I will be there!

Frank + 2 (2 leave after bbq)
2 Thor + 4 (all stay)
3 Mike T
4 Cameron
5 Phil
6 Keith.H
7. Al B.
8 Mike Rosann
9 Mike_G
10. S Cole
11. Dave .N
12. Jim Hagani
13. Steve Salvatore
14. Ross Williams
15. Dave S +1
16. Bryan L
17. Keith H.
18. Irv R.
19.

_________________
Ross Williams
1978 280Z Black Pearl Edition 38k Original Miles

I'll try to make it, as I was unable to attend the last two. However, my new exhaust is coming in sometime this week and I want to get it installed as soon as possible so Wednesday might be exhaust install.

Evil Z? Can you make this?

The hourly weather forecast for 5PM Wednesday afternoon is:

Partly cloudy, temperature about 85-90*, with 8mph breeze. Chance of scattered rain is only 20%, riZing to 40% by midnight.

This looks like an excellent time to gather our Zs, enjoy a picnic, and hold a monthly meeting!

During the months of June, July and August, we have joined THIRTY SIX new members! Let's hope they can all make this meeting so we can get to meet some new Z owners!

Unfortunately, I have to change from a "confirmed" to a "maybe". Will still try and make this, but can't guarantee I will be able to.

_________________
"We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to public office." -Aesop

Will do everything in my power to make it at around 5. Stephen Snyder

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Stephen Snyder
89' 300zxt

Frank, will you be needing any help as far as set up ? My schedule allows for me to be early.

Thanks Mike! This is gonna be one of the easiest deals we've had. The crew at EXECUTIVE will be providing all the tables, tents, chairs, etc and will set them up before we arrive. Chris Conlon of SMOKIN' WITH CHRIS will arrive early with his professional mobile BBQ smoker truck and trailer and fire up the smoker before we arrive.

All we will have to do when we get there at 5PM will be to park our cars, get a Club ID sticker, meet our friends as they arrive and PIG OUT!

Ross will have to wave his magic wand to ensure we have perfect weather, remember to bring the soda, and enjoy himself. The BBQ will run itself until 7PM, then Bryan Little will conduct the monthly meeting until 9PM, or until people start falling asleep from overeating.

Plan to arrive at five!

Thanks to a coworker I'll be leaving work at 4:15. So I'll be there in time for the BBQ.

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Mike Tubiak
1978 Datsun 280Z - HLS30-438694

I spent a fascinating evening with Thor and his family, and they are wonderful people. They are all looking forward to meeting us and sharing this BBQ picnic on Wednesday night. Their English is FAR better than my German is!

They are such a happy family, and very much in love with the Datsun Z. Thor drove my 1970 240 tonight and we had a great conversation comparing our cars. So much the same, yet so different.

One thing Thor said after returning from Nashville was, "every Z has its own voice!" How very true.

You will all like these wonderful folks who came all the way here from Germany to meet the Club. They have a wonderful sense of humor and are simply amaZed at the CTZCC.

Zee you all Wednesday night!

they look like a very nice family. i am currently teaching myself how to say "nice to meet you" in German. it's actually pretty easy. is it 5 yet?

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Mike Tubiak
1978 Datsun 280Z - HLS30-438694

Yea...mine has it's own voice alright. Sorry I can't make it tonight, I'm so behind in my work....I just have lots to do....house and cars. So have a great time Thor and Family and if ever in the Newport R.I. area just give a ring. My parents just left for Austria yesterday, my Step mother was born there and has family there.....she told me to tell you something, but now can't remember. I forget english words too. ENJOY

I just spoke with our host at Executive Nissan, Scott Orsini, and with our professional smoked BBQ caterer, Chris Conlon. We are SO locked-on for this picnic tonight!

Chris will start us off with German-style Knackwurst und Bratwurst und sauerkraut und potato salad, then go to the smoked ribs, smoked pork, smoked lamb etc. Anyone who wants a hotdog or hamburger can simply ask for one. AppetiZers will be out on the table as we arrive.

We are expecting about 100 people to attend this picnic, and maybe half of those to stay for the meeting. Thor will get a chance to see our cars, meet the names he has been corresponding with on the website and maybe even say a few words at the meeting. He has some fascinating stories about classic cars in Europe and Zs in Germany, and has once been paid a personal visit at his office by Albert Goertz, designer of the wonderful BMW 507 and disputed contributor to the 240Z!

We can get away with speaking English to any of the Links, if we don't talk with our mouths full!

Tonight's meeting conductor, Bryan Little, will give us our final briefing on this weekend's Z AutoCross. It will be conducted and monitored by The CT CART guys (some of whom are CTZCC members), who will give us our own class to run our cars in!

As before, EXECUTIVE NISSAN has gone above and beyond to sponsor this event, and host our meeting. This is another great Club gathering you will NOT want to miss, and promises to be one of the larger functions we've had so far this year. Bring your camera and your appetite. Dress is casual, as always, but the Club MerchandiZe Czar (Keith) will be on-duty in case you feel like 'dressing up'

Exit 9 off I-91, turn LEFT off the northbound exit then RIGHT onto Universal Drive.
Turn RIGHT off the southbound exit onto Universal drive.
EXECUTIVE will be about 1 mile from the exit, across the road from BJ's Gasoline station.

Z you tonight, 5-7PM for the picnic, 7-9PM for the meeting.

Well, WOW!

Bryan Little's August 2010 monthly meeting will go down in Club history as one of the best times our Z family has had! What a wonderful turn-out we had at Executive Nissan in North Haven tonight! It would be easier for me to name the members who WEREN'T there, then to try to name the ones who were. THANKS, BRYAN!

Thor Link got to attend a monthly meeting, and to meet about 80-90 Club members in person. He did a fine job of establishing a one-to-one relationship with each member who introduced themselves to him. As a result, he was one of the very first members to arrive at Executive, and became the very last man off the property late that night! THANKS, MEMBERS!

Our host Scott Orsini again went above and beyond by providing us with an on-site live-uplink DJ for FM 104, nice clean tables and chairs to eat at, and funds to hire SMOKIN' WITH CHRIS, the professional smoked BBQ caterer who fed us until we couldn't waddle. THANKS, SCOTT!

Once again, PreZident Ross Williams waved his magic wand and got us perfect weather for this event ~ warm, clear skies, with a steady breeze to cool us down and keep every little bug away from our picnic. Ross also provided a wide variety of beverages for us to enjoy with our fantastic smoked barbeque! THANKS, ROSS!

It was difficult to get an accurate headcount for our Club attendance, since people kept coming in during the 2 hrs the BBQ was served. Some members were just getting off work and couldn't stay for the meeting, but wanted to meet Thor and grab some great BBQ. Others were on their way TO work and wanted to say hi and grab some free BBQ before duty. Others were taking final exams and had to arrive late or leave early. And there were dozens of 'citizens' who just walked in off the street to zee the 30+ Z carz and grab a free bite to eat. But we prepared to serve about 100 people, and after the BBQ was closed, the inventory showed fewer than 20 servings remained.

And altho many members had left before the meeting began, we still packed the conference room until about 6-8 members had to stand outside the doorway and just listen in!

Bryan gave an excellent presentation about our upcoming AutoCross which is scheduled for SUNDAY, 08AUG. Many members intend to attend, even if it's only to watch instead of race. Many more of us intend to drive our Zs thru the course in this Club's first (but not last) Autocross. THANKS, BRYAN!

Thor gave the membership a heartfelt speech about what this Club means to him, and how we have effected his "Z life" in Germany and his overall attitude about his Z in general. Both he and his wife Gabi were kept very busy throughout the night, meeting everyone and answering questions. They were both great sports, and if they grew tired of meeting new faces and discussing each new Z, they never showed it. THANKS, THOR and GABI!

Bill Moreau gave us a thorough presentation about his exciting experiences at the 40th anniversary National Z Convention in Nashville, and even came bearing gifts! THANKS, BILL!

Fresh back from the National Z Convention in Nashville, Rick and Kathy Morgan showed up with Lucky #13 packed in their new custom trailer and did a show-and-tell for everyone who asked. This car causes a big stir everywhere it goes, and Rick is always courteous and informative to anyone who has even a single question about #13. THANKS, RICK and KATHY!

Of course, Chris Conlon of SMOKIN' WITH CHRIS knocked our socks off with his delicious smoked BBQ! One dish after another proved even more delicious than the one before it. This was the first exposure to Chris for many of our members, and they were shocked at how outright delicious his BBQ is! I suspect we might hear a LOT MORE from Chris in the Club's future. THANKS, CHRIS!

But of course the very best part of the night was having so very many members of our Z family come together to eat, laugh, and share Z stories. We work hard for our Zs, and we deserve to share this camaraderie every month. We thrive on it, and our cars benefit from it. Our Club grows each month because of the friendship and practical help we share among us. (We got two new members tonight, just because of this meeting! AND, one couple had THOUGHT they wanted to sell their Z, but were inspired by our members' efforts and decided to keep it and repair it! That means one more Z car gets to live on the roads awhile longer , and we get to share our fun with one more couple instead of losing them. THAT'S what this Club is all about). It was just wonderful to watch the membership gather in small groups or one-on-one and share their experiences, thoughts and plans for 4 hours. Everywhere I looked I saw happy faces. It was just a wonderful time. THANKS, MEMBERSHIP!

And of course, there would be absolutely no justification for any of this to happen, were it not for our wonderful Z cars.

THANKS, Zs!

Frank

I think you hit the nail on the head, Frank - truly awesome evening!

Huge "thank you's" to Bryan for the great presentations, to Scott (and his Executive Nissan team) for again being such outstanding hosts and to Thor and his family for sharing their time and stories with us.

But Frank, there is one additional person that deserves special mention - YOU. Would we have gorged on such fine BBQ or had the opportunity to meet Thor and his lovely family had it not been for you? Almost certainly not...

Your humility notwithstanding, the reality is that virtually every club event is so positively impacted by your involvement. Our club is very fortunate to have YOU as an active officer and member. Thank you Sir!

- Jim