How it All Started
Let me introduce myself. My name is Paul Pollock, and I am the Webmaster of "The Corvette Story" web site that you are now visiting.
I have been creating the content for WebCars! since 1994. The articles have been about enthusiast cars that I find to be interesting. You can get an idea as to which I find most interesting by looking at the features listed on the home page.
I call a number of models my favorite and one of them is the Corvette.
My car ownership has almost always included a two seater. I say almost as there was a year or so when, although I wanted a two seater, the family insurance man thought it to be a bad idea and would not cover that arrangement. Probably a wise move for all.
Since then the resume lists a 1970 Datsun 240Z, a 1972 Saab Sonnet, numerous Triumph and MGB roadsters, a Porsche Speedster replica, a Porsche 914, some homebuilt kit cars, a 1987 Mazda RX-7 Turbo and still in my garage, a 1990 Mazda Miata. I've left out some forgettable automobiles. And some that I remember but would like to forget.
All this time, a Corvette was at the top of my "someday" list. The first one I drove, when I was 19 years old, was my uncles 1971 Ontario Orange convertible. It was a four speed and when I drove it I felt like I owned the world. Since then I never turned down the opportunity to drive a Corvette and I was lucky to have had the experience many times in all the generations and configurations. Sometimes it was when I or a friend was considering a purchase, other times when owner / friends would generously hand over the keys.
In 1988 I learned that Mazda would be unleashing the Miata upon the world, and a decision was made. Since it looked and felt like my beloved MGBs, only with modern technology and non of the, shall we say "quirkiness" of the MGBs, its purchase became a priority. Newly married, my wife and I bought a red 1990 base Miata. We've held onto it and as of 2011, it has 330,000 miles on the clock.
Around the year 2000 I started work on the web project that became "The Corvette Story". I took as many Corvette photos as I could. Digital cameras had become affordable and their ability to take any quantity of photographs at almost zero cost was something even I was smart enough to take advantage of. I also purchased (or scanned in if it could only be borrowed) every Corvette press release or brochure I could find. As this is being written, my images folder contains over 25,000 items.
"The Corvette Story" first appeared in June, 2005. All years of Corvettes were covered along with special focus on the ZR-1, terminology, wallpaper, performance and links pages, etc. Since I've always considered "The Corvette Story" to be a work in progress, other features have been added, a process that will continue.
There is a saying: "If you ever want to become really knowledgeable about a given subject, teach it". I learned a lot about Corvettes in the course of producing "The Corvette Story". I soon began to refer to myself as "The smartest man in the world about Corvettes who never owned one". There is no way to back up such a lame claim, but since I never met anyone that could refute it, I stuck with it.
There was a problem with the statement. Although I was happy about the "smart" aspect, I did not like the "never owned" part. Around that time, with viewership at almost 200,000 monthly page views, advertising revenue was adding up. It occurred to me that a good use for these $$$ would be a Corvette purchase even if it meant that my "smartest but never owned" claim would have to be forfeited.