When the 2009 Corvette ZR1 recorded a world-beating lap time of the Nurburgring, it sure made us proud to be Americans. But, let us not forget the monster 'Vettes that went before it, like this 700+ HP Le Mans racer from 1976 that was good for over 216 MPH down the old Mulsanne straight.
[greenwoodcorvettes]

See the rest of our Jalopnik Auto Flag-Elation here and check out our pre-Fourth Jalopnik Automotive Amerigasm here.