[PICS] The 26th Annual Michelin NCM Bash

The 26th edition of the Michelin NCM Bash took place last weekend at the National Corvette Museum. The annual April event drew crowds from all over the US, Canada, and even further thanks to multiple road tours, a plethora of educational seminars, and of course, lots and lots of Corvettes.

The Bash is three days of Corvette euphoria. Each day is a Choose Your Own Adventure book from morning to evening. The seminar agenda this year consisted of staples like the NCM and assembly plant updates. The annual update from the Corvette engineering team gave us all sorts of details on 2023 production statistics as well as the new 2024 wheels, HTC see-through engine cover, and new colors. Of course, the 2024 E-Ray supplied the bulk of the team’s discussion, covering everything from option packages through a complete explanation of the complex hybrid drivetrain.

Corvette team member Cody Buckley delivered the most entertaining seminar of the weekend with his behind the scenes look at the E-Ray’s January 17th debut on The Today Show. His energetic delivery and comedic tones kept the packed conference center engaged as he rolled out the series of events leading up to the TV show and the inherent obstacles to performing cyclones on a tiny ice rink in the middle of New York City.

Other presentations included Tech Talks from Michelin and Mobil 1 while the live auction raised just over $26k for the museum. Attendees also got to see the grand opening of the new McMichael Family Education Center and hear about newly contributed collection items such as a Dick Guldstrand racing suit and helmet. The Corvette Mechanic, Paul Koerner, did his thing all weekend with a series of classroom sessions and talks on Corvette maintenance and care.

Out on the road, Corvette owners had their choice of several road tours. Destinations included the Jim Beam distillery, Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame, the General Jackson Showboat, and more. Those sticking onsite could take a stroll through the museum or browse the vendor tent in between other activities.

Friday afternoon and evening, the ladies took center stage with a Betty Skelton documentary followed a brief time later by a banquet dinner and women in motorsports panel. Speaking of motorsports, there was plenty of activity over at the Motorsports Park as well. Throughout the weekend attendees had the option of track laps in their own cars, ridealongs in a NCM Corvette, or driving a NCM C7 or C8 Corvette. Our Detroit Bureau took some laps Friday morning and reports that the MSP is one of the best tracks he’s ever been on.

While all that action was happening, several Corvette owners were taking delivery of their new Corvettes through the R8C program right on Corvette Boulevard inside the museum. There’s no better way to celebrate your new Corvette than with thousands of your newest friends. If a brand new C8 isn’t in your reach, folks could take a chance in either of the two raffles held during the Bash. We’re sad to report no new Corvettes are coming to the CorvetteBlogger garages. Outside the museum, visitors and attendees perused the hundreds of Corvettes parked around the NCM grounds. Things got more formal Saturday during the newly expanded car show.

As you can see the Michelin NCM Bash has no shortage of activities. There’s so much to do, we can’t even list it all here. Don’t forget your Corvette assembly plant tour! The 2024 E-Ray’s definitely stole the show this year. Between the revolutionary drivetrain and new colors, the 3 cars onsite were surrounded by onlookers all weekend while members of Team Corvette happily fielded questions. Like many others we studied the cutaway model, just admiring the engineering marvel in front of us.

If you’ve never been to a Bash, we highly suggest getting it on your calendar. We’ve talked about all things to see and do, but it’s also more than that. It’s the old friends you get to catch up with and new friends you make there. Like the old saying goes, “we came for the car, but stayed for the people”. That couldn’t be more true here.

With that, we now proudly present our gallery from the 2023 Michelin NCM Bash. Keep it tuned here throughout the week for more from Bowling Green.

Source:
Photos by Steve Burns and Keith Cornett

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