared when it left the factory? If so, your Corvette may qualify to be GOLD CERTIFIED®!

Bloomington Gold is recognized world wide for its prestigious judging process of Corvettes and the authentication a Bloomington Gold Certification brings to a Corvette. Each year, Corvette owners bring their Corvettes to be judged for Certification. The reasons for doing so are many, but each has one final goal: to have their car be awarded either GOLD CERTIFIED®, SURVIVOR® or the much coveted BENCHMARK® award. And again in 2021, Resto Mod judging will be back!

Our highly qualified judges are known for their knowledge, courtesy and consistency!

A GOLD CERTIFIED® car appears as it would just after completion of “typical factory production.”

It means that a Corvette has been preserved or restored within 95% of the way it appeared when it left the factory.

The SURVIVOR® Award is designed to recognize those Corvettes that are “worn in, but not worn out.” A SURVIVOR® Corvette is significantly unrestored, unrepaired, or unmodified and meets these requirements: Over 20 years old • Passes a road test • Retains OEM engine BENCHMARK® is the ultimate standard for unrestored vehicles.

To achieve BENCHMARK® status, an unrestored Corvette must attain GOLD CERTIFIED® and excel in all four categories of SURVIVOR® during the same weekend.

A Bloomington Gold Certified® Resto Mod is a Corvette that is modified more than 50% in all four of the following sections: engine, chassis, exterior and interior.

To learn more about Bloomington Gold Certification or to register your Corvette for 2020 Certification, contact Beth Brucker Beth@BloomingtonGold.com or

309.888.2588 or see Judging under the Classic Events Tab at

BloomingtonGold.com

A little car knowledge waiting in your inbox on (most) Wednesdays!

Many of you are already avid readers of Wise Guy Wednesdays, but if you have not yet seen one, it is a (currently) bi-monthly certification tip sent out on Wednesday morning. Come April, it will return to a weekly email until June.

The purpose is to give readers, whether owners of certified cars or not, something car related to look forward to mid-week and to offer some insight into the Bloomington Gold Certification process. With that being said, please submit any questions you may have for Wise Guy to Guy@BloomingtonGold.com. Wise Guy is always looking for new topics to write about!

Calling all C8, 1971, 1996 Corvettes and ALL CAMAROS…

BLOOMINGTON GOLD WANTS YOU! If you own a car in one of these categories, we invite you to be a part of one of 4 VIP parking displays! We will be offering special parking for C8 Corvettes, 1971 Corvettes, 1996 Corvettes and all Camaros! Even if you don’t own a car in one of these groups we invite you to have fun walking the aisles of these displays made up of cars owned by attendees!

C8 Parking

Do you own a C8? Be a part of the daily C8 display at the entrance to the Stadium! Almost 2 years after the unveiling of the new model, a majority of the public have not seen the C8 in person! This will be an extremely popular display!

Gold Year VIP Parking

In addition to the two dozen 1971 LS6’s making up the 2021 Gold Collection, we will also have a collection of 1971 Corvettes parked in an area reserved for GoldYear Parking near the entrance to the stadium. What makes these cars special?

Not only are they 50 years old, but they are still drivable! If you own a 1971 Corvette and would like to participate, please click here. We would love to have you!

Be sure to have the following when registering your car: VIN, Color, Engine Horsepower, # years owned, odometer reading, any interesting facts about the Corvette.

Silver Salute VIP Parking

Help us celebrate the 25th anniversary with a Silver Salute to the 1996 Corvette! A great group of cars make up the year 1996 including Grand Sports, Collector Editions and LT4’s. If you plan on driving your 1996 to the event, please pre-register for reserved parking as there will be limited parking for day of event drive ups. To reserve parking for your 1996 Corvette please click here. Be sure to have the following when registering: VIN, Color, Engine Horsepower, # years owned, odometer reading, any interesting facts about the Corvette.

Camaro Gallery Parking

Welcome back Camaros! As in past years, we will have special parking allocated just for Camaros. You will be directed to the parking upon entering the main parking lot. This is a great chance for attendees to see changes made to the Camaro body style through the years, plus learn a little about them!