to make a decision whether to restore or sell. Although it still ran and hadn't been wrecked, the '61 was just plain "ugly," Jesse told us; but it had served the family well.
     With encouragement from Robert Winnan of Harmony Corvettes in Marango, Illinois, Jesse ordered a ground-up restoration. At about the same time, he joined the NCRS and began to enjoy his old ride in a different sort of way. It's hard to believe today, but it wasn’t until the restoration began that Jesse finally decoded the trim tag, discovering that the original color of his red Corvette was Sateen Silver with a white cove, one of 159 such color combinations in 1961. Jesse also researched the rarity of the 245-horsepower, dual-four 283/Powerglide option, coming up with a production number of just 259.
     Although retired now from daily