If I could suggest anything to the ZCCA it would be:

[TomoHawk]

Well, we have a veteran crew to run the 2008 show, so except for the larger number of entrants, things should go well.

Keep on mind that some things like seeing previous winners depend on participant cooperation. A successful show will really depend on the preparation & cooperation of all the participants.

thxZ

[280~Master]

gnosez,

would be nice to have those things and what ever WingZr0 is enjoying.

Now back to this Poll. A bikini contest might bring out the best or beast in all of us.

[TomoHawk]

A big issue for making people happy with things outside of the hotel and carshow parking lot would be getting people to drive their Zs to the different places for tours & sightseeing. Would you really want to drive your show-car around in a strange city? Fortunately, the Hotel and show site are out in the suburbs on the edge of the city ( NOT the boonies), so you won't have to be driving into or through the city much, if at all. Downtown Cleveland is only about 12 miles from the hotel & show site, and unless you get lost and end up in the flats (where the steel mills are) the city is quite modern, roads are good, and most any place is close-by.

And except for things like the poker run, there will probably be a local person available as a guide so you don't have to get lost.

thxZ

[gnosez]

I have no doubt that the '08 convention will be fun and I have already put in for the time off. I would expect nothing less from the host club and the group of folks working hard to see that all of us who come will be happy.

That said, let me once again go over my list of do's (the don'ts would run for pages):

1) feed me (Nissan pays good money) - twice

2) make registration painless

3) read the convention "how to" manual more than once

4) call on others who have done it (they now know what they should have done)

5) get help for the car show (it's the most painful event you will hold)

6) expect the unexpected (accident w/dealership loaner)

Here's my take on the ideal convention:

1) food - NH

2) track - NY/Long Beach

3) carshow - Vegas -the room was near perfect (better lighting)

4) events - NH & TX

[ZWOLF]

Just so there are no misunderstandings later.

This bikini contest ideas is just for the ladies...right!

[hls30.com]

Just so there are no misunderstandings later.

This bikini contest ideas is just for the ladies...right!

Is that as judges or particiapants?

I know Chris and Jim have an "IN" with hooters girls, so maybe they can get the girls involved...with the bikini contest....ahem

Will

[ZWOLF]

Participants!

[hls30.com]

Thanks, I knew someone with cars as dead sexy as yours would have his head in the right place...oh come on...

Will

[Art@NissanSport]

Hey John I'll be pissed for ever. Oh wait, now I'm even more pissed. I didn't get no stinkin lobster dinner. Shrimp at the banquet? Dang, now I'm triple pissed.

On a good note I did enjoy the ride-along with the SCCA Champion in his Corvette. Nice to experience a ride on a track that the driver knows every inch of.

I go to every national convention with very high expectations, maybe too high, but I'm an optimist.

The best part of any convention is the people. Thats what I enjoy the most. You'll see my point when you read my little writeup on this years convention. Did it meet my expectations as a vendor? No (to date, no convention has done that), but that didn't stop me from having a great time with good friends.

I will go into Cleveland with the same high hopes and knowing Chris Karl, he'll break the streak from my vendor point of view. Can't wait to see the hot spots with some good drinking buddies. Hey Bill are you listening?

Oh, and if we drive the dragon, I'll drive and somebody else can ride bi†©h after breakfast.

[Art@NissanSport]

And a good strip joint beats (no pun intended) a bikini contest any day of the week. Just ask the guys that were in Kingston. $7.00 baby.

Roger, I think I would run the other way if you tried to fit into a bikini. Stick (no pun intended again) to cars.

[EScanlon]

1) Consider some "northern tier" locations.

From the list mentioned by Art, the ONLY northern location was New Hampshire.

Colorado may get snow, but it's not the PacNW so our Canadian friends can attend (Vancouver, BC), nor is it Detroit or Minneapolis or Chicago so the other parts of Canada can attend there.

The ZCCA name IS Z Car Club of AMERICA and they're part of North America. Mexico didn't see the Z as part of Datsun's offerings there (economy), and the only other market for the Z in the Americas was Canada.

2) Have classes and prizes for "Daily Drivers" and "Modifieds", not just the Concourse / Garage Queen museum pieces.

Sure the Concourse will likely be the only ones eligible for the 300 point Gold award, but there are a lot of well maintained cars that get driven, not just trailered.

As far as the modifieds, sometime down the road it will be far easier to modify and customize a Z than attempt to restore it to "bone stock". ZRush's Red car is a beautiful example of a well executed mod, there are many others out there. They don't usually bother attending these shows because of the "stigma" of not being "stock".

Additionally, I know of cars that have some major body work in their future simply to correct items that were done either by the dealer or by an aftermarket supplier sponsored BY the dealer (in this case sunroofs) in order to make them more desireable/ sellable. To me the car as it is, is more of a true classic than one that has had major bodywork to return it to it's "original" state.

3) Highlight Original Owner Cars and Lowest/Highest Mileage and VIN vehicles.

Granted, some of this will be difficult to ascertain accurately, but with careful cooperation amongst participants and other dealerships (Gets Nissan dealers involved) it shouldn't be impossible. Mercedes has an emblem plaque they used to award after so many hundred thousand kilometers, and subsequent numbers. Granted with the mileage being so easy to fudge this might be impossible, but with careful documentation....

4) Encourage other market vehicles to join in and be highlighted.

Not many people will have the $ and time to ship a car from Australia, Japan or the U.K. to San Francisco or Savannah or Chicago; but if one should arrive then laud it as it should be, and not just lump it in with the American market cars.

A true ZG was not offered in the US or Canada, if one shows up it DESERVES special recognition.

An early Fairlady Z with a 2000 cc engine from Japan, RHD with accesories and items NOT available in the US/Canada would, to the uneducated, appear to be a bastardized Z....when they're not. Don't exclude these vehicles, highlight them.

5) Have local clubs sponsor their individual "best" car.

Then either trailer, or drive it to the convention where it will compete against other club entries. Let the individual clubs decide how they're going to pick their candidate; it may be as simple as who is willing to go to the convention, or their own show winner. Get the individual clubs involved. This would be separate from # 2 above.

Then, IMO, the ZCCA convention may take on a more desireable "I want to go...even if just to see!" rather than the, "Why go, it's the same people winning all the time, and they're picked by their buddies."

I've not been to a convention yet, but I HAVE been reading many of the comments given out freely both by those "in" the crowd, and those "out" of the crowd. That is how the majority of Z drivers make their opinion, which to emphasize my point, is why comments such as Art's and John's and Carl's are so poignant to the rest of us who would like to attend. Comments such as those exchanged between John and Art can be misunderstood....both well (just joking!) or badly (I'm still pissed!).

Holding off on giving out the awards and judging sheets smells of croniism and collusion like 5 day old fish. Not explaining deductions and giving deducts for items that shouldn't have mattered again...stinks. Taking months to tally/announce/mail out results...Are these due to keeping things too close to the vest and refusing to let others make decisions...they call that micro-managing, and smells a lot like fudging to adjust for the "real" winners.

I'm probably well off base here. I know there is a LOT of work to put these conventions on. It isn't easy to try to get that many people together in one area, heck you couldn't get that many to sing Yankee Doodle together and make it sound ok.

I'm not trying to insult, antagonize nor offend anyone, but sometimes it seems as though the convention is about keeping the "elite" Z owners up on their pedestal, and those from the "other side of the tracks" out.

But keeping it all down to one or two or just a few people who, seemingly, refuse to consider other opinions other than their own.... that's not a club, that's a private golf course.

2¢

E

[Carl Beck]

The ZCCA name IS Z Car Club of AMERICA

Hi E:

No - actually it is not. ZCCA is Z Car Cub Association.

The Z Car Club of America is a registered trade name, and the Club is no longer functioning (but the owner/operator and news letter publisher is still around - at least he was when he wrote me a few years ago).

As originally conceived - the Z Car Club Association was an association of the Officers of Local Z Car Clubs, that got together to share thoughts, ideas and experiences having to do with forming and running a local Z Car Club. That was then expanded to include a group purchase of Club Event Insurance. So that the representatives of the local clubs could get together once a year, and work together - the Annual ZCCA Conventions were started.

The Member Clubs to the ZCCA send their representatives to the ZCCA Meetings, and only those representatives have a voice in the conduct of the association. I've lost track of the actual number of dues paying ZCCA Member Clubs... at one time years ago it was something like 34 out of 70 in the US.

I think it's important to keep in mind that the original GOAL was to get the local club officers together for self help and encouragement so to speak. The local "HOST Club" played HOST to the ZCCA Representatives.

Over the years - somehow the ZCCA Convention seems to have evolved, and in the eyes of the outsiders (people that really don't attend the ZCCA Meetings at the ZCCA Convention) - - - it has become expected to be a National Level Z Meet....

My suggestion for the ZCCA would be to review their actual GOALS related to the Annual Convention.

a) the Convention is for the purpose of getting the local club representatives together for a week of intense club management and promotional seminars etc.

or

the Convention is an open gathering of Z Enthusiasts from across the Nation for an annual Z Love-in.

Trying to do both - means making trade-off's between what is desired by the ZCCA representatives for "their" Convention - and what everyone else that shows up desires.

There are other alternatives for the Z Enthusiasts to consider as "THE NATIONAL MEET" ... The MotorSports West Coast Nationals.. Several other Annual Events like the Tail-of-the-Dragon that draw huge numbers of participants. So we enthusiasts have some decisions to make as well....

FWIW,

Carl B.