OVERVIEW:
Many Corvette subscribers considered Keepin' Track of Vettes the Corvette "bible" with strong restoration tips,
how-to's, road tests, racing coverage, and
technical information. It was a monthly, dedicated Corvette magazine that evolved under multiple names and owners.
The title began as Corvettes Unlimited with the tag line, "The Magazine Dedicated to
Corvette Enthusiasts". After three
issues, it was renamed as Keepin' Track. New titling lasted until January, 1979 when it became
Keepin' Track of Corvettes. And then in May, 1980, the publisher settled on the final title as
Keepin' Track of Vettes.
OWNERSHIP:
It was first published
in Reno, Nevada by Frank and Fredi Kodl in 1976.
The editorial page of the very first issue laid out Mr. Kodl's objectives. He specifically wanted to avoid the most commonplace
content in other
Corvette publications - want ads, how-to fiberglass repair and concours coverage. His goal was to inform, amuse and provoke
readers with strong
editorial content by professional writers. This meant interviews and profiles of interesting Corvette people along with
strong technical content.
The Kodl's also published a shotgun magazine titled Shotgun Sports sometime around 1978 or 1979. They decided to concentrate on their gun magazine, so they sold the Corvette magazine to Bernie Finkel in 1981.
Mr. Finkel was a car lover and race enthusiast. Keepin' Track became a family business, with wife Natalie managing subscription and advertising sales, and daughter Shelli serving as the editor. The Finkel family was heavily involved in the Corvette hobby and sponsored a number of Corvette race cars.
When Bernie died in a tragic accident at age 48, the family - Natalie, Shelli and her husband Ron - ran the magazine for five more years. It was then sold to Dobbs Publishing in 1991. Dobbs ended the title and folded it into Corvette Fever with the January, 1992 issue. Writers like Noland Adams transferred to the new title as did the subscriber base.
The table of contents, if available, can be seen by clicking on the 
icon.
PUBLICATION DATA:
The publishers provided net paid circulation data to Oxbridge Communication's compendium,
The Standard Periodical Directory,
from 1988 to 1993. For the years with non-zero reported data, the annual print volume was 60,000 issues.
CONTENT COMPLETENESS:
An estimated 174 issues was printed from July, 1976 through December, 1991. All images are complete.
We apologize for the poor quality images for many covers. Due to their rarity, quality images are difficult to find.
Name change
New title
New title
