2015 NATIONAL Z4-FORUM MEET,3rd,4th,5th JULY

[craig3.2]

A Big thanks to everyone who came along, always good to catchup with the Regulars, and meet new forumites as well.

Thanks for all those who put into the Raffle, Companies and Individuals alike (see Seperate Raffle draw thread) and those who all bought tickets....we raised £382 which was voted to go to the British Heart Foundation....which I will forward on as soon as I get a minute.

Thanks as ever to John/sammyz for helping me run the National, planning the routes etc.and here's to the next one....which we are already talking about (which may well include an Optional extra day as a precursor to the Sat/Sun drives, more on that in the near future )

Had an absolute great time, even if mine and Johns pace was a bit less on Sunday than it has been in the past....nothing to do with both our wifes being in our respective pass. seats would it John, haha??......still a great pace and Superb drives and very little traffic on Sunday again, which is always good

Thanks everyone for coming, and your nice words....as Ian/sk93 said(I think)......the Social side of it, getting to chat to folk again or for the 1st time, is always a very enjoyable part of these meets too. I just wish it wasn't a whole year before I see some of u again.

 

[craig3.2]

who as attended all 6 nationals?

John and Craig and maybe you and the Guiseleys?

Myself and Grumpybri have both done 5 only missing the first.

Me an john and the Guiseleys/Easemans have done all 6, and possibly Bradders??, with a few more doing 5 out of 6 (Brian/Jim/etc) and a few more having done 4. Good to see we are doing something right, and the meet makes people want to come back regularly.

Had a fantastic weekend, and hope to see some of you all again in August....and the rest of u as soon as possible

 

[Taz]

we raised £382 which was voted to go to the British Heart Foundation....

good effort

 

[craig3.2]

we raised £382 which was voted to go to the British Heart Foundation....

good effort

Thanks Pete.

I forgot to take the banner with me, but Brian Gillroy(grumpybri) has it, and is going to post it to you asap.
Thanks again for it, and the badges, mugs and stickers.
Your Sepang bronze M ROADSTER is very nice way better than that coupe, haha

 

[Taz]

I forgot to take the banner with me, but Brian Gillroy(grumpybri) has it, and is going to post it to you asap.

I'm in no rush to get it back, it probably won't get used again until the next national

 

[craig3.2]

It appears I've got a massive amount of sunburn.

which is odd, as we definitely drove home with the roof down, through a thunderstorm, for over an hour.

We got video'd about 7 times by passing cars, all looking very bemused at us being bone dry, despite it being catastrophically wet "outside".
Hoping at least one of the vids appears on YouTube soon

Yeah, me too/back of my neck......from Saturday and Sunday with the roofs down all day until right at the end on Sunday. The joy of a Roadster, haha.

The cars sound and drive so much better with the roof down I always think

 

[craig3.2]

I forgot to take the banner with me, but Brian Gillroy(grumpybri) has it, and is going to post it to you asap.

I'm in no rush to get it back, it probably won't get used again until the next national

Okay...you want me to just hold onto it for now then??

 

[Taz]

I forgot to take the banner with me, but Brian Gillroy(grumpybri) has it, and is going to post it to you asap.

I'm in no rush to get it back, it probably won't get used again until the next national

Okay...you want me to just hold onto it for now then??

you can do, if anybody wants it before i can let you know

 

[Keyper]

Well done guys for the hard work that was put into it.

This was my first meet. I'll deffo become a regular however the Sunday drive was a wee bit on the fast side for the wife so I may have to compromise a little with her and follow up near the rear next time otherwise I may have a devorse on my hands haha

 

[Taz]

the Sunday drive was a wee bit on the fast side for the wife so I may have to compromise a little with her and follow up near the rear next time otherwise I may have a devorse on my hands haha

ii find it can be faster at the back cos your playing catch up all the time

 

[Harpal]

IMG_4967.MOV

Hi All,

1st forum meet for me & it was great! Next time I will definitely do the drive on tha Saturday, pics look great.

A number of thanks.

Apologies if I get names wrong, a wee bit confusing when there are aliases.

Craig - Organising / welcome and advice. Bbq

Barry ( Neighbour tent) welcome / advice and programming key controls. Very much appreciated.

John / Sue - Keyper. Tent advice and intial set up. My fob still works .

Darby - Putting up the tent, thanks would have took me ages.

Ian / SK93 Drink! beg you won't do that again!

Matt / Bradders - Was good meeting you & your wife good luck & congrats.

Paul / Mary Poppins - Great chatting to you mate, think we could have all day about our OCD's and sons!

Sunburst Orange Zed - Sorry forgot names! Great work on the zed an inspiration to all. Your wasted not doing cars for a living. Good talking to you both.

All - thanks for bringing your zeds. I have a video of you all leaving which I will post when I know how to / email or message for someone to upload.

 

[sk93]

IMG_4967.MOV

Hi All,

1st forum meet for me & it was great! Next time I will definitely do the drive on tha Saturday, pics look great.

A number of thanks.

Apologies if I get names wrong, a wee bit confusing when there are aliases.

Craig - Organising / welcome and advice. Bbq

Barry ( Neighbour tent) welcome / advice and programming key controls. Very much appreciated.

John / Sue - Keyper. Tent advice and intial set up. My fob still works .

Darby - Putting up the tent, thanks would have took me ages.

Ian / SK93 Drink! beg you won't do that again!

Matt / Bradders - Was good meeting you & your wife good luck & congrats.

Paul / Mary Poppins - Great chatting to you mate, think we could have all day about our OCD's and sons!

Sunburst Orange Zed - Sorry forgot names! Great work on the zed an inspiration to all. Your wasted not doing cars for a living. Good talking to you both.

All - thanks for bringing your zeds. I have a video of you all leaving which I will post when I know how to / email or message for someone to upload.

Great to meet you too!
It wasn't the drink tho.. it was very definitely dodgy BBQ

 

[Keyper]

the Sunday drive was a wee bit on the fast side for the wife so I may have to compromise a little with her and follow up near the rear next time otherwise I may have a devorse on my hands haha

ii find it can be faster at the back cos your playing catch up all the time

Ohh Dear Taz back to the drawing board then. I'll see what she says.

 

[paulgs1000]

Thanks again to Craig and John for putting together a terrific National Meet again this year.

Steph and I managed to get across early enough for the meal on Friday night and it doesn't seem a year since we'd met up with other Forum members (well it hadn't been in some cases). It was great to catch up and have the opportunity to chat. Anyone got any photos of the night?

The weather forecast was a bit mixed and worrisome for those staying at the camp site . . . .sure enough I'd never seen nor heard such a vivid flash followed almost immediately by a ferocious clash of thunder in the middle of the night – seemed like it was immediately in front of the hotel – the car park perhaps, or even, dare I think it, above the camp site! :?

We were relieved when the morning arrived fairly bright and dry; more importantly the campers turned up fit and well after a very lively night.

It was an impressive turnout on the Saturday morning and whilst waiting for one of two forumites to arrive, we had the chance to take a closer look at some of the impressive Zeds and meet up with more new members.







The Briefing



A good number of Zeds set off then for the West Lakes – interesting for Steph and I as we'd not driven this area before. It was not long before the group came to a very sudden halt as Ian (sk93) hit his brakes, turned on his hazards and was out his Zed before it came to a complete stop to help a motocyclist who'd fallen over at the junction we were passing. Ian was there in a flash – checking the guy and lifting his bike off him – he even stayed to fix the guy's bike and see he was ok. Confirmation for me and Steph, that Ian is a very useful guy to have on a run – nice one Ian. 8)









Just had to comment on this Zed - following it was a pleasure - fabulous colour and terrific exhaust noise



It's always fun to arrive in a big group and go through the process of parking up one after another – the photo call on the beach will stay as an abiding memory.







Paparazi gets everywhere . . .





Tony's exhaust is awesome - if you get the chance follow it - you'll be blown away. I loved it setting off a car alarms as we passed :lol: His ///M corners like it's on rails as well and I was well impressed when each of us spun our wheels as we left one particularly tight junction but as Tony's coupe flew down the road there was a second chirrup of the wheels in second - nice one Mind, he did let into our column some frustrating traffic - what were you thinking Tony?





We were spoilt for exhaust sounds this year (check out sk93's quad exhaust ) we could hear this strange vehicle behind us on the run and it entertained throughout the weekend giving passenger rides from the carpark . . . .



The usual issues of traffic roadworks and busy junctions caused the break up of the group more than once , uncertainty leading to some having to find their own way to the staging points :? . After a bit of town centre circling we eventually managed to find our way to lunch following John's instruction sheet and with the help of others .







Quite a dramatic lunch stop near Buttermere – enormous portions – and a really tight access/exit road (especially when facing large transits and even coaches!











The fun of the Honister pass was spoilt by yet another service bus in front of us but led to Taz letting us see what his new ///M could do from a standstill – first sideways then the other way, then eventually forwards as he filled the valley with the scream of his straight six – a fitting dramatic event in such a dramatic location.

(No disclaimer needed for these antics - only a couple of moments of madness all weekend)





After Baz had cleaned his lovely Alpina (he was the first to get the detailing spray out ) the BBQ night started and went very well – once the bar opened and the twin barbies had done their stuff. This is a team effort – thanks to all involved. (The raffle raised over £380 this year and is going to the Heart Fundation Charity - a charity close to my, er . . .heart – nice one Craig)







Sunday morning arrived a little breezy but soon settled to an excellent day for hooning. The morning session was a brilliant start and at our first stop everyone had a big smile on their faces – the roads had been superb and clear – magic. Luckily the rest of the day continued in the same way with a wonderful day of spirited but safe hooning.


























I don't think Steph and I had experienced such a consistent day of spirited driving at the National – the traffic gods were with us and the roads wonderful. It made for a top day of hooning; we were impressed by the driving shown by all forum members, spirited but safe and the pace was spot on for us –
nice one John and Craig.

One for the Zeds outside a Pub post . . . . .it needs the numbers eh Jim :lol:



Hey Poppy, I think you're no longer the youngest member on the Forum runs - nice to meet you Skye :lol:




The showers arrived late but created the need for caution on the final parts of the route as we headed back to Crosslands and a welcome coffee.

We were tired but very fulfilled – it had been a fantastic day of driving in smashing company.

I took the easy option home – up the M6 and across the A69 - 6th gear nearly all the way, to be met by torrential rain at Newcastle. Well it gave the Zed a good clean!

Really a first class weekend – well done Craig and John and thanks to everyone else at the weekend – it's as much about the shared experience as it is about the driving. For us – the best National yet.



Paul and Steph.

 

[Keyper]

IMG_4967.MOV

Hi All,

1st forum meet for me & it was great! Next time I will definitely do the drive on tha Saturday, pics look great.

A number of thanks.

Apologies if I get names wrong, a wee bit confusing when there are aliases.

Craig - Organising / welcome and advice. Bbq

Barry ( Neighbour tent) welcome / advice and programming key controls. Very much appreciated.

John / Sue - Keyper. Tent advice and intial set up. My fob still works .

Darby - Putting up the tent, thanks would have took me ages.

Ian / SK93 Drink! beg you won't do that again!

Matt / Bradders - Was good meeting you & your wife good luck & congrats.

Paul / Mary Poppins - Great chatting to you mate, think we could have all day about our OCD's and sons!

Sunburst Orange Zed - Sorry forgot names! Great work on the zed an inspiration to all. Your wasted not doing cars for a living. Good talking to you both.

All - thanks for bringing your zeds. I have a video of you all leaving which I will post when I know how to / email or message for someone to upload.

Good to meet you Harpal. Keep me informed on those alloys

 

[marypoppins]

Great write up and pics Paul.

 

[marypoppins]

IMG_4967.MOV

Hi All,

1st forum meet for me & it was great! Next time I will definitely do the drive on tha Saturday, pics look great.

A number of thanks.

Apologies if I get names wrong, a wee bit confusing when there are aliases.

Craig - Organising / welcome and advice. Bbq

Barry ( Neighbour tent) welcome / advice and programming key controls. Very much appreciated.

John / Sue - Keyper. Tent advice and intial set up. My fob still works .

Darby - Putting up the tent, thanks would have took me ages.

Ian / SK93 Drink! beg you won't do that again!

Matt / Bradders - Was good meeting you & your wife good luck & congrats.

Paul / Mary Poppins - Great chatting to you mate, think we could have all day about our OCD's and sons!

Sunburst Orange Zed - Sorry forgot names! Great work on the zed an inspiration to all. Your wasted not doing cars for a living. Good talking to you both.

All - thanks for bringing your zeds. I have a video of you all leaving which I will post when I know how to / email or message for someone to upload.

Good to meet you Harpal. Keep me informed on those alloys

Yep Harpal your right mate. Was fantastic to meet a fellow 2.0 ltr owner. Nice car and some useful tips you gave me. Thanks.

 

[paulgs1000]

Whoops - Forgot my formal forum apology

Nearly reversed into Keypers Zed at our last stop After a brilliant day's hooning that would have been an embarrassing accident.

Glad you got it into reverse and out the way - nice one and thanks Keyper -

Sorry about that and I hope it doesn't put you off attending our Newcastle runs :lol:

 

[sk93]

Whoops - Forgot my formal forum apology

Nearly reversed into Keypers Zed at our last stop After a brilliant day's hooning that would have been an embarrassing accident.

Glad you got it into reverse and out the way - nice one and thanks Keyper -

Sorry about that and I hope it doesn't put you off attending our Newcastle runs :lol:

 

[paulgs1000]

Hmm - already there Ian