When one '55 Bel Air convertible isn't enough...
Gordy and Linda Koropchuk are definitely car people. Gordy was Cruisin' the Dub (A&W drive-in) in 1961 with his coral and black 1955 Buick Special when he attracted the attention of 16-yearold Linda. Linda had just got her licence and she used the family station wagon on Saturdays to transport her sister, cousin and friends to roller skating in Lynden, Wash., just across the B.C. border. Then back into B.C. for Mama Burgers and root beer at the A&W in Surrey's Whalley neighbourhood.
Gordy had followed in his father's footsteps to become an apprentice at CN Rail and would go on to become a dangerous goods rail inspector for Transport Canada. Linda earned her teaching degree at the University of British Columbia. The couple married in 1967.
In the mid-'60s, Gordy had owned a dark green customized 1958 Ford Fairlane 500 Sunliner convertible and graduated to a 1964 Chevelle Malibu SS convertible. By 1968, Gordy and Linda needed a new convertible with a big engine to tow their ski boat to Cultus Lake. They found a Provincial White 1968 Beaumont Sport Deluxe convertible with a 325-horsepower 396-cubic-inch engine on the showroom floor at Vancouver's Bowell-McLean Motors. They were allowed a $2,000 trade-in on the Chevelle for the fancy Beaumont convertible that cost $4,700. Linda drove the convertible to her home economics teaching job at Surrey's Queen Elizabeth Secondary School, where she taught for 35 years. Some years later, the car went into the garage after she bought a 1977 Mercury Bobcat station wagon for commuting. They still have the 1968 Beaumont SD396 convertible, which is in like-new condition with 92,000 original miles.
Gordy always loved convertibles and a 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air was on top of his want list. A Gypsy red and India ivory convertible had been the pace car for the 1955 Indianapolis 500 race. In the early '80s, Gordy heard of a red and white convertible offered for sale by a Canadian military officer stationed in Wainwright, Alta., who had to sell the car to buy a house. Gordy drove the car home to Vancouver and upgraded it to new condition. “I wanted to get an example of every colour offered for the 1955 Chev convertible,” the ambitious restorer recalls.
For a while, Gordy got sidetracked, building two 1956 Chevrolet two-door sedans into street rods with big engines. Then he heard of an onyx black 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible that was parked in a Surrey garage as a stalled restoration project. Gordy bought the car and finished it to perfection. “It's so perfect that I've never even put the top down on that car,” he says.
Fate intervened for a third time. Linda had a student who drove a 1966 Mustang to high school. She learned that the student's father also had two 1955 Chevs, one hardtop and one convertible and needed to sell them. She and Gordy bought the harvest gold and India ivory convertible, and Linda's brother-in-law bought the hardtop, which he still owns. Now the Koropchuk stable was complete with a matching set of three 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air convertibles lined up side by side in the garage at their home in Surrey.
Gordy may be best known for his bright red 1941 Willys Americar coupe race car. With its 468-cubic-inch engine topped by a GM 671 blower, it can blast through the standing quarter mile in 10 seconds. It has been a regular participant at the Old Time Drags at Mission Raceway Park and the Ashcroft drag strip.
Gordy and Linda have gone back in time to honour the car that Gordy was driving when they met more than 60 years ago. Their stable of cars includes a grey and white 1955 Buick Special hardtop that was driven just 37,000 miles by its original Southern California owner. It's as close to a new 1955 Buick as there could be.
Since Gordy can't stop building cars, his latest is a rare 1956 Chevrolet Nomad station wagon powered by a Chevy 409-cubicinch engine with dual four-barrel carburetors.
So, what's next? “I've never done a 1958 Chevy Impala, so I'm looking for one of those,” Gordy says. That could be the next car to join Gordy and Linda's stable.
The A&W continues to play a big role in their lives. Linda won two A&W contests: the first was the best memory of Cruisin' the Dub. Linda's essay detailed how she met her husband at an A&W drive-in nearly 60 years ago was selected for first prize from 25,000 entries sent in from across Canada.
The next year, Linda won a second A&W contest with her essay describing 10 reasons why she and Gordy should be given an all-expense trip to the Barrett-Jackson auction in Scottsdale, Ariz. Not surprisingly, they enjoyed the trip immensely.