Fine, Fun, and Finger-pickin'

A great Friday at the convention!  Thunderstorms were forecast but never materialized.  Beautiful Concours cars were on the lawn alongside Cedar Lake.  Fun and games took place in the parking lot (Back Seat Driver Contest, Junior Gymkhana, and the Slow Drag Races).  More and more Corvairs arrived hourly, for the biiig Car Display tomorrow.

Among the tech sessions was one on the proper use of a clay bar and other car detailing products, and the Fitch Phoenix, one of several unique vehicles on display in the exhibit hall, was the demonstration vehicle.  The car now sparkles!

But the day was topped off with the Ice Cream Social, which followed the CORSA Annual Meeting, where the awards for the Road Rally and the Model Car Concours were presented.  Then Cobblestone Crossing took to the stage, for a great show of singalong folk music.

The final day begins soon, culminating with the banquet and our special guest from Hemmings Motor News, Richard Lentinello.  The convention has been great fun but it will all be over in less than 24 hours.

Take the Phoenix Home

Today we secured the Fitch Phoenix to the trailer for delivery to Sturbridge. (Click the photo for an enlarged view.)

While at the convention, you can not only see this beautiful one-off car in person, you could win one of the Automodello scale models, as detailed in our earlier post here.

(Sorry, you can’t have the real car, we’ll be returning it to John Fitch following the convention!)

Win a Fitch Phoenix!

Many Corvair owners and enthusiasts are familiar with the beautiful limited-edition scale model of the Fitch Phoenix that is made by Automodello. The model may seem somewhat expensive for a small-scale model – until you examine one in person. It is a beautiful price of work and well worth the price. Check out the photos of the model and the real thing, below.

James Cowan at Automodello has arranged the donation of one of the Phoenix models to the Sturbridge convention and it will be first our "raffle car," presented to one lucky ticket holder at the banquet!

Did we say "first" raffle car? Yes, we expect to be adding a second car in the near future.

Full details of the raffle, such as how many tickets will be available and at what price each, are not yet confirmed, but when they are we will be making an announcement right here on the convention blog, so check back regularly. In the meantime, enjoy the photos and then read how Automodello describes the Fitch Phoenix:

　

The phrase "handbuilt sports car" covers a lot of territory, from garage-built kit cars to mega-buck exotics. The origins and sticker price of the Fitch Phoenix might suggest it belonged in the former category – that is until you see it. One look at its curvaceous coachwork designed by John Fitch, styled by Coby Whitmore, and crafted out of steel by Carrozzeria Intermeccanica in Italy will erase any thoughts of kits.

An elegantly crafted, thoroughly engineered sports car, the Fitch Phoenix surely would have spawned an enthusiastic following – had it not been undermined by Washington bureaucracy and Detroit timidity. As it happened, only one Fitch Phoenix was built, and stands as a reminder of what could have – should have – been.

The Fitch Phoenix is a classic example of the "whole" exceeding the sum of its parts. In this case, many of those parts – including the powertrain, suspension and brakes – were sourced from Chevrolet’s innovative but controversial Corvair. But the purpose-built chassis yielded true sports car performance to match its graceful shape. Handling refinement benefited greatly from John Fitch’s extensive racing experience – which included drives with Cunningham and Mercedes-Benz as well as managing the very first Corvette racing team. Its interior featured luxury appointments and craftsmanship to match any contemporary factory effort. Not bad for a machine assembled in the woods of Northeast Connecticut!

Sadly, GM axed the Corvair just as John Fitch was ramping up for a production run of 500 units. Without the engine and suspension bits, the Phoenix project was stuck in neutral and eventually mothballed. John Fitch still owns – and enthusiastically drives – the lone prototype.

Not explained in Automodello’s synopsis is that Fitch also faced the prospect of having to crash-test cars to meet the then-new Federal safety regulations, an undertaking beyond the capacity of his modest operation. The irony is that those regulations can be traced directly to the publication of "Unsafe at Any Speed," Ralph Nader’s assault on the domestic automobile industry and the root cause of the Corvair’s status as "controversial."

See more photos of this and other Automodello models at http://www.automodello.com/.

Keep John Fitch in Your Prayers

John Fitch, known to Corvair enthusiasts as the creator of the Fitch Sprint Corvairs, is well-experienced in life-threatening battles, having raced during racing’s most treacherous era and having served with distinction as a P-51 Mustang pilot during World War II. But now Fitch, a Connecticut resident who has been looking forward to visiting the 2012 CORSA Convention in Sturbridge, is in a life-threatening battle once again.

At 94 years of age and still active in the automotive community, in recent days John has suffered serious medical complications. Having spent just over two weeks in his local hospital, bouncing from the Medical/Surgical Unit to the ICU, he has been transferred to a hospital in Hartford, where the region’s best doctors are. He is eating well, and sleeping better, and his indomitable spirit tells us that he has every intention of surviving this.

Many of us on the Northeast Corvair Council’s convention committee have known John Fitch since the NECC first started staging events at Lime Rock Park, just down the street from John’s home, in 1974. His Fitch Sprint Corvairs recognized the GT potential of the Corvair even where General Motors did not, and his Corvair-based Fitch Phoenix remains a distinctive icon. To this day John defends the Corvair against the unfounded criticism it received, and as noted above he has been looking forward to attending the 2012 CORSA Convention.

Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers, as he continues his gallant fight for life.


UPDATE November 10, 2011: 

At 94, John is still taking a lot of "Adventures on Wheels." Transport between hospitals... gurney rides... to using his IV pole as a walker!

He is now reading the Wall Street Journal daily, walking twice a day, always a little further, and complying with his treatment plan. Glad to say, his own body is healing many of the issues.

He is looking forward to leaving the hospital soon, and upgrading to a rehab center close to home. And he wants very much to return home, as he has "plenty of work to do!"

Looks like his old P51 Mustang, the "Angel on our Shoulders" did not forget him!

This is great news for one of the last and greatest of "The Greatest Generation."

Your prayers and good wishes are working!


UPDATE November 22, 2011:

John Fitch is now in week six of his recovery. "Recovery" is the right word because that is the path he is on. Yesterday he walked three times, up from two and a little further! He is refusing pain meds because they dull his thinking and, as me says, he has "a lot of work to do!"

He finally has new hearing aides (from the VA) so he feels much better and is now a part of the hearing world. He is still in Hartford Hospital, but it is expected the he will be able to move to a rehab facility near his Lime Rock home.


UPDATE December 13, 2011:

To recap: Two months ago, just three days after driving his Fitch Phoenix on the track at Lime Rock, John Fitch suffered a collapsed lung. This, unfortunately, was followed by an onset of pneumonia. A late-night transport to Hartford Hospital, for more intensive care, proved to be the correct decision.

During the first day at the hospital, John was going through a very hard time. The family came, and the little toddler, granddaughter Gwendolyn, and grandchildren Mercedes and James came into Grandpa's room... three little Magic Wands! John’s eyes flew open and he smiled hugely and proudly.

Day to day, progress was made, and last Monday, he was finally without any health support, and functioning on his own, well enough to be discharged from the hospital, and return to his home neighborhood, for rehab at a facility in Salisbury, Connecticut.

He has a beautiful, private room, and the entire residence is beautifully decorated for the Holidays, and the meals are very good. John does not eat in his room as he prefers to get dressed, and meet some old friends, and make new ones at mealtime.

He is even visiting the chapel, which is quite lovely and serene. He is ready to have some changes in his life, so he is now sporting a goatee!

He is doing his re-hab, and complying with his program, all with the hope of returning to his Lime Rock home in the coming weeks and visiting the Sturbridge convention in July.


UPDATE January 25, 2012:

Yet another "Adventure on Wheels" for John Fitch.. And his family!

Having made excellent progress in rehab at Noble Horizons in Salisbury, near his home, he was due to be discharged earlier this month. In preparation for that, he had asked to have his Mercedes brought to the facility, and it was parked in the first parking space, in view of the main entrance. John was not given the keys, but plans were made for him and an assistant to begin packing his clothes, gifts, paperwork, etc., into the car.

They day before they were to do this, John was seen on the security video walking himself out of the building, without a word to staff, or anyone else. He walked straight to his car without any difficulty (after using a wheel chair for the past several weeks) and drove off!

He went to the nearby McDonald's, and then took himself out for a drive, on a beautiful day... without anyone knowing. By that afternoon, family and friends were all out looking for him and a "Silver Alert" was issued.

While everybody looked everywhere and everyone called everyone, the day was turning into evening and was growing more dark and more cold. But then, about eleven hours after slipping out of the care facility, he strode into the lobby of the historic Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, and booked himself a room.

The front desk clerk realized that it was quite unusual for a older gentleman to check in, alone, without any belongings, and notified the police. He was transported to the local medical facility where he spent the night, and he was driven back to Nobel Horizons by noon the next day.

His Mercedes was retrieved and brought to the garage at his house.

He was discharged later that week and, returned to his cherished Lime Rock homestead, now compete with two "live in" gentlemen to see that his needs are met.

This latest adventure put all of his loved ones and his many friends in a serious state of alarm and concern. However, the independent spirit that John Fitch has always had is still clearly present!


UPDATE September 4, 2012: 

Having celebrated his 95th birthday in August, John Fitch was able to attend the Labor Day weekend Vintage Festival at Lime Rock, where he was able to spend time with special guest Sir Stirling Moss.  In the photo below, Don Klein (left) chats with Fitch (center) and Moss (right).