NZ Corvettes was founded around 1980 by an American gentleman called Jim Maidens (with the support of a few local NZ Corvette owners). Jim lived in Blenheim and, from all accounts, was rather eccentric (often seen wearing Coca Cola flared pants), and accompanied by his old English Sheepdog and pet turtle. Despite his eccentricity, he was regarded as a truly dedicated, honest and genuine Vette lover. 

His love of cars included a Turquoise ’66 Roadster (with a little turtle stuck on the driver's door to hide the paint chip), a '73 454 Corvette (turquoise) and a '70s 454 Camaro (turquoise). 

Jim began by forming a register of all known Corvette owners, the details sent out to each person in a newsletter. From this evolved the first Vette get-together (known as the Corvette Nationals today) which was held in Nelson in 1981 with 16 Corvettes attending.

Sadly Jim died in 1997, leaving a huge void in the NZ Corvette community but NZ Corvettes has remained under a number of caretakers since – his newsletter given a new look and named the ‘Vette Gazette’ in 1998, so his legacy lives on.