NATIONAL MEET 2014... (FRI),SAT.&SUNDAY 11TH/12TH/13TH JULY
- Thread starter craig3.2
- Start date
Many thanks to John and Craig for a great weekend.Good to see Steph and Paul again, lovely car by the way. Great Barby, great company and some great roads.
What a great event. Special praise to my little 2.0 ltr what a great engine, did me proud up against u big boys.
What a great event. Special praise to my little 2.0 ltr what a great engine, did me proud up against u big boys.
Was good to see everyone again, and once again the weather was great for the drives at least, and despite some rain, on Saturday night, we still managed to enjoy the bbq and everyone had plenty to eat.
Enjoyed having the roof down all weekend , in 24c temps, and meeting friends new and old as always.
Thanks to John for organising some great Routes, and helping run this meet as always.
We were fortunate not to have too much traffic bar late on the Sunday, which was all the better.
Even the road to Richmond etc that we took as a diversion (when me and John missed the turning we had planned to take on the Saturday drive,lol) ended up a great blast.
Glad everyone had a good time, and the Raffle went well. Me and John were pleasantly surprised by the Inscribed silver picture frames that some of the Meet Attendees chipped together for. Thanks a lot folks, was a nice wee touch and totally unexpected
Enjoyed having the roof down all weekend , in 24c temps, and meeting friends new and old as always.
Thanks to John for organising some great Routes, and helping run this meet as always.
We were fortunate not to have too much traffic bar late on the Sunday, which was all the better.
Even the road to Richmond etc that we took as a diversion (when me and John missed the turning we had planned to take on the Saturday drive,lol) ended up a great blast.
Glad everyone had a good time, and the Raffle went well. Me and John were pleasantly surprised by the Inscribed silver picture frames that some of the Meet Attendees chipped together for. Thanks a lot folks, was a nice wee touch and totally unexpected
Good to meet you too sk93sk93 said:marypoppins said:Special praise to my little 2.0 ltr what a great engine, did me proud up against u big boys.
it did indeed! there wasn't much in it in the twisties
great to meet you!
Mmn Bit miffed, missing of the family photo 
Had a bit of a lie in this morning. . . You know that feeling when you're tired but really contented. . .Hmm perhaps I'd better move on 
Suffice to say Steph and I had another wonderful weekend at the National. Some of the roads we travel on the National are absolutely glorious - the scenery is just beautiful (especially Saturday morning). Couldn't have got a more lovely location for Saturday lunch at Castle Craig (sorry Castle Bolton!) . Stood at the back of the group of Zeds looking out over the view with the Castle in the foreground was epic. Sun out, lovely conversation, Zeds to discuss - magic.
On one section - when the traffic had cleared and the Zeds stretched out ahead and behind me it felt brilliant and I said to Steph "This really is up there with my most enjoyable things to do" - I absolutely love being out in the Zed with other drivers making the most of the opportunities on the road - I guess that's why we're all out there but my goodness it was a great feeling. Such memories are priceless - so thanks to Craig and John for organising the weekend yet again. At such moments, understanding why forum members come back year after year makes complete sense.
On top of this is the fun of meeting friends made last year, meeting folk whose posts you've been reading but never seen before and friends made through attending other 'hoons' and it combines to make a wonderful social weekend.
The raffle is a great way to end the first day's run - always a laugh and again, fantastic prizes! More fun! And not even the rain couldn't dampen the BBQ. It's staggering how much stuff is brought back from the supermarket and the big brollies meant we could carry on.
The breakfast at the Crooklands hotel is impressive. Craig's always so confident about the weather! After a night's rain the sun came out and a breeze would dry the roads nicely (though there were damp patches under the trees and on some of the more sheltered roads in the morning (beginning to sound like a report for the TT).
It was great to see more members adding to the numbers for Sunday's drive. We were lucky to have a good run through on quite a few sections, but traffic held us up from time to time - opportunities for a bit of photography then and taking in the scenery. Nevertheless some great sections for the 'spirited but safe' driving I see every time I'm out with the forum.
So thanks again Craig and John - had a brilliant time on some amazing roads in fabulous company and great weather. . .what's more to want?
But it didn't end there - Oh no. . .
Just before taking the A6 on our way home, who joined us but Tom Scott in his lovely //M Coupe. Steph and I haven't travelled this road to Penrith but thanks to Tom we had a very memorable introduction to it! Thanks Tom that really was a blast and a great end to our day (certainly shortened our travel time home).
And then. . .
I was ready to relax and cruise over Hartside and home, when suddenly - is that a yellow Porsche ahead? Well I'm sure you know the rest (just had a thought - was it Carol?!).
I really did have to back off and put the Zed in top gear after that - I was getting tired and beginning to feel the fatigue - not a time to carry on enjoying the Zeds abilities.
So, like I said, today, I'm tired but really content!
Paul and Steph
(If you've never been to the National get yourself there - you'll love it!)
Suffice to say Steph and I had another wonderful weekend at the National. Some of the roads we travel on the National are absolutely glorious - the scenery is just beautiful (especially Saturday morning). Couldn't have got a more lovely location for Saturday lunch at Castle Craig (sorry Castle Bolton!)
. Stood at the back of the group of Zeds looking out over the view with the Castle in the foreground was epic. Sun out, lovely conversation, Zeds to discuss - magic. On one section - when the traffic had cleared and the Zeds stretched out ahead and behind me it felt brilliant and I said to Steph "This really is up there with my most enjoyable things to do" - I absolutely love being out in the Zed with other drivers making the most of the opportunities on the road - I guess that's why we're all out there but my goodness it was a great feeling. Such memories are priceless - so thanks to Craig and John for organising the weekend yet again. At such moments, understanding why forum members come back year after year makes complete sense.
On top of this is the fun of meeting friends made last year, meeting folk whose posts you've been reading but never seen before and friends made through attending other 'hoons' and it combines to make a wonderful social weekend.
The raffle is a great way to end the first day's run - always a laugh and again, fantastic prizes! More fun! And not even the rain couldn't dampen the BBQ. It's staggering how much stuff is brought back from the supermarket and the big brollies meant we could carry on.
The breakfast at the Crooklands hotel is impressive. Craig's always so confident about the weather! After a night's rain the sun came out and a breeze would dry the roads nicely (though there were damp patches under the trees and on some of the more sheltered roads in the morning (beginning to sound like a report for the TT).
It was great to see more members adding to the numbers for Sunday's drive. We were lucky to have a good run through on quite a few sections, but traffic held us up from time to time - opportunities for a bit of photography then and taking in the scenery. Nevertheless some great sections for the 'spirited but safe' driving I see every time I'm out with the forum.
So thanks again Craig and John - had a brilliant time on some amazing roads in fabulous company and great weather. . .what's more to want?
But it didn't end there - Oh no. . .
Just before taking the A6 on our way home, who joined us but Tom Scott in his lovely //M Coupe. Steph and I haven't travelled this road to Penrith but thanks to Tom we had a very memorable introduction to it! Thanks Tom that really was a blast and a great end to our day (certainly shortened our travel time home).
And then. . .
I was ready to relax and cruise over Hartside and home, when suddenly - is that a yellow Porsche ahead? Well I'm sure you know the rest (just had a thought - was it Carol?!).
I really did have to back off and put the Zed in top gear after that - I was getting tired and beginning to feel the fatigue - not a time to carry on enjoying the Zeds abilities.
So, like I said, today, I'm tired but really content!
Paul and Steph
(If you've never been to the National get yourself there - you'll love it!)
marypoppins said:Many thanks to John and Craig for a great weekend.Good to see Steph and Paul again, lovely car by the way. Great Barby, great company and some great roads.
What a great event. Special praise to my little 2.0 ltr what a great engine, did me proud up against u big boys.
Great stuff Paul - I officially hand over the 2.0 litre promotional forum post on to you!
Nice to see SK 93 acknowledging it too
Oh and thanks for spending time with Craig when he brought down his 2 litre - I had told him about your car - nice one!
Glad you enjoyed it Paul and lovely to see both you and Steph again!
The A6 really is a great road, probably in the top 5 we drove that weekend! my pleasure to take you back, thought it was worth a bit of a last blast
Was great to travel behind and in front! That car of your is lovely and is certainly a match for the ///M in a lovely colour too! Got a great pic of it in the Alston car park that shows its almost pearlescent quality! Enjoyed the exhaust note and the hand gestures too haha
The A6 really is a great road, probably in the top 5 we drove that weekend! my pleasure to take you back, thought it was worth a bit of a last blast
Was great to travel behind and in front! That car of your is lovely and is certainly a match for the ///M in a lovely colour too! Got a great pic of it in the Alston car park that shows its almost pearlescent quality! Enjoyed the exhaust note and the hand gestures too haha
From the weekend:
I have to say there were some lovely looking and sounding Zeds at the national this year but -
The noise from SK 93's Zed is absolutely brilliant - he took off from the Crookland's car park and it left me open mouthed and gagging - such a fabulous noise. Had a word with him later and it turns out it's a Metal Monkey exhaust. Wow - nice job Metal Monkey!!
Anyone want to see an Alpina's party piece. . . follow Grumpy Brain and watch his Alpina squat down, gather itself for a micro second, then blast past when overtaking - awesome!
Metal Licker - what a fabulous advert for the E89, best looking 'new Zed' yet and even better in the 'flesh' (sorry about the drool on your seats)
I have to say there were some lovely looking and sounding Zeds at the national this year but -
The noise from SK 93's Zed is absolutely brilliant - he took off from the Crookland's car park and it left me open mouthed and gagging - such a fabulous noise. Had a word with him later and it turns out it's a Metal Monkey exhaust. Wow - nice job Metal Monkey!!
Anyone want to see an Alpina's party piece. . . follow Grumpy Brain and watch his Alpina squat down, gather itself for a micro second, then blast past when overtaking - awesome!
Metal Licker - what a fabulous advert for the E89, best looking 'new Zed' yet and even better in the 'flesh' (sorry about the drool on your seats)
tomscott said:Glad you enjoyed it Paul and lovely to see both you and Steph again!
The A6 really is a great road, probably in the top 5 we drove that weekend! my pleasure to take you back, thought it was worth a bit of a last blast
Was great to travel behind and in front! That car of your is lovely and is certainly a match for the ///M in a lovely colour too! Got a great pic of it in the Alston car park that shows its almost pearlescent quality! Enjoyed the exhaust note and the hand gestures too haha
Yep Tom - apologies for the gravel rash - whoops
That run up the A6 is be one that Steph and I remember for a long time.
Bradders75
Senior member
Another fantastic National, my 4th out of 5th. I had a wobble last year where I decided the car should probably be sold so I didn't attend but I'm really pleased to have reversed that decision. As Paul said, it's hard to imagine anything much more enjoyable than an empty road in a stunning landscape and 20 or so like minded individuals using their cars as designed. Chasing Paul and then Tom along near deserted roads for much of Sunday morning was an unforgettable experience and was a credit to Craig and John's route setting. Even a suicidal sheep couldn't spoil the fun, although it was close.
Thanks to everyone I spoke to for being fantastic company and making my OH and I feel as welcome as always. Tina really enjoyed the meet and is pestering me for information on when the next one will be. Considering the amount of 'passenger braking' she was doing for us on the Sunday morning run, I'm pleasantly surprised! There were too many highlights to list but one amusing bit of the weekend was when a non-forum Z4 coming the other way was pulled over letting us all past. I heard him shout to a pedestrian "I was just saying to my wife how you don't see many of these about...!"
Finally, many thanks again to Craig and John for all that they do in making this meet happen every year.
Thanks to everyone I spoke to for being fantastic company and making my OH and I feel as welcome as always. Tina really enjoyed the meet and is pestering me for information on when the next one will be. Considering the amount of 'passenger braking' she was doing for us on the Sunday morning run, I'm pleasantly surprised! There were too many highlights to list but one amusing bit of the weekend was when a non-forum Z4 coming the other way was pulled over letting us all past. I heard him shout to a pedestrian "I was just saying to my wife how you don't see many of these about...!"
Finally, many thanks again to Craig and John for all that they do in making this meet happen every year.