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.