We can’t thank everyone who attended this event enough!  The entire crew at ZONC was amazing and we look forward to the next event with them very soon, Jack and Yolanda special thanks to you.  The caravan down to Laguna Seca on both days was a real blast and I’m happy to report that we had no serious issues.

Another special thanks needs to go out to all of the people who drove some very long distances to join up with us for the races this weekend.  A few of you came from the Sacramento area which is a good drive but there were others who came down from Oregon and Washington.  A good friend of ours brought his ’71 Datsun 510 wagon down from Oregon after a few serious modifications.  The radiator was recently relocated to the rear of the car to make way for a new air-to-air intercooler for the turbo’d drivetrain that came from a Toyota Supra.  (Feel free to leave any comments about putting a Toyota drivetrain in a Datsun in the comments section.)  The kicker here is that he only put on 15 miles before making his way down to meet us.  Talk about commitment.

Like I said earlier,  the drive to the track went great on both days but when we got to the track on Sunday we were blown away at how many Zs were there.  I believe the final count was near 65 cars for the corral.  The Porsche club only had 20ish!  Awesome!!

Our parade lap took place right around noon.  It is always a good experience to get to drive on a track but Laguna Seca is a whole different animal.  The racing history here is immense and Nissan has certainly had its fair share of the limelight here.  The look on people’s faces after the TWO parade laps were over brought a smile to my face, especially for those who have never been on track.  There were so many people interested in doing a track day after this event, it’s a good thing that the Z is up to it!

For me the racing took a back seat to spending time with all of the Z owners that attended.  The MX-5 race on Saturday didn’t produce the carnage that I had predicted, those guys can really drive in close quarters.  The Mustang Challenge race was arguably the most exciting event of the weekend.  Lots of door to door racing and that  V8 rumble will really get your heart going.  I didn’t stay for the entire Rolex Daytona Prototype race so that we could get back to the bay area a bit early but I can’t wait to catch it on one of the greatest inventions ever, the DVR.

We will be hosting more and more Z events at Z Car Garage and ZONC has quite a few shows coming up so make sure to check back here for all the info.  Thanks again to all who attended and to all the readers of ZCarBlog.

Long Live the Z

Follow the “read more” for all the pictures that I took at the event.  The pictures from both days are in the gallery and they are in the order that I took them.  I know that there were a ton of friends with cameras at the event so I will try to get some of their pictures too.  Enjoy

…[read more]

Here it is friends… the final schedule.

Saturday 5/16

Meet at Z Car Garage between 8:00-8:30am

Depart for Laguna Seca at 9:00am

We decided on this time so that we would be able to catch all the fender-bashing action of the Mazda MX-5 Cup (Miatas.)  These MX-5 races are some of the most entertaining events that I have ever seen and they should not be missed.  I hope that all those planning to join us from outside the Bay Area will be able to make the 9:00am departure time.

Sunday 5/17

Meet at Z Car Garage at 6:30am

Depart for Laguna Seca at 7:00am

I know it’s early but we do need to make sure that we are at the track and settled by 9:00am.  Raceday traffic can be a hassle here so leaving at 7:00am makes sense.  If you know how these caravans go we probably won’t get underway until near 7:30, but please try to be prompt.

Z Car Garage is only hosting the caravan down to Laguna Seca so any questions/comments can be addressed here or by email to Rob at rob@zcargarage.com

All other concerns about the corral or other track related events need to go through the appropriate channels at ZONC.  Check ZONC.org for contact information.  I believe that Yolanda Atkinson is in charge of this event if that helps at all.  See you Saturday morning!!!

Long Live the Z!!!!!

I wanted to get this post up again because reserved spots in the Z-car Corral are filling up quickly!  Getting the weekend pass for $65 is a deal by itself, and then you throw in great parking at the Z-car Corral and a parade lap around the full Laguna Seca circuit and you would be a fool not to attend!!

Z Car Garage will be bringing AT LEAST four cars from the shop and we have verified that other customers and friends have already signed up.  This is going to be an amazing race weekend with all your Z friends and we hope to see you there.  Visit the Z.O.N.C. Website to sign up TODAY!!!

Do you own a Z?  Good.  Do you want to drive a Parade Lap around Laguna Seca?  Of course you do!  Well here is your chance.  ZONC (Z Owners of Northern California)  are hosting a VIP Z Car corral along with NSXCA-Bay Area Chapter at Laguna Seca on May 17, 2009.

The $65 ticket price includes the following:

ON TRACK PARADE LAP
WEEKEND Race Ticket
Hospitality Area
VIP Parking – Car Corral
Grand-AM Team Tours

Please click on the event poster above to see all the fine details or head over to the ZONC website and tell them your friends at ZCarBlog.com sent you.  We will try to bring as many cars from the shop as possible to suport ZONC and we hope to see you there!!

In less than two weeks the American Le Mans series storms into Laguna Seca yet again to provide some of the best wheel to wheel racing mankind has ever seen.  Seriously.  This ALMS events promises to be even more special than years past because a Z-car corral will take place on Saturday!  All Zs (new and old) and Gs, 510s, Roadsters, and GT-Rs are welcome to attend.  The Saturday day and corral pass are available on the Z.O.N.C. website for purchase.

Come out and join us for a great weekend in Monterey at Laguna Seca and bring your Z!!

Z.O.N.C. (Club Info, Purchase Tickets and Corral Passes)

American Lemans Series (Series Info)

Laguna Seca (Track Into)