They don’t make them like John Fitch anymore.
The 95-year-old Corvette racing legend passed away early Wednesday at his home in Lime Rock, Connecticut after a life packed full of accomplishments on and off the track.
Le Mans
Charles Johnson was like so many of us. We enter a contest and never give it another thought, figuring we won’t be lucky enough to ever win.
Wrong!
At least for this Raleigh, North Carolina man, who beat the odds and actually won a 2013 Corvette 427 Convertible.
![[VIDEO] ShakeDown asks: Is Corvette Racing the Greatest American Racing Brand?](http://www.corvetteblogger.com/images/content/2012/100912_1.jpg)
When it comes to racing, Corvettes have a storied history. Highlights on their racing resume include wins at Daytona, Sebring, and LeMans, the C4 Corvette Challenge Series, and ALMS dominance over the last decade. In the ShakeDown episode after the break, host Leo Parente takes a brief look at Corvette Racing from its inception all the way up the recent American Le Mans Series GTE title and the Grand-Am Engine Manufacturers Championship in the Corvette Daytona Prototypes.
The first hearing in a battle to determine who owns one of three 1960 Corvette race cars will be held today in U.S. District Court in Harrisburg, Pa.
Two of the classic race cars have already been restored and are estimated to be worth at least a million dollars each. But the No.1 Corvette, which was driven by Briggs Cunningham in the 1960 24 Hours of Le Mans, had been missing for nearly 30 years.
The future of sports car racing in North America just got a bit more interesting with Wednesday’s announcement that NASCAR’s Grand-AM Series and the American Le Mans Series would merge into one entity beginning in 2014. Also included in the merger is Road Atlanta and the racing lease on Sebring International Raceway.
After working this weekend to ensure that Corvettes at Carlisle, one of the largest Corvette shows in the country, went off successfully without a hitch, Carlisle Event’s co-owner Lance Miller is now responding to Dan Mathis Jr’s claims that his family is the owner of the #1 1960 Briggs Cunningham Corvette that ran at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Miller emailed CorvetteBlogger.com a copy of the letter he sent to New York Times writer Jerry Garrett who has covered the saga of the former race car’s ownership dispute on his Garrett on the Road blog from the beginning.
![[PICS] The 1960 Le Mans Winning Corvette at the Concours d'Elegance of America](http://www.corvetteblogger.com/images/content/2012/080712_11b.jpg)
In the summer of 1960 Corvette Racing won the prestigious 24 hours of Le Mans for the very first time. Racing legend Briggs Cunningham fielded 3 white, fuel injected C1′s numbered 1, 2, and 3 in the annual endurance race. Cars #1 and #2 didn’t finish, but number 3 went on to win its class and finish 8th overall. We got a chance to catch up with that famous #3 at last weekend’s Concours d’Elegance of America in Plymouth. Michigan.
![[PICS] Corvette vs. Jaguar at the Concours d'Elegance of America](http://www.corvetteblogger.com/images/content/2012/080212_35.jpg)
If there was an Olympic event for world class car shows, Pebble Beach, Amelia Island and the Concours d’Elegance of America (formerly Meadowbrook) would all complete for the gold medal. Any (or all) of these 3 prestigious shows should be on your must-attend list. When we heard that there was going to be Corvette vs Jaguar racing display at this year’s Concours d’Elegance of America, we put it on our must, must, must-attend list.
If you’ve had the opportunity to watch The Quest, the documentary about the 3-car team of 1960 Corvettes fielded by Briggs Cunningham in the 1960 24 Hours of Le Mans and the search for those three cars years later by collectors, you would know that the No. 1 Corvette had been lost and its current whereabouts were unknown.
Until now.
Lance Miller, co-owner of Carlisle Events and owner of the Briggs Cunningham No.3 1960 Corvette, made the shocking announcement on Facebook yesterday stating that the #1 Le Mans Corvette Racer had finally been discovered and would be displayed in its current “Barn-Find” condition at Corvettes at Carlisle later this month.
![[VIDEO] Corvette Racing's Jordan Taylor Shares a Lap of Le Mans at Night](http://www.corvetteblogger.com/images/content/2012/062712_31.jpg)
We’ve seen plenty of on-board videos from Le Mans but this one from Corvette Racing’s Jordan Taylor lap during a nighttime practice session before this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans is simply amazing for both its clarity and perspective.
