Looks cool. I can't wait for Geralds post about Pergatory Chasm though.

 

I really don't care where we go but there are some things you need to check. I had a park picked out for our meet this year and Park and Rec. would not allow me to have a large meet there. Another park told me that we needed to have liability insurance for a large group of cars which would have cost at least $500.

Also, what would we do at that park? As Chris mentioned, XXTuning offered to bring their dyno machines wherever we want if this was of interest. They even offered to take it to Englishtown, NJ if we wanted to do a meet there. I'm not saying we should do this but if we do something at a park we want it to be fun. If we did raffles, trophy prizes, etc. for like 3-4 hours at a park and then head out for a nice cruise somewhere I think that would be fun also.

We do have to make sure that whatever location is chosen that there will be no problems. My biggest fear during our meet was having cops pull in and kicking us all out.

So back to square one, you have to decide if you want to do a 1-day or a weekend meet. Once that is determined, you have to decide if you want to do the meet at Lime Rock or another race track. If you decide instead to have a meet at a park, you need to make sure you get permission and decide what you want to do for fun at the park. Lastly, a cruise of some sort would need to be arranged as everyone always looks forward to this.

The problem we had with our meet is that we only had a few hours to enjoy our morning meet because we had to rush out to get to Lime Rock early enough to enjoy the rest of the day there. I would prefer a longer stay at a morning meet and then a nice relaxing cruise to somewhere we could then stop and enjoy something scenic.

Oh well, let's keep the ideas coming.

 

I agree with Victor. A park is "iffy" at best unless you have good connections. A place like Lime Rock or other track will already expect cars of all types, even if it means we don't get on a track. I would enjoy cruising to a track and watching other Zs race or just a day at some other form of race. We could hold the meet there at the same time. Just ask the track if they can set aside some parking.

The other consideration is the size of the meet. As Victor stated, we were nervous about how big our July 12th event grew too. We were lucky to be able to make a change in location fast enough to have that meet turn out successful. If we are planning an East coast type event we will need plenty of parking along with bath rooms and all that other stuff that goes along with crowds.

If any vendors already have a day planned or can help use plan something at a track, that would really help. I know that some car clubs (not necessarily Zs) will accept other car groups to join their track day. We can see if that is possible if anyone has an interest in that. Remember, we met with the Acura/Honda guys in N.J. and had a great time mixing with other car groups.

Lastly, I have no problem driving somewhere else than CT, but as Victor stated we maybe drawing people from as far as PA, NJ, NYC so having it further north is hard for them.

If someone wants to do a meet outside CT, and I'm sure we will have more than 1 next year, I'd surely go. Just make sure you can do something that has a wide interest to get the best turnout. Another meet could be very specific like our xxtuning meet. That may not have the appeal as a more general meet but there are people that would go if it meant learning more about their car or able to get a break on purchasing components for their car. I've benefited from both types of events.

Keep the ideas coming. ( Is someone taking notes? )

 

I haven't been to Purgatory Chasm myself, but I know the general location very well. It's near the Rhode Island border...about halfway between Worcester and Providence (straight shot down Route 146). It wouldn't be a ridiculously long drive for the folks coming from CT and other southern locales.

Although Purgatory Chasm may not be a bad idea for a park location, I'd have to agree with Vic and Greg on the "iffiness" of it all. I'm not sure how big the parking facilities are there...they may not have enough space to accomodate us. Plus you have to factor in that its an outdoorsy retreat, and we're not sure how receptive folks would be to a huge pack of sports cars pitching camp there.

One possibility we could use with this idea would be to hang out for a bit at Purgatory Chasm, then have a cruise south through Rhode Island, perhaps into either Providence or Newport. Providence would be about a 30-45 minute ride...if we went to Newport, it would probably be about an hour or so. I'm sure we could find something entertaining for everyone in either locale.

Just thinking out loud here...feel free to add this to the meeting minutes.

--D.J.

 

Oh…Yeah….where were you when we were all the way up in Maine drifting the Norsemen tracks

And…why would one drive all that way to a glacially modified gash, none the less a glorified gash in Massachusetts, is beyond me…… Now it is Corn Crib, Coffin, Pulpit, Lovers' Leap and Fat Man's Misery……What next young fella.

Purgatory Chasm on Purgatory Road…..don’t you think that’s a little to much…….have you, by any chance, been enduring the trials and tribulations of a serious relationship lately?

Some track time, car show and a cruise would be nice.

G

 

Jeese all i posted was a suggestion and I get people jumping down my throat.

When you fools were in Maine I don't think I even had my Z yet, I don't think you'd fancy a Saab rolling up and trying to fit in.

To be honest with you, I don't really care where we meet as long as we go on a cruise for once. Is anyone getting that point yet? Lemme make it a little easier for those older folks who may be losing their eyesight...

WE NEED A CRUISE, DAMNIT!!!!1!!1!!!!11!

 

eh ? Did someone say Cruise ?! Yeeeehaw!

I always enjoy the curises down to CT with the group especially when Roger hangs out the window. Still waiting on that video.

Used to do motorcycles cruises up to Mt. Monadnock and the Mohawk Trail. Lots of winding roads out that way to cruise. ANyhow, I think burnt wants to CRUISE.

 

Mohawk mountain, yeah the one with the hair pin turn. Lets see how many cars we can trash on that curve

Actually that wouldn't be a bad cruise if we could come up with a start off and end point. I think that would satisfy any local Zowners ( Z owners - did I just coin a new word?)

 

"Zowners" sounds like some Nickelodeon show. And no I haven't seen that channel in over 7 years Gerald, don't get your hopes up.

 

...actually it sounds more like a si-fi show. Hey burnt can you move the camera up a little more next time (re: your avatar).

 

yeah I know the mountain road itself is not great but the roads leading up to that area are simply a blast!

 

So you're a fan of cartoon sponges with square pants...O-key

 

I probably won't be around for any meet next year, but I'll contribute any ideas that I can.

Like Victor said, we all learned a lot from planning the meet this year. It turned out to be way more work than I think anybody realized. There were also unexpected problems that arose. Having to change venues at the last moment was really unlucky, but as Victor has said in a previous post, it became apparent that finding a place to have a meet was not as simple as it may have seemed. Having you and 2 or 3 friends meet in a park is no problem, but having over 70 cars show up is. If you're thinking of another park, I'd be in contact with the park officials and local police very very early. Make sure nothing else is planned for that day.

I think many people would enjoy a track day. I'm a member of the BMW car club of America and they offer a few track days at Lime Rock. Unfortunately, they're almost all during a weekday. Getting a weekend spot seems like it would be difficult, at that or any other track. I'm sure they would require a definite financial commitment also.

Drag strips are a more likely option, but again, scheduling has to be very early.

As to the 1 or 2 day question, you really need to have a lot of things going on to fill a 2 day event. You also need to have easy access to hotels, and you can't expect everybody to stay for both days.

I thought this year's meet was a pretty good one, I would think that next year, there should be some evolutionary improvements. The cruise was probably the highlight for me, finding a nice road with a mix of rural and freeway is key. It'd be nice not to have the meet in a commuter lot this year. It was a result of losing our original location, but hopefully something a little more scenic will come along.

I'm definitely going to miss the NE spirit, those Hawaii guys are WAY too quiet.

 

So what's the story Andrew, you're trading the NE spirited widetracks; for some gyrating Hawaiian hula hoop. Is this a permanent physical state or temporary?

G

 

<< So you're a fan of cartoon sponges with square pants...O-ke >>

Actually Spongebob square pants is probably one of the most popular TV shows among college kids. Don't know why..

 

i can help put together some meets for the spring and summer of 2004 with some supras and IS300 owners as well if anyone is interested. and it is always great to see Z's at Englishtown Raceway Park. they do races and shows at englishtown for both the Z show cars and Z race cars if people are interested. XXTuning is also a great idea, everyone seemed to like XXTUing at the Conn. meet last month

 

I spoke with a friend that works for the State of Mass. She is going to look into Hopkinton State Park for me it offers a meeting
location with restrooms, grills, & swimming that you can reserve for private outings. If it has the parking capacity it would be a great place for a meet. Also great roads for a cruise in this area and it's just off the MASS PIKE and R495. I let you all know what I find out.

 

Rick, that would be aweseome. Keep us posted.

 

Just an update on what else is going on.
I have an email in to New Hampshire Internation Speedway about getting a track day and I also have a couple emails out to the Board of tourism for CT and the SCCA. I might have to start calling people though.

JDMKING from G35driver.com has a friend that works for ATCO raceway in NJ and he is looking into our options for there also.

I spoke with the person that organizes the Autox events for the Sports car club of Vermont and he is going to send me some info. If we can't get a track day then maybe an Autox is the next best thing?

 

Rick: Hopkinton State park would be great. A friend runs the food and boat rentals there so maybe we can get some help from him too.