Vehicle Description
To be OFFERED AT AUCTION at Auctions America's Auburn Fall event,
August 31-3, 2017.
Chassis No.
40867S106655
Estimate:
$325,000 - $375,000 US
Nineteen sixty-four marked phase two of the production of the Sting
Ray and saw refinements on and beneath the skin, but not changing
the fundamental purposes of the Corvette. It was called a "shade
better" in regards to its performance, ride, handling, and
appearance. Car Life magazine, who liked the 1963 version, were
even more enthusiastic about the 1964 model; "There is no more
go-able, roadable, steerable, adjustable, comfortable, respondable,
or stoppable car mass-produced in this country today." By this
time, the Corvette had already established itself as a premier race
car on a global scale, and the 1964 variety was a competitive and
attractive platform for those who chose to go racing.
The Corvette race car being offered is the ex-Bill Jobe SCCA 1964
Supernova that was entered by Jobe Racing Enterprises from Dallas,
Texas; it has an admirable record in primarily the southern and
southwestern states. Mr. Jobe was the Regional Sales Manager for
computers for Data General Corporation; their first computer was
named the Nova with the following upgrade called the Super Nova,
hence the Supernova team name.
Mr. Jobe is now 83 years old and lives in a Colorado ski resort
area enjoying life. He purchased this car new in 1964 while living
in a suburb of Dallas. The Corvette originally ran with the
375-horsepower, 327-cubic inch fuel-injected V-8 engine and had air
conditioning to deal with the legendary Texas heat. Initially Mr.
Jobe ran autocross with the car from 1964 to 1969 and ended up
clinching the Texas Southwest Regional Overall Championship all
five years.
Bill Jobe decided to pursue his Regional/National SCCA license in
1969. He saw that fellow racer Allan Barker had advertised his
Traco-built 331-cubic inch Corvette engine for sale and bought it
during 1969. A wise decision as Traco built racing engines. The
best. End of discussion. If you didn't run a Traco in your sprint
car, Indy Car, Trans-Am car, Can-Am car or sports car, you settled
for second place. The proprietors of the little shop of horsepower
were Jim Travers and Frank Coon, the same "Whiz Kids" who had
created the first Indianapolis roadster and wrenched Bill Vukovich,
to back-to-back Indy 500 wins in 1953-54.
With sponsorship from Quaker State, Data General, and Whittaker
Cable, this Supernova Jobe Racing Enterprises Corvette was prepared
in a modern 1,500-square foot shop in Hanger C-7 that was located
at Addison Airport. The associates that helped prepare the car were
Jerry Evans, David Voss, and Sam Kimberlin. They completely rebuilt
the car and included substantial modifications required for racing
that included the suspension system to provide the best available
handling on the road courses of the era. They obviously did their
job to a highly professional level in that this Corvette ran 25
races during the 1970 and 1971 seasons with no DNFs and no finish
that was worse than fifth place and compiled wins in 60-percent of
the races entered. A remarkable record, no matter the period.
According to a provided results biography; the Supernova Corvette
was first in class 15 times, second in class seven times, third in
class two times, fifth in class one time, and first overall four
times. The Jobe/Supernova combination tallied the honor of SCCA
Southwest Division Champion in 1971, the same year he was also the
Southwest Regional Champion. In 1970, Mr. Jobe was the Outstanding
Student at his first driver's school. A great car was obviously
under the control of a talented driver.
Later the Corvette was sold to the second owner G.L. Henderson in
Lawton, Oklahoma who ran the car in GT-1 (formerly B Production in
the SCCA in the 1960s) with number 49. The Corvette made its way
through several other owners and had not been campaigned for 25
years until purchased by a new owner in 2006. He totally restored
the Corvette and it is presented as it raced at the Road Atlanta
Regionals in 1971 where it scored two first place finishes.
The Supernova Racing Enterprises machine has been most recently
vintage raced in the SVRA and VRG in the eastern United States with
six races in the log book. It is SVRA registered with log book
3891. The current owner has the original title from Bill Jobe to
the second owner with Mr. Jobe's name on the title. Also included
is complete documentation of ownership and sales receipts from both
Mr. Jobe and the second owner to Traco for engine components. It is
reported that the legendary Traco powerplant and the modified fuel
injection were verified by Allan Barker and his brother Donald. In
total, three binders of documentation are included from its
original purchase date in 1964 through the total restoration by the
current owner.
Race cars are always special to behold; especially well known,
documented, and beautifully prepared examples such as this Corvette
Supernova. Le Mans 24 Hours winner, Paul Frere (1960 with Olivier
Gendebien in a Ferrari 250 TR) tested a 1964 Corvette for Auto
magazine the year of its release and concluded that "The Sting Ray
is not second to any one of the best European sports cars..." and
that was stock - imagine what this car can further achieve with a
dedicated driver at the wheel. This machine is race ready and
period correct.
