LINDSAY: Catching Rays

PHOTOS |  LUCIA BRAHAM

On my two hour drive home from Newcastle a couple of Sundays ago, I started stringing words together in my head to go with the photos I’d just taken of a twenty-two year old bass-guitar playing, Corvette driving, (BAD ASS) super sweet young woman, and, as cliché as it sounds, I was actually lost for words. I’m tempted to just bullet point facts about this woman and her Dream Machine as there’s a (large) part of me that feels as though nothing I write will do her justice. 

Although we had been chatting and fan-girling out over each other's machines via Instagram for a while, Lindsay and I first met in person at The Machine Show this year. Despite having had her learner motorcycle licence for only four weeks, when I offered her the keys she jumped straight on my sportster and without hesitation rode off through the showground. I didn’t see her again for close to twenty minutes but wasn't the slightest bit concerned. Upon her return, Lindsay then test rode almost every bike within a fifty metre radius, so it’s fair to say that gasoline is surging through her veins.

But, back to the Corvette…

I think we all have that one car that was our dream to own when we were sixteen... mine was (and actually still is) a 60’s Valiant; Lindsay's was the Stingray. I asked her why she loved it so much; what it was about it that when the opportunity arose to get her hands on a third generation Corvette, she couldn't help but pounce: "I think it's the fact that they're an American muscle car, with the power and roar of the engine... but on the outside, Stingrays are extremely feminine. The shape and lines of the nose to tail (and particularly the post 78 'Vettes with the curved rear window) are beautiful. There's a fantastic contradiction in what muscle cars typically look and feel like and I love the fact that Stingrays are a kind of subversion of the stereotypical American muscle car.”

The C3 Corvette, produced by Chevrolet from 1968 to 1982, went through a variety of interior and body design changes throughout these years, but the engine and chassis components remained relatively the same. The C2 first carried the name Sting Ray (made from 1963-7), and the C3's were known as Stingrays between 1969-76, with the name only resurfacing with the C7 in 2014 for a new generation of revheads to enjoy. It’s notable that in 1979, the year of Lindsay's pride and joy (which she has christened Vivienne), production hit its peak with 53,807 vehicles made - a record that stands to this day. 

"I've dreamt of owning one for a very long time, and I've gone through a few experiences that have impacted my perspective on life, and really adopted the attitude that if you don't do it now (if you have the means), you'll never do it. So when my 'Vette came up in a conversation, I jumped on it, and got a loan and bought her. I may be only twenty-two, and it's not practical or useful really, but it brings me so much joy and I will own her for the rest of my life. Why wait until I retire?"

Up next on Lindsay's list of dream machines (you thought it could end with one??) is a 80’s Ducati Pantah, and if she rides that Duke anything like she drives the 'Vette, look the f*ck out…

Lindsay's band, Raave Tapes is currently touring major cities throughout Australia and you should definitely go and check them out. 

(..and then probably go home and resign yourself to the fact that you’ll never be as cool as this chick. *sigh.)