2000 Z3 Homecoming

Thursday started out slowly. Rachel, Dave, and I had breakfast delivered to my room, and we shared stories of the previous day. Micheal Wand joined up with us at some time around here. We had an hour or two to wait before the people from Nashville started showing up, as it was several hours away to the west.

That morning, I went out and packed. It was at this time that I really noticed how awful the paint chips were on my car's front end. I'm realizing that I will need to have the entire front of the car repainted because the chips really look bad.

Sometime, noonish or thereabouts, various people stopped at the hotel and got out to stretch their legs before making the run on The Dragon. Eventually, John Bergeron, Robert Leidy, Don, and a bunch of others showed up. We left the hotel to have the "traditional" lunch at a local Wendy's, and then, from there, we gassed up before heading out.

There was a little bit of jockeying around, and there was a hint that the rain was coming from the southeast. We were pretty lucky in that it did not rain while we were riding The Dragon, but there was evidence that it had rained shortly before our arrival as some patches of the road were still damp. So, we dove in, and kept running until we got to the scenic overlook. At this point, we all happily snapped pictures - I began thinking there were more cameras than roadsters some time around then. Robert had managed to attach a video camera between his roll hoops (I want the mount!), and offered to drive ahead and get all of us on tape as we passed him. Rachel gave him her video camera as well, so he was set. Then, I offered to stay behind, and get everyone on tape as they took off from the overlook. (Video to follow!). I happily shot away, and realized I couldn't keep a camera still to save my life, but more importantly, I heard the Supersprint exhausts of John B's and Bryan's 2.8 Z3s. It was right then and there that I realized I wanted one, and I'd get one when I could. Of course, I have to decide if I want the straight exhaust tips, or the DTM tips, which are curved upwards.

I eventually caught up with Robert as he was stowing the camera equipment. I think I passed him, but then let him pass me because i wanted to follow someone quicker than me. Unfortunately, we got stuck behind a pickup truck, so it wasn't as fun as it could've been.

Eventually, we ended up at the endpoint, and did the souvenir thing (Jon's Note: the program I use to make panoramic pictures had a little problem with this set of pictures. Note the Z3 with the shortened wheelbase in the middle, which just so happens to be mine). While talking about the experience, another group of Z3ers showed up after a Dragon Run, and we spent a little bit more time swapping stories. I got to meet Jeannine (Southern Cinderella on the Message Board). She drives a black Z3 Coupe, and hangs a feather boa off of the antenna whenever she parks it.