Past Events: Journey to the Meeting of the MindZ - Aug 17, 2001
by Gregory Ernst
Neighbors are a good thing. Datsun and Nissan Z neighbors are a great thing! In truth, the Z Car Club of Washington (ZCCW) is a mighty neighborly bunch of Z'ers - and am I glad.
NorthWest Z is a flegling new Z club serving Oregon and southwest Washington. While still in its seminal stages of organization, we were invited by our neighbors to the north, ZCCW, to attend their annual Meeting of The Mindz, in Port Townsend, Washington. I jumped at the opportunity for the journey. I had a dear old friend residing in nearby Port Angeles that I hadn't seen in years. Attending this Z meet provided me the opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.
Fellow NW-Z'er Jerry Bartz and I met up in Kelso, Washington on Friday afternoon, August 17th. Jerry was in his beautiful black 1991 300 ZX TT, modified to Stage V+. I was in my (equally beautiful) silver 1990 300 ZX TT, also modified to Stage V+.
As we journeyed north on I-5, my Z sprung a leak and was losing coolant. The day prior I had raced at PIR and hadn't noticed any problem then but now, here I was, enroute to a Z event, and experiencing troubles. I made contact with the Nissan dealership in Centralia by cell phone. We stopped and had the leak looked at. It proved to be a cooling line to the left side turbo and would take hours to fix. After determining that the leak was small enough to not present a driving problem, I decided to continue and motor on.
Armed with extra water and two newly purchased Nissan baseball caps, Jerry and I continued north on I-5. At Olympia, we headed west on Highway 101 to Shelton where we stopped for eats. Everytime I parked my Z it looked like it was on fire. Steam would billow out from under the hood as the leaking coolant fell onto the hot manifold. All I could do was smile at people's reactions and make sure that enough coolant was in the system.
After fueling ourselves, Jerry and I headed north to Bremerton. At one point on a lonely stretch of road, a Sheriff came up on us from behind moving fast and with his lights on. I got a case of "blue fever" but the deputy just sped on by us.
At Bremerton, Jerry and I parted company heading in different directions. Jerry had pursuits of a female persuasion awaiting him in Oak Harbor. I previously booked a motel room in Port Angeles so I could meet up with my old friend, which I did. I had a wonderful time drinking a good bottle of wine and reminiscing about old times.
The next morning brought threatening grey skies, but the threat was not serious enough for rain. After eating, I made the drive to Port Townsend and the Meeting of the Mindz. The gathering was held at the local county fairgrounds. Jerry's friendly face was already there, albeit bemoaning his prior night's activities (or the lack thereof).
Oh my, the Z cars! All total, 40 Z's trekked to this locale to attend this event. 240's, 260's, 280's of all persuasions. All models of 300's (including a roadster). Stock, custom, restorations, projects, V8 conversions. There were even two right-hand drive Fairladys, a 1990 2+2 turbo and the venerable predecessor of the Z, the Datsun 2000. The owners came from five different clubs around the northwest and western Canada. One car came all the way from Calgary, Alberta (now that is devotion!).
As I began to mingle and get acquainted, one thing became very apparent. These were some mighty neighborly Z folks. Here was a group of unpretentious Z lovers, courteous and helpful in everything needed. It was obvious I was in good company and I was sure to make some new friends.
Several folks from Oregon and SW Washington were also in attendance. They were excited to hear about NW-Z and the prospect of becoming involved. We exchanged information agreeing to keep in contact. One of these owners and his wife had a beautiful V8 conversion of a 1972 240. Another NW-Z prospect owned a restored and customized 1980 280 RM, a very rare anniversary Z. He was there with his dad who was driving his customized 1989 300Z. It turned out that the dad's sister used to be my landlady many years ago.
The early part of the afternoon was spent getting all the cars bathed, lined up and arranged for a group photo. This was no small task. However, it provided the opportunity for meeting Z neighbors, making new friends and proffering plenty of jokes.
Following the photo, it was parade time. 30+ Z cars, lined end to end, and did a tour of the small town of Port Townsend. My, was that a sight! I had the honor of being last in the entourage. I took careful notice of the casual observers on the sidewalks and streets recognizing each of the Z styles and viewing the wide range, each picking out their favorites.
After the parade, Jerry Bartz headed home and I returned to the fairgrounds for more Z conversation. A spaghetti dinner was served by the members of ZCCW. During this time I became acquainted with several members of the Canadian clubs, especially one chap with a gorgeous 240. That night was spent around a huge fire, talking and telling jokes. For reasons unknown to me, I was dubbed with the moniker of "Preacher." "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here to pay homage to the great Z car!"
Camping in my tent, I awoke the next morning to a beautiful day. After breakfast was served by the Canadian clubs, everyone began to pack. I took this time to shoot more photos of certain Z cars that impressed me before they and I departed. My trip home was uneventful, albeit fast.
I learned a great deal over the weekend, about cars in general and Z cars in particular. Seeing all the styles and the progression in the design, engineering and technology was interesting to observe first hand. There was a common philosophical thread as well: create an affordable and exciting high performance machine designed to keep a grin firmly ensconced on everybody's face. The mere fact that a gathering like this occurs is a testament to the success of that philosophy. More importantly, as I looked around at the faces of these neighborly Z owners, I saw the smile lines deeply imbedded in their faces. Here was proof positive that the Datsun/Nissan Z car has a successful heritage.
I'll be back next year. Neighbors are a good thing, but Z neighbors are great!
