Motorman7: Just checking in :-)

[motorman7]

Just thought I would say 'Hi' to all of the regulars and give a bit of an update.

I took a break from the classiczcars site as life has been pretty busy.  My wife and I moved last year from San Diego,CA to Boise, ID, so the move in and getting set-up has kept us pretty busy.  I also picked up a job that kept me way too busy but that is now in the past.  I now consider myself semi-retired and will probably do odd jobs on the side, or perhaps do another resto now that I am mostly settled.  Wife says it's hard for me to sit still, so I am sure I will always be doing something.

We bought our dream home in the foothills of Boise and we should be here for quite some time.  The house is huge, has incredible views of the Boise foothills all around us, and also has a 1500 Sq-ft garage that currently contains a 20 ft Geo-Pro trailer and 7 cars.  I am cheating a bit as I have one of the Z's up on a lift, but the other vehicles are all on the Epoxy coated floor.  Also had a large heater installed so I can keep the garage at 55 degrees F all winter long.  I can crank it up with the thermostat if I want to work out there for a while.

Z-wise, it's been a pretty good year for the restorations.  The last Z I restored,

took first in the Japanese class at the La Jolla Concours in April.  The owner was thrilled and it was a tremendous event.  It was a nice way to start the year.

 

In July, @jayhawk Blue '73 took first in the Japanese class at the 66th Hillsborough Concours de Elegance. 

 

That blue is still one of my favorite Z colors.

And last but not least,  a side job that I did and posted mostly on IG took third in the 240Z category at the JCCS in September.  Pretty impressive given the large number of 240Z entrants at that show.  Unlike my other restos, it was not a complete resto, but still looked good enough to place.  So, it was a pretty good year for the Z's. 

I did enter my white Z in one of the local car shows here in Boise.  The venue was nice, but the car culture appears to be a bit different than So-Cal.  First off, not many foreign cars.  Also, flashy colors and aftermarket mags seem to go over much better than an all original vehicle.  Sadly, I think if I brought my beater yellow Z (with black side stripes and panasports) and my dad's original '70, the yellow Z would get a lot more looks and draw the larger interest.  A bit disappointing, but maybe it was just the couple of shows that I attended.  Will have to see how this developes in the future.

Also, I stopped at the Z Doctor's shop here in Boise.  Nice to have someone to talk Z's with.

Anyway, I should be a bit more active on here now that I am caught up with most things.  Will most likely be at ZCON 2023 and may even bring a car.  Thanks for the support.

Best regards,

   Rich

 

[S30Driver]

Thanks for the update Rich!

Congrats on a great year for all the very nice cars that have been lucky to get your attention and superb workmanship.

[jayhawk]

Thanks for the mention Motorman. 

Your restoration on my Z has really cramped my style!  It is too pretty to take on the Z Club fun runs through the back roads.  So for now it is a show car, but after ZCON next year (in Ontario, California) it will be time to put on the original slotted "mag" wheels, maybe the louvers, the arm rest, and start driving it everywhere again.

--Jayhawk

My (motorman restoration) blue Z at the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Z Owners of Northern California (ZONC) last June.  (Blackhawk auto museum)  Note the relative number of folks checking out my 240Z vs the new Nissan 2023 Z😁.