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Photo Credits: Jeremy Welborn

When I walked into the National Corvette Museum the afternoon of October 19 and took a look at the seven bright and shiny new 2020 Corvettes waiting for delivery on Corvette Boulevard, I quickly realized that all seven of these beautiful Corvettes were Hard Top Convertibles (HTCs).

One HTC soon captured my attention as I noticed it was not only Torch Red with a Torch Red roof and Torch Red nacelles, but it was also adorned with Torch Red vents all around. I was hopeful that this Corvette’s new owners would take delivery the following day and that I would have a chance to visit with them about their fabulous new HTC.

My friends, Ken and Diane Berg, had invited me to participate in the delivery of their new Rapid Blue HTC scheduled for October 20. Our mutual friends, Karen and David Bedell, were also scheduled to take delivery of their Rapid Blue HTC that day, making the day even more exciting and special. I didn’t think the day could get even better, but it did. After arriving at the NCM that morning, I noticed a license plate had been added to the Torch Red HTC that had drawn my attention the day before. In large letters the plate read “HOHOHO” and before I had even met the new owners, I wondered if this might very well be Santa and Mrs. Claus’ new sleigh!

It wasn’t long before a jolly looking fellow sporting a flowing white beard appeared with his wife and an NCM delivery specialist for a review of the features of the most technically advanced sleigh Santa Clause has ever owned. Yes, as luck would have it, I was there when Santa and Mrs. Claus took delivery of their new Torch Red HTC Corvette!

Santa recently shared that “last year, when the new C8 Corvette was revealed, Mrs. Claus watched the show with me. At the end, I looked at her and said ‘Santa needs a new sleigh!’ She said, ‘Well, if Santa can figure out how to pay for it, we’ll see what we can do’. After some ‘resource and asset allocations’, Santa and Mrs. Claus picked up their ‘New Sleigh’ at the National Corvette Museum in October, just in time for the Holiday Season. Another example of wishes and dreams coming true if you believe in them and work hard to achieve them.”

Mr. and Mrs. Claus are go by the aliases “Walter and Karen” where they live in New Hampshire when they aren’t at the North Pole. But with a beard like that, it’s hard to really hide anywhere. As a result, Walter has had the honor of being Santa Claus for all of the local children, both young and old alike, for the last 20 years.

“It has been truly rewarding listening to the wishes and dreams of so many children over those years. There have been some funny conversations and some serious ones during my brief interactions. During one visit about 15 years ago, a ‘senior’ child sat on Santa’s lap to whisper her earnest wishes. I asked her, ‘So, little girl, what do you want for Christmas?’ She looked up at me and smiled and said ‘Santa, I am 96 years old, and I would like to live to be 100 years old!’ Well, I stammered and finally said, ‘That is a very big wish, but I will see what I can do.’ She said ‘Thank you, I’ll come back if I make it’. She did come back four years later, and we had a nice visit. She lived to be 103 years old and was lucid and bright to the end. Once again, it just goes to show that wishes and dreams can come true if you believe in them.”

Santa told me that this has been a very different year for him, just as it has been for all of us. He has worked hard to spread as much cheer as he possibly could. Social distancing and mask requirements have made sharing holiday traditions more difficult, but he and Mrs. Claus continue to share in holiday traditions as much as possible. He also shared that last week’s winter storm brought as much as 46 inches of snow to some areas. Following the storm, a very important last-minute delivery came up. With all of the snow, you might wonder if Santa was able to make the delivery. Well, this is Santa Claus, and like he always does, Santa arrived just in time in his bright red Mid-Engine Corvette HTC sleigh!

I asked Santa if he had anything else that he’d like to share before he, Mrs. Claus, and all of the elves made final preparations for Christmas Eve deliveries all around the world. Santa replied, “I truly enjoy sharing my experiences with this wonderful car, and especially the smiles it puts on people’s faces. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!”

Maybe, if you’re lucky, you’ll see Santa delivering presents in his new sleigh, a bright red 2020 Corvette HTC.

Merry Christmas!

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