Petra Verkaik kicked off her Playboy journey with a literal crash. Freshly inked with her Playboy deal, the 5-foot-8 brunette tried firing up her 1976 Volkswagen clunker, but it resisted; undaunted, she reached into the back for her tools. You might not expect a stunning glamour model to deal with such a finicky old ride, but Petra adores the vintage beauty-despite needing to revive the van like it's in cardiac arrest every drive. On this occasion, though, the van rebelled fiercely. With the gear mistakenly left engaged, the hazel-eyed stunner found herself pinned beneath the rolling vehicle in the Playboy lot as it pressed down on her chest. 'Those 30 seconds felt eternal-I was sure my end had come,' recalls Miss Verkaik. 'I shoved it back and wriggled out, but then it snagged my hair, trapping me tight.' Guards rushed in, valiantly hoisting the van to rescue our Playmate of the Month-and couldn't resist chuckling over the mishap, with the tale buzzing through Playboy's halls. Crushed by a vehicle? No joke in reality, yet Petra escaped unscathed, all because of one factor-well, actually two. The contraption steadied on her voluptuous, all-natural DD-cup assets-her ultimate saviors. 'Lord, the mortification was intense,' giggles Miss December 1989. 'My blouse ended up with tire tracks. What choice do I have but to see the humor?' Even if that wild debut into the Playboy world lingers vividly, she's come to cherish it as the unforgettable launchpad, ensuring her name's etched in everyone's mind. Once crowned Playmate of the Month in December 1989, Petra yearned for her fresh honor to overshadow the moniker bestowed by ex-editor Marilyn Grabowski. Dubbed 'the retread Playmate' around the offices, the Indo-Dutch enchantress has embraced rolling with life's punches-or should we say, wheels. 'Playboy's boosted me immensely, arming me with poise,' confesses our Miss December 1989. 'I'm thrilled connecting with folks now.' Petra skyrocketed to become the most featured woman in Playboy annals-posting her iconic centerfold, she graced over twenty layouts and clinched a fan-voted title as Special Editions Model of the Year in 1997. This Playboy venture didn't just build her assurance; it lined her pockets nicely, funding a sleek upgrade for her rides. 'Opting for something sleeker,' Petra winked with a playful grin.