By Emma Bouthillette
Staff Writer
Corvette fanatics are cruising Old Orchard Beach this weekend for the fifth annual Back to the Beach Corvette Weekend.
Ralph Quaglietta of Salem, N.H. organized the Corvette event five years ago, after vacationing in Old Orchard Beach. The first year, 37 couples participated in Back to the Beach. This year, 100 couples are booked for the June 12 to 15 event and Quaglietta said he had to turn people away because of full hotels.
“We thought Old Orchard Beach was such a beautiful spot with not a lot of Corvette activity,” Quaglietta said.
The main event of the weekend is the display of Corvettes Saturday morning. Captain’s Galley in Old Orchard Beach hosts the display from 8 a.m. to noon. The display is also open for participation to Maine Corvette owners.
“We could easily get 75 more couples from Maine joining us Saturday morning,” Quaglietta said.
There will be vendors and more than 100 cars at the display. 50/50 raffle tickets will be sold during this time to raise money for a charitable cause. Last year, $420 from the raffle was donated to the Make-a-Wish Foundation of Massachusetts. This year, Quaglietta said the foundation official recommended he donate the proceeds to the Make-a-Wish Foundation of Maine, since this is where the event takes place.
New England Corvette Club Secretary Meredith Persson,  will participate for the fourth year. Along with her husband, she will drive their 2001 pewter Corvette Coupe from New Bedford, Mass. for the weekend.
“Back to the Beach is a cruise weekend. You pull into the lot and park. I call it ‘park and drool.’ You get to walk around and check out Corvettes. You can pull out your lawn chairs to sit and chat with everyone. There is no judging of any kind,” Persson said.
Couples from throughout New England have helped sell out the Atlantis, Sea Drift and Green Dolphin hotels in Old Orchard Beach.
Elaine Kemp of Weymouth, Mass., helps Quaglietta and Bergron with the publicity of the event.
“The event has become so extremely popular in the Corvette world because it is fun and enjoyable. It allows people to have a casual display of cars, not all the work a car show entails,” Kemp said.
Other weekend activities include three hours of racing at Maine Indoor Karting in Scarborough on Friday. A drive is planned to Portland Head Light after Saturday’s display. Upon returning the Corvettes will be escorted by Old Orchard police through downtown Old Orchard Beach back to Captain’s Galley for a banquet Saturday night.
“It’s a fun time to meet people and sometimes exchange info – like where somebody got their tires. Nobody cares what you do, whether you’re a grave digger or a lawyer, we’re on even playing ground and we’re all in it for the Corvettes,” Persson said.
Kemp cruises with Mal Smith of Weymouth, Mass. and Arlene Martley of Albany, N.Y. The three ladies call themselves the “Red Hot Divas.” While the display is not officially judged, some awards are handed out at the banquet. The “Red Hot Divas” will hand out one award for their personal favorite Corvette.
For more information on Back to the Beach, please contact Ralph Quaglietta at (603) 893-2729 or visit the Web site www.back2thebeach.net.
Contact Emma Bouthillette by calling 282-4337 ext. 237 or email news@inthecourier.com.