Ron lives in Fairfax and joined CRCC in April. Here’s his Corvette Story:

“To own a Corvette has been a dream of mine for as long as I can remember I had owned other sports cars but it always felt like I was missing out on my dream, so I started looking to fulfill that dream in 2006.

I love to take road trips touring the country. When I am on the road in my Corvette I feel like I am on top of the world.

The response that I receive from total strangers concerning my Corvette is a plus that I never expected, and it makes the experience of road trips worth every mile.

I plan a road trip each summer for two weeks and always take one of my sons along; this quality time is just another plus for owning a Corvette.”

In August of 1996 we took a trip to Rapid
City, SD. We stopped in Sioux Falls to look
at a 1970 El Camino big block; it was not
what we expected. We then stopped at the
Chevy dealer to look at used corvettes,
leaving the Chevy dealers lot we noticed in
the show room the new corvettes. We decided
to look at the new ones, to our surprise
the sales rep. said they had just gotten
the cars back from the Black Hills Rally and
were discounting the cars to move them
out. We said we would think about it and
started to leave. But a huge thunderstorm
came up with wind and hail, so we went
back to ask to put our 1979 Lincoln inside.
We did and ended up going back to talk to
the dealer again and ended up buying a 1996
C-4 torch red coupe.

A few years later we
started looking on line for a C-5 convertible
and Shane from Valley Chevy called indicated
they had no C-5 left at discount price.
But they were getting a 2001 C-5 Magnetic
Red Convertible with very low mileage. We
were busy planting in the fields, Shane called saying the car would not last long, so we decided to go to Valley Chevy to look
at it as soon as it came in, test drove it and ended up trading in the C-4 for the C-5. We've done a few summer trips to Ark.
going to Sioux Falls, then heading to the Black Hills. We are planning to go to Sioux Falls, along with the Black Hills Rally and
Lake Okoboji this summer. We hade made many friends in the Crow River Corvette Club. The summer supper runs are a lot
of fun. We are also looking forward to the Corvette for a Cause rally in June, it was a huge success last year and a lot of fun.

Debbie is the newest member of CRCC. She says, “When I first started looking for a sports car, my main focus was a convertible. Nothing came close to the style of the Corvette. And with my last name being Hotvedt, pronounced as "Hot Vet", it only seemed appropriate that a Corvette was the car for me.

I really enjoy road trips with the Corvette. The last couple of years I traveled to Scottsdale, AZ and Yellowstone National Park. This year I look forward to Glacier National Park and the various outings with the Corvette Club.

Other hobbies include car shows/races, gardening, photography, bird watching, fishing, theater, scrapbooking and walking my Pug and Huskies.”

Debbie is single, retired, and has lived in Eden Prairie for 21 years. She is a foster care provider for babies through Hennepin County. Her son is a graduate of Augsburg College and resides in Waconia. Her daughter is studying pre-veterinary medicine at the U of M.

April's featured owners are Pam and Galen Houk. Pam and Galen have been married almost 30 years and have lived all of that time in Hutchinson. Galen worked at HTI for 21 years and now works at Lake Region Medical in Chaska as an R & D engineer. Pam is a dental hygienist in Hutchinson. Their son lives in Hutchinson and has a gravel truck business. Their daughter is a licensed attorney in Kentucky.

Galen says, “I had wanted a Corvette ever since watching the show “Route 66” when I was a kid but I could never afford one. When I married Pam, she wouldn’t ride on my motorcycle so we sold it and bought a ‘68 Mustang convertible that we called our family motorcycle. We got many years of enjoyment out of the Mustang but it was getting to the point where it needed another restoration and we sold it. Some years later I decided it was time to get another convertible. The only Mustangs I was interested in were the Cobras and even they looked a little too common.

I started watching Corvettes on e-bay and on-line and almost bought a 1995 triple black 5 speed. When I found a ’93 yellow convertible with only 45,000 miles at Bill Jacobs in Joliet, IL, I was sure it was the one. I made an offer over the phone and they accepted it. The only problem was that someone else had already bought it while I was making the deal. The only way I could get it was if his financing didn’t go through and that wasn’t very likely. The next day they called and said that if I wanted it, it was mine. His loss was my gain. My son and I drove down to get it and I still say it is the best purchase I ever made. Maybe someday we will have a newer one.”

Pam and Galen like to go cruising with the top down on a warm summer night and going places with the corvette club. When they can't drive the Corvette in the winter, they mainly do things around home and wish it was summer.

March's featured owner is Tim Monahan. Tim has been with the Crow River Corvettes for just over a year.

Tim's passion for Corvettes started pretty much at birth, but when he first saw the clam shell hood open on a C4 back in 1984, he knew one day he would have one.

Twenty-one years later the dream became a reality with a black 1993 coupe. In 2007 Tim sold the '93 and flew to Virginia to pick up his '88 4+3 coupe. "I just had to shift for myselft," explains Tim.

In addition to hanging out with the Crow River Corvettes, Tim is a regular on VetteAction.com, an on-line community for local Corvette owners. Tim lives in Lester Prairie and is active in ministry at Freshwater Community Church in St. Bonifacius.

February's featured owner is Bob Tschida. He is one of our newest members. Bob is featured here with his beautiful 1989 Maroon Coupe.

Bob lives in Robbinsdale, MN, with his dog, Mollie. He has 2 children and 3 stepchildren. He drives his Vette to visit family and
friends in Walker, Bemidji, and Detroit Lakes, MN, as well as Wisconsin.

Bob is retired and stays busy doing volunteer work giving out food at a
food shelf.

Wintertime hobbies include snowmobiling with his brother. They’ve put
on about 400 miles so far and will be heading up to Walker for the Eel Pout
Festival, and just maybe a run down to Hutchinson.

In his spare time, Bob likes to build model cars and tries to find cars that
he used to own. Other hobbies include golf and bowling.

Bob says, “My biggest motto in life is think positive.!! Everything else will fall in line.”

Brad is the owner of a 2000 Pewter Coupe and loves to drive it with the top off and the CD player turned up.

Brad has three children, Karla, Nathan and Steven. He is pictured here with his three grandchildren, Alex 19, Hannah 17, and Joslyn 1.

Brad was born and raised in Litchfield, MN, then moved to Superior, WI and Sioux Falls, SD. He has also lived in the Twin Cities; Zimmerman;

Mitchell, SD, and has now lived in Atwater since 1985.

Brad followed his dad into railroading and works for Burlington Northern Railway.

In his spare time Brad enjoys woodworking like building furniture and flower gardening. Brad says, “If you’re ever in Atwater stop by for coffee, drink, snack or just to BS you are always welcome. “

November's featured
members are Just & Valerie Rude from Stockholm, SD.

They are pictured above with their Torch Red 1999 C5.

The Rudes have been involved with the Crow River Corvettes for many years and now are official members.

They enjoy spending time with their children, camping, and the annual trips out to the Black Hills Corvette Classic.

Remember to thank them for their participation in last year's Corvettes for a Cure.

October's featured
member is Kathy Winter, from Hutchinson.

She is pictured here with her gorgeous 1995 C4.

Her C4 has been photographed by Corvette Fever magazine in the April 08 edition.