Cruizin’Cruizin’ NewzNewz

The Official Magazine of the Z Series Car Club of America SPRING 2020 President’s Message! - Jon Moorhead Greetings to all ZSCCA www.zscca.org members and associates. For those not yet aware, I am Jon Moor- ZSCCA Board of Directors & Staff head, the newly elected president of the Jon Moorhead • President ZSCCA. Previously I served the past two Salida, CO years as the vice-president of this or- [email protected] • 719-221-1891 ganization. While I’ve only been here a Glenn Kraft • Vice President relatively short time, I feel I have a keen Canton, GA awareness of, and vision for, the future [email protected] • 678 770-0364 of the ZSCCA. As is the case with most Robert Van Zandt • Secretary clubs, much remains to be done as we Yorktown, VA look forward to a world that does not yet [email protected] exist. There’s much activity that lies before Chuck Krblich • Treasurer us and hopefully you, as our members, Fort Lauderdale, FL [email protected] • 954.295.0277 recognize the opportunities before us. The same is true of our Board of Direc- Jim Dunn • Membership Liaison [email protected] tors, who will help guide us through this Seattle, WA process. fering detailing products online at: https:// Chris Wootten First off, let’s welcome parkscarcare.net The Parks product line Strategic Relationships Ambassador our new board members: is comprehensive and growing daily, with Easton, MD appropriate product options for both [email protected] • Glenn Kraft, Vice-President • Jim Dunn, Membership Liaison DIY and professional detailers. Give Parks Reenie Paley Marshall • Rob Kaminski, Member-At-Large Detailing a look and contact them with Special Projects Manager your detailing needs and advice. Midlothian, VA [email protected] In this issue you will find we have includ- ed articles introducing these folks. Please Another change we’re working on is Brian Roces learn more about them in this issue, and the reorganization of the Area Repre- Technology & Social Media Director sentative program. To accommodate the New York, NY welcome and support them in their new [email protected] roles. potential growth of local area groups, it is necessary to adjust our program to Rob Kaminski • Member-at-Large better serve both our membership and [email protected] I feel that leadership depends on recog- nizing the potential of each individual to our volunteers. While Jay Parnes, our vol- Jay Parnes - Area Rep Manager unteer National Area Rep Manager, has Rochester, NY contribute to the organization. Highest [email protected] • 585.737.2784 organizational performance depends on done an excellent job with the area reps, it is unrealistic to expect to have contin- Andy Hartwell • Editor the connections between and among Selden, NY individual club members and officers. ued effective interactions with 50+ local [email protected] The above mentioned successful leaders, Area Reps. This reorganization is intended Ric Genthe along with those of the existing board to move support and coordination ef- By Andrew S. Hartwell Creative/Production Director members, are volunteers who can inte- forts to the regional level so that reps Madison, WI receive more effective help. We believe Photos by Rip Shaub [email protected] • 608.575.9285 grate specific/individual talents with the skills of the other team members. This this will ultimately improve the club ex- Ainsley Jacobs • Web Master will allow an organizational culture of op- perience for all members. We expect it Alpharetta, GA will reduce the workload of the National 267.738.2134 portunity rather than one of status quo and conformity. Area Rep manager, and work to increase Wayne & Amy Lester • Founders Emeritus support of the local Area Reps. A com- Nebo, NC [email protected] So what’s on the horizon of the ZSCCA? mittee has been commissioned to under- Just this past month we added another take this responsibility and they hope to vendor to the coffers of the club. Nick publish a draft organization structure in a Contributors: few months’ time. Ed McKernan - Sr. Technical Editor Parks is a young entrepreneur doing [email protected] business as Parks Detailing in Charlotte, NC. Now with a small staff of employees, Also appearing in the not too distant Jay Parnes - Technical Editor future is the possibility of promoting [email protected] they’ve established a high-end clientele by offering exceptional products and service. ZSCCA through a podcast which will be ZSCCA Vendor Partners: He has materially supported ZFEST for produced by Jeff Dorgay. Jeff is a ZSCCA Parks Detailing • [email protected] several years. He is a regular contributor member who lives in Portland, Oregon. He owns 12 BMW’s, 4 of which are Z’s. BimmerBum • [email protected] in the Detailed Z Facebook Group. While Nick is not currently a Z Owner, he is a He is a multi-talented individual with vast experience in commercial photog- ZFEST, ZSCCA and their graphic representations past M Coupe owner and an acknowl- are registered trademarks of the Z Series Car edged BMW enthusiast. (He sold his M raphy (former fine art photographer for Club of America. Reproduction of them requires Porsche with most notable photos being written approval. Coupe a few years ago to fund his busi- ness expansion) Nick is a ZSCCA Mem- Jerry Seinfeld’s Porsche collection), he is ber and has added his wife and his two also a blogger, an editor of an audiophile cover photo by Rip Shaub employees as associate members. He re- e-magazine, and he is the administrator back cover photos by Doug Baliko cently expanded the business again by of- for the Facebook page “My BMW Hab- 1 from the Editor! - Andy Hartwell ots. This would have also been the time Member’ interview further along in this to think of what you need to do to be a issue for more details. part of ZFEST 2020!! In keeping with past practice, we have in- President Jon Moorhead updated the cluded another DIY project, capably cre- ZFEST schedule and we placed in it this ated once again by Jay Parnes, our Techni- issue because it was to be the last issue cal Editor. Jay has contributed many such to appear before the big event. Jon, and articles in the past and we look forward all the other volunteers who work so to what he comes up with next. hard behind the scenes, were looking for- ward to meeting and greeting everyone Robin and Gene Warren provided us in Snowmass, Colorado. Alas, the current with their observations on ‘Life with the COVID-19 situation has resulted in the 2020 G29 Z4 M40I’. This is a fairly ex- rescheduling of the event. The latest in- tensive look at how the new Z compares formation on changes to ZFEST 2020 to others in the BMW fold. Take a look. will be posted on the official Facebook page at: We also have features on a man named https://www.facebook.com/ ‘Boonie’ who races a Z3 ‘Clownshoe’, “A single sunbeam is enough groups/709341946174275/ Rob Kaminski, our new Member at Large, and Glenn Kraft, our new Vice-President. to drive away many shadows.” What spring normally also offers is the Several other articles and interviews – Frances of Assisi opportunity for all of us to get out and round out this issue and we hope you meet and mingle. Local area ZSCCA will ‘spring’ for a hard copy print version Spring. What a wonderful word. A word groups are probably working right now for your fingers to hold as you turn the that conjures up a world of new growth, to put communal events and drives to- pages. (Printing priced at our cost - no new life, new beginnings and one that this gether for when we get back to normal. markup.) Of course, the free download- year in particular can hopefully transport You are encouraged to maximize your ed PDF is always available, but some of us away from the shadows of the corona fun time in your Z by riding with friends us would rather read off a page than a virus and its attendant worries. old and new. Lunches, dinners, museum computer or phone screen. The pictures tours, nature vistas, shop tours, beach look better in print too! Spring. Magic displayed in full daylight, trips…this is the time when that all be- without pretensions or fanfare, and simply comes entries on your ‘to-do’ lists. Ok, time to ‘spring’ off this column now delivered to resonate in the hearts and and start thinking about the summer is- the minds of all of us. It is truly a time for In this issue, we have captured a num- sue. We extend an open invitation to all renewal. ber of ‘short stories’ written by you, the ZSCCA members to contribute content members, about your Zs. We call this you think others would love to know Spring. The long awaited time when the collection - simply enough - ‘My Z Story’ about. You can send your short stories, doldrums brought on by snow and the and we are pleased so many of you re- your autobiographies, your travel ‘slide cold, fall away into memory. sponded to our call for your stories, on shows’ and just about anything else you the ZSCCA Facebook page. would like to share with your fellow Z To car enthusiasts such as we, spring lovers on these pages. Send your ideas means it is time to reconnect the garden Also, in this issue, we introduce you to and content items to [email protected] hose, fill the cleaning buckets with car Nick Parks, of Parks Detailing. Located in wash soap, and get to the task of bring- North Carolina, Parks has a national on- Keep your speed up! ing back the shine we love to sit inside of, line presence where you can get detailing holding the wheel of our precious chari- products – and information – from our “Spring adds new life and new beauty newest vendor partner. See the ‘Meet Z to all that is.” – Jessica Harrelson it” and the website mybmwhabit.com. reps have cancelled or postponed local I believe that time will come for all of us His Facebook page presently has over events either because of member con- in the very near future and I can’t wait 42,000 “likes”. Jeff is hoping to increase cerns or in response to governmentally for this crisis to become just an old and this number by incorporating a podcast generated closures. In effect, our rides unwelcome memory. in the next few weeks. We are looking to – and our lives – have been ‘parked’ in- spotlight ZSCCA guests through these doors. The measures taken reflect a de- Looking ahead to that better time, the podcasts 1-2 times a month. He is also sire to deliver a deterrent to the spread Board members of the ZSCCA, along planning to attend ZFEST in Snowmass of this virus and we certainly appreciate with the team of volunteers who have and wants to broadcast live podcasts that such measures can indeed have the been working for months now to out- during the week. We eagerly look for- desired outcome. line all that is planned for ZFEST 2020, ward to attaching links to these podcasts at Snowmass, have voted to reschedule on our website and Facebook page. For many of us, the days and weeks ZFEST Snowmass to the summer of ahead are filled with uncertainty. I share 2022. We hope you will make plans to Over the last few weeks we have seen your concerns and I too long for the join us in the beautiful Colorado Rocky so many changes to our normal routines warmer days of top down motoring, a Mountains at that time!! due to concerns about the Coronavirus, time when we can once again come to- And so it goes….. or COVID-19. I know that some area gether and enjoy each other’s company. 2 Boonie Keeps His Clown Shoe Up To Speed

“Halfway through the following summer, he asked me if I ever thought of endurance racing and I said racing is all I think about.”

By Andrew S. Hartwell Photos by Rip Shaub

3 Boonie Keeps His Clown Shoe Up To Speed

We recently learned about Boonie. He What follows is a short version of how Boonie became a racer and what he has planned for his future in the sport, all while piloting his is a soon-to-be ZSCCA member with clown shoe racer at speed at some of the iconic sports car circuits in North America. a passion for racing his Z3 Coupe. But first, let’s learn about his background and how he came to use A skilled metal fabricator, Boonie – that name. “I don’t go by my birth name, I go by Boonie.” He told us. “That the only name he uses, all the time is all I have ever gone by. It’s a family name. My father went by it, my grandfather went by it. Everyone around town knows me as – caught the racing bug after trying Boonie. You can write a check out to me as Boonie and my Credit Union will cash it. That’s just what I go by. his hand at autocrossing in a friend’s “I grew up in central Iowa in a really small town called Madrid. I Ford Fiesta. It turned out his feet and watched racing on TV when I was growing up. I never really had any hands-on involvement or experiences. I thought racing was, for hands were well coordinated for going the longest time, out of my price range and something simply not attainable. I was always an enthusiast watching NASCAR and INDY and drivers like Emerson Fittipaldi and Rick Mears and those guys. fast and the art came a bit easier for Watching the INDY 500 was a big deal for me growing up.

Boonie than it has for some others. “In IOWA we probably have more dirt tracks than anywhere else in the world but that brand of racing never really appealed to me. Oddly enough there was a track about 12 miles away where they

4 run the IMCA Super world where metal Nationals. They can be fuels the family fi- running those cars all nances and racing through the night and feeds his passion for sometimes I would get speed. up real early and still hear the cars from here. “My wife and I met They were loud as hell. in college 20 years ago and dated off “Formula One was and on. We went never that big in the separate ways af- states back then, but ter school but got now I watch every race together again and every practice and later on. We have qualifying session. My two kids. Our son’s kids watch it too and name is Strummer they can name every and our daughter is team and every driver. Lola. I quiz my 9 year old son and my 6 year old L-R: Boonie, Zach Bertness, Randy Sams, Chad Germaine, Josh Jones, Jordan Ruby and Max Blaker “I own a company daughter and they really called Factor Fabri- know about these guys.” cation, here in Des Moines, Iowa. We build steel railings and custom furniture and staircases. I have four guys that work Boonie’s family came together when he married his one- for me. Most of our work is in steel fabrication. We do mini- time college girlfriend, Bethany. Together they have built a malist designs in wood and steel and sometimes incorpo- 5 do, but after a few years the work started to pick up. The economy also picked up and we have been busy ever since.” Being sports car owners, there are many of us who identify with sports car road racing series. F1, and IMSA, and the SCCA series come immediately to mind. For Boonie, the future of road racing got a bit brighter recently and since he was already a fan, a recent racing news headline was well received.

“I follow the IMSA series fervently. I watched quite a bit of the Rolex 24 Hours this year and I do follow IMSA very closely. I enjoy the GTLM and GTD classes the most. I was happy to see that the WEC and IMSA are coming together going forward. I like the idea of sharing races and it would be great to go to a race weekend where both series are running races. As of yet I haven’t been able to attend an IMSA race because of my responsibilities as a small business owner. I don’t have a lot of personal time. When I do have that time, I spend it on my own racing activities. I have tried to convince my wife we should go up to Road America for the races but a family vacation usually wins out. My kids are old enough now that we can take them on long trips, and I try to convince her there is more to do up there besides racing, but…”

As his business grew, Boonie developed a longing to partici- pate in racing from the driver’s seat rather than the family couch. He had a taste of fast driving that began with an invita- tion from a friend and that taste remained as he began par- ticipating in more and more hard driving events. From those early days behind the wheel came the decision to build a real race team that rate granite or stone he called, ‘ZR3sur- into tabletops and rection’. what not. We have a very brisk building “I’m still pretty wet climate out here right behind the ears now, even in the mid- when it comes to dle of winter. We have this racing stuff. I been pretty steady for knew what auto- years now. We work cross was from with builders and on years ago when remodels with home- a gentleman I owners. worked with back in my college days “I got my start in this told me about it, business back when but I never thought I was tending bar. A I would be involved friend of mine said he with it. I wasn’t go- needed help at the ing out and doing fabrication shop he any spirited driving was working at so I a lot of the time. went to work there Fast forward about for a few years. In the fall of 2008, I decided to strike out on 17 years and a friend of mine was doing some autocrossing my own. At the time, I was at home watching the financial and he invited me to go with him. He had a FORD Fiesta collapse of the whole world and wondering what did I just and my times kept dropping with each subsequent run. My friend had been doing this for years and I was down to be- 6 ing just one second behind his time. He told me I was doing of endurance racing and I said racing is all I think about. I pretty good for someone trying it for the first time. I was wanted to put a team together and do this for myself so hooked. we took the car he wrecked and rebuilt it. We stripped it, replaced the bushings, reduced weight and basically brought “At the next event, I saw guy with a 2001, black, Z3 Coupe the car back to life. – the clown shoe car. I thought, ‘man that is a good looking car’. It really struck me as cool. After that event I went home “I would say that Randy and Zach are the chief mechan- and I found a coupe on Craigslist. I told my wife I was going ics on the team. We all bring specific qualities to the team. to go look at it and with her blessing I went down and got Chad is a pipe fitter so he and I do all the welding. We had it. I continued to autocross with that car for the remainder two front end crashes last year that required extensive re- of the season. I also ran time trials with the SCCA and had pairs. We do everything that needs to be done to this car. a pretty successful campaign that summer. I got in a lot of We’ve replaced the front horn, replaced the cage supports, track time and started racing with guys who would later be made sure everything went back together as it was sup- on my team. The gentleman who had the black Z3 I first saw posed to. We did all this after the guys said we should just is now on the team and his car has become the endurance have a ‘come to Jesus’ moment and write the car off, but we car for us. said ‘no’.

“At the end of that first year, 2017, the Z3 owner, Randy, “Our team races in the World Racing League, which is simi- was the safety steward for the HPDE and Time Trials they lar to AER on the east coast. We are strictly a weight ratio were having. He told us before the track action started that to power class system. This includes most everything from it was still cold out and the track was damp so don’t go production cars to specific track builds and cars that run in out trying to be a hero. Well, sure enough, he went out and the NASA series. There are lots of Porsches and BMWs and rolled his car and put it up on top of a tire wall. He walked Miata’s and the classes run GTO and GP1, down to GP4. away from it but they had to tow it back to the paddock. When I saw the car, I was crushed that this beautiful car had “We race for points and class wins and trophies and brag- been totaled. ging rights. We have created our fair share of friends and perhaps a few enemies, through no fault of our own. You put “Randy then went out and bought a BMW 1 series to re- a whole bunch of guys on track and you don’t think ego is place the Z3 and spent the winter prepping that car. Halfway going to be a part of it? Come on. through the following summer, he asked me if I ever thought 7 “Being on track with so many other cars, racing at speed, is There is a chance Boonie will have the opportunity to just a great place to be.” share his philosophy in person at ZFEST 2020 in Snow- mass, Colorado. For others in the ZSCCA, Boonie has a message, a sugges- tion and a philosophy that he would like to see others in “I was thinking maybe I would bring the endurance car out the club embrace with the enthusiasm he has for what our to ZFEST this year. I’d love to show it to people and tell little cars can accomplish if we challenge them enough. them how much I enjoy it. We have a 1990 Freightliner car hauler, built by a gentleman named Barry Watkins. Over the “The Z3 clown shoe is a polarizing platform. You either years it hauled motorcycles and cars but we just learned it love it or you hate it. There is no inbetween. We happen was a custom build by Freightliner and we feel really fortu- to think it is an absolutely gorgeous automobile. We wish nate to now be the owners. We intend to do a John Player more people would take this platform on track because Special livery on the car and the hauler. I’ve been working it is a riot to get out and run it. The rotation you can get on wiring it up for generator and shore power and I think steering with the throttle. The bushings, the return on your it will be really special when it is finished. investment is the biggest you will have in terms of the im- provement in handling. This car was born to be run hard. “I’d love to meet everyone at ZFEST. Snowmass, Colorado is about a 12 hour drive from here. We can do that. We are “I love seeing people’s car on the ZSCCA website and going out to VIR and Road Atlanta this summer and those Facebook pages. I wish more people would take their cars will be long road trips. We expect to have plenty of seat out and really drive them. Do some spirited driving with time in that semi.” them. Don’t worry about little minor scuffs and scratches, just drive the car and enjoy it. This car of mine cried out to be on a circuit. We stripped everything out and own- THIS ZFEST 2020 is ers who do the same will not be disappointed with their YEAR being rescheduled! decision. Watch for more information on the ZSCCA website “I think people should run their cars and enjoy all that these and Facebook page! great cars can do.” www.zscca.org

8 Schuh Syndikat 2020 Preview By Eric Peck

CANCELLED UntilNotice Further Schuh Syndikat (pronounced Shoe Syndicate), the East Coast’s Z3 & M Coupe event, will hold its 9th annual edi- tion on April 30 - May 2, 2020. Before I get too deep into divulging the agenda, I want everyone to know that while this is definitely a Z3 and M Coupe focused event, we wel- come all BMWs, and YES that means Roadsters too! There are always a few in attendance.

9 CANCELLED UntilNotice Further

10 Schuh Syndikat began in 2012 as an east coast alternative to Dorkfest, a similar gathering that happens on the West Coast each August. The name uses German spelling and has special mean- ing. Schuh = Shoe. The E36/8 M Coupe has often been referred to as a Shoe, or Clownshoe, due to its iconic shape. Syndikat = Syndi- cate. There is an annual BMW Fes- tival held in Germany called “BMW Syndikat”. “Schuh Syndikat” (an association of shoes) pays homage to that event as well.

If you are a Coupe owner, you really owe it to yourself to make this event. It is a truly amazing experience to be part of such a large group of these rare cars. Here’s what we have planned for this 2020.

Thursday April 30, 2020: We’ll meet at and then tour “Old Cranks” Auto museum in Galax, Virginia at 3:00 PM. This is a mod- est collection of antiques, classics and memorabilia. We’re planning dinner at a local Microbrewery. Our hotel for the evening is the Hampton Inn Galax.

Friday May 1, 2020: We’ll head out on the backroads of Virginia working our way into North Carolina. This is classic moonshine territory. We will visit Pilot Mountain State Park, and then take a freshly grilled picnic lunch at

11 Riverside Park in Mount Airy (aka Mayberry). Our evening meal will be an Italian Buffet at After we eat, we can spend a little time in his- Brooklyn South Pizza in Cornelius. We’ll give toric downtown Mt. Airy before heading back away a few prizes and awards before returning to the Hilton Garden Inn Charlotte – North for to our Hotel for adult beverages and the tradi- our Friday rituals of car wash and cookies. Our tional reminiscing. Car Wash is courtesy of Parks Detailing. Dinner will be on your own. Sunday May 3, 2020: Departure day. We’ll share breakfast one last Saturday May 2, 2020: time and bid farewell until 2021. We will roll out early for Cars and Coffee Charlotte, where we have reserved parking. You can find the up-to-date schedule and Charlotte’s official CNC is one of the biggest in complete hotel reservation details on the the southeast, with many exotics and classics in website at schuhsyndikat.org You can also attendance. We’ll still be the center of attention, email [email protected] with questions. arriving as a group.

After Cars and Coffee we will head to Parks Detailing on the south end of Charlotte. Nick See you at Schuh! Parks and staff have planned some awesome product demonstrations and a chance to pick their brains on all kinds of Car Care subjects.

12 Meet Z Members Jeff Dorgay Has A Dozen Spring brings a renewal of the old and gives birth to the new. That Reasons pretty much sums up this club. We have our current great rides. Some To Love BMW of us will change our seats with the purchase of a new ride, and new By Andrew S. Hartwell Photos by Jeff Dorgay faces will come to be a part of our social fabric. Jeff Dorgay is one man who, we think, will be weaving a “I know. It’s crazy for a guy who prominent place in that fabric, and he can change his seats anytime - walks 12 steps a day to go to at least 12 times - with no trades work to own so many cars….” or car sales involved.

13 “I’ve always been a car guy. I grew up in an auto body shop, working on Cadillacs and Corvettes with my Dad.”

14 Jeff is a professional photographer, a writer, a businessman “Since then, I have been to the BMW museum in Germany and a successful internet entrepreneur who has an estab- a few times. The big trade show for audio is in Munich so I lished on-line presence in the world of high end audio usually try to beat it out of there early on Sunday so I can equipment. He has written articles for various media outlets, visit the museum. It is only about a mile or two away from worked with major automobile manufacturers in advertis- the convention center. ing, and developed a passion for BMW and the variety of automobiles that marque has birthed to the world of en- “I started out in the mid-80s as a photographer in the ad- thusiasts. vertising industry and became an early adopter of digital im- aging in the early 90s. The late 90s found me writing about We asked Jeff for some background information about him digital imaging for a number of magazines on the side. 17 and his interests, and how he came to be so enamored of years ago, I expanded my writing to my earliest passion, high our favorite brand of automobiles. It seems comedian Jerry end audio, writing for The Absolute Sound. A year later I Seinfeld put the idea in his head years ago. started publishing my own magazine covering that industry, TONE. (www.tonepublications.com) This has been my day “I’ve always been a car guy. I grew up in an auto body shop, job for the last 16 years. working on Cadillacs and Corvettes with my Dad. Years lat- er, I worked at European Detail in Scottsdale, Arizona, help- “When living in Scottsdale, I bought my first BMW, a 1983 ing to detail high end cars, some of which ended up at the 320i, that was actually a gift from a friend. Then a pair of Barrett-Jackson Auto Auction. I can handle a polisher, but I great E30s followed. But my ex-wife was not a car person have to give a lot of credit to Bryan Salgado of our club for at all and my E30s went up for sale for something more information, product suggestions and encouragement. He is practical when we moved to my home for the last 18 years a great resource. – Vancouver, Washington (for those not familiar, I’m about 15 minutes from Portland, Oregon). About four years ago “Cars are in my blood. I almost bought my first BMW when my current wife and I were driving an E89 Z4 and a 128 I was attending college in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A quick test convertible. Now that TONE was a mature business, and I drive of an Alpine White 320i was all it took. But a $299/ had some free time as well as disposal income, I picked up month payment was not in the cards for a college kid, so – you guessed it - another E21, this time a black 1983 320i I walked out the door with a VW Golf for $79/month. But that I saw more as a therapy car. Something to take my mind that test drive sparked my interest in the brand. off work. Pretty soon we had six cars, then 10, and now 12 in all. All BMWs. I think 12 is where we’ll hold the line. “Four of the 12 are Zs. My wife, Pam, has a 2000 2.5 auto- 15 matic and I’ve got a ’99 2.8 Coupe and I just picked up an have them!’ ’01 S54 Roadster that is a pretty solid car that just needs a little clean up. That’s pretty much my baby. I also have a 2011 “When I met Pam, we really hit it off. She is a true red-head- Z4 with a foldable hardtop. ed Irish woman, complete with a fiery temper and a heart of gold. She let me know right away that travel was ok, and Pam is Jeff’s second wife and she came to share his interest she loved driving around with the top down. We became in cars, but she used to be into flying. Well, being in a plane inseparable after that, and when the relationship got really for sure, but not in the pilot’s seat. Thanks to the internet, serious, I asked her if she wanted a big engagement ring or a Jeff met Pam and together they can ride into a sunset, or cool car. She said, ‘at our age, I’d rather have a cool car.’ I got a sunrise, any time – and in almost any car – they want. her a black 2012 128 convertible instead of a diamond ring. Pam was the one who stood out from the field of eligible women because she had the right answers to the questions “Pam is finishing up her Masters in Psychology and she is that mattered. working on an additional degree in counseling. She is in the process of opening a coaching practice. I think she is going “Pam and I have been married six years. She has become a to be like a general life coach, concentrating more on peo- car person by accident. She used to be a flight attendant for ple of our generation. Many of us are in our 60s. It was kind United Airlines. Now she is working on her Masters in Psy- of funny but, when she talked to some of her friends about chology and Counseling. I met her on Chemistry.com. How coaching, and then asked me about it, I said, ’Pam, you are crazy is that? I was single for a few years after I got divorced. the Mom to the world! Why not get paid for it? You totally I decided to try that because I had been so busy with work have the Mom gene!’ Pam is always there with a shoulder there was no time to try and find someone to be with. Our for someone to lean on to figure out what their next move running joke is that I had 30 dates before I met Pam. I would is going to be.” go to lunch with someone and say, ‘I have to go to Paris next week. Are you in or out?’ I’d also ask what they thought Coming back to his position with TONE Publications for a about driving around with the top down and the ones who moment, Jeff told us how high-end sounds, and words from said they didn’t want to get their hair messed up were off a famous friend, led him on a path to high-end cars; a path the list. It was funny because at the time I wasn’t even driv- he has no regrets of ever having taken. ing a BMW. I had an Audi TT and a Boxster. The girls at the “With TONE, I have about 300,000 readers world-wide, coffee place used to ask me why I had two convertibles and split about 50% US and 50% from the rest of the world. I used to joke and say ‘because my ex-wife wouldn’t let me We do a PDF magazine six times a year, and associated web

16 content. We are just about to start up a YouTube channel “His words are what influenced me in the direction I chose and podcasting as well. What we found over the years is to take with my car collection. Our fleet spans almost 50 that we have a high percentage of readers who have cars years of BMW production. When I see the guys on the Z as another primary interest beyond audio. Cars are always pages arguing about Z3 versus Z4 and E83 guys versus E85, in the top three. Guys who buy expensive, high end au- well, I just like them all!” dio equipment tend to be Porsche and BMW owners too. More often than not that is the case. “We keep 6 cars at my house and 6 at an offsite. The wagon and the X1 stay in the driveway while the other cars are “One thing led to another and there is a fellow who writes kept in my garage. I also keep the other 6 in a storage facility for the Roundel, his name is Rob Siegel, they call him the nearby. Nothing goes more than a week without being driv- ‘Hack Mechanic’. I’ve read Rob’s columns for years and I en. With winter coming here in the northwest, it really isn’t was always excited to read about his 10 or 12 cars. Back as rainy as you might think. Many times they predict rain for when I was doing photography full time, I was doing a lot of the day but when you wake up it is sunny and then the rain automotive imagery. I did work for Chevrolet, Porsche and comes in the afternoon. That sort of day is still considered a Ducati among others. My path crossed with comedian Jerry rainy day up here. With my office right behind the house, it Seinfeld and I did some work for him. I remember we were is convenient to take one of the convertibles out for a ride chatting and I asked him why he had so many Porsches. I before the rain comes. Even if we don’t put the tops down said if I had your money I would have Porsches, Ferraris, at least we are keeping the cars in use. Muscle cars and more. Jerry said the thing for him was he really liked the difference in feel with driving as many as 10 “I know. It’s crazy for a guy who walks 12 steps a day to go cars in a single day. He could go from a 1960s 911 all the to work to own so many cars but, it is my interest in cars way up to a more current model. He said he likes the differ- that keeps me in the garage fixing something or polishing ent feel of the cars from each generation. them up or taking them out for a drive. I really wanted to 17 have something to take me away from my day job some- this is by far the friendliest car club I have ever been in. I did times. I mean, I have a wonderful job but it is still nice to have the Porsche club thing when I lived in Arizona. They weren’t a means to get away sometimes from what you do every a terribly welcoming group. When I moved to Washington, day. The 1983 320i started out as a therapy car. Pam will ask I had my Boxter, and I had a good independent mechanic, me, ‘when is it going to be done?’ and I tell her it isn’t about but he retired and that meant mega repair bills on a $12k being done it’s about just taking a break, turning a wrench, car. That didn’t make any sense, so I went back to BMWs. and having that sense of completion. The support network in Portland is excellent and the club support on-line equally good. The people in the regular BM- “I would say 8 of my 12 cars are in really good shape and WCCA have been really nice and the ZSCCA has shown the other 4 are projects that will eventually get done. I have itself to be a great mix of social and technical elements. a great relationship with a skilled mechanic who has a shop The tech people are helpful without too many serious ar- just three miles down the street. I know my limits so I defer guments about tires, shocks and all the minutiae that can to him for the repairs that I don’t feel I should tackle. I will drive people nuts. It feels like more of a lifestyle oriented say that I don’t do oil changes anymore because it has got- club, which I really like. For me, whatever you drive is fine. ten to the point where one of the cars needs an oil change As long as you are enjoying it that is what’s most important. every month. I have such a good relationship with my me- There seems to be a lot of camaraderie in this group, and a chanic that, if I catch him first thing in the morning, when he lot of women. It is not just a dude thing. I love to see couples just opens his shop, I can get the oil change done before I involved in this club. It’s like I tell my friends, life is like this even finish looking at my emails.” big Excel spreadsheet with Me Stuff, Her Stuff and Us Stuff and anything you can move to the Us Stuff column is good.” We next sought out Jeff’s reasons for joining the ZSCCA. We aren’t his first car club, but we may very well be his We asked Jeff if he had ever been to ZFEST. favorite. “I wanted to go to ZFEST last year but I just couldn’t take “The thing that I have liked most about the ZSCCA is that the time. I had been traveling for work over 48 times that

18 By David Singer

Current cars in the Dorgay stable: • 1979 E21 320/6 (euro car) • 1983 E21 320i (US Model) • 1984 E23 733i • 1988 E30 325iS • 1989 E30 325i Sedan • 1989 E30 325i Convertible (parts car) • 1991 E34 535i • 1992 E30 325i Convertible • 1999 Z3 2.8 Coupe • 2000 Z3 2.5 Roadster • 2001 Z3M Roadster • 2003 E39 525i Wagon • 2011 E89 Z4 3.0Si • 2017 i3 2017 M240i XDrive convertible • 2018 X1 XDrive

“Oh wait, I actually have 16 cars. I’ve let a buddy and his wife take over the last year of my i3 lease because they were trying to decide if they wanted an EV, so Pam and I aren’t sure if we’re going to buy it in July or turn it back in, and the 89 convertible E30 is a parts car. We also aren’t sure what’s going to become of the 240 next year when that lease is up.”

year. As much as I wanted to go it just wasn’t going to hap- “About five years ago I had a 2015 Z4I 35is and at the time pen. I’m not traveling that much anymore and ZFEST 2020 I had just learned that my dearest friend had cancer. The day is a day and a half drive from home. I can do that. We are after I got the news, I was at a BMW dealer in Portland and hoping to do some podcasting from there and I am really they had a new red Z4 with the M package. I called Pam looking forward to meeting all the people in person that I’ve at work and said, ‘You know, $70,000 is a lot of money for talked with on the internet.” a car. Do you think I should buy this thing?’ She said, ‘Your best friend just found out he has cancer. Buy the damn car For some of us, the goal of owning and driving a Z has been because you never know.’ on our radar for some time. We find reasons to take the plunge in support of our desires but sometimes, fate issues a “I traded my 2015 X1 in and drove the red Z4 home.” message that confirms our decisions. We come to see how we made the right choices. As Jeff was driving his latest addition home, he made one quick stop and received a message that told him he had made the right choice.

19 “We live just across the border with Oregon, in Vancouver, me and said he didn’t think that was too realistic. He asked Washington. On the way home with the car I crossed over me what I want to have when I am an adult. I said I want the bridge and stopped for some Kung Pau chicken. When an awesome car, an awesome stereo and a great girlfriend. I opened the fortune cookie, I couldn’t believe what it said. That pretty much is how it all worked out! No complaints!” ‘Buy the red car!’ How crazy is that? I just bought the car 15 minutes before! The universe wanted me to have this car!” You can follow Jeff’s exploits with his BMWs on his website www.MyBMWHabit.com Dreams can come true and they have for Jeff Dorgay. This can be true for even those dreams that sound like fantasy when shared with others.

“When I was in high school my guidance counselor asked me what I wanted to do with my life. I said I want to be a photographer, a race car driver, or a rock star! He looked at THIS ZFEST 2020 is being rescheduled! YEAR Watch for more information on the ZSCCA website and Facebook page! www.zscca.org

Hagerty is proud to support ZFEST 2019 BMW Z Roadster and Coupe enthusiasts. To get a quote, Whether you are a owner of one Z1s, Z3s, call 800-922-4050 Z4s or Z8s or a collection, we’ll create an or insurance policy to fit your needs. We’re https://www.hagerty.com/apps/ passionate about the automotive lifestyle. manifold/Direct%20Quote/Location/ Location/PostalCode?aff=bmwcca We know you embrace life behind the wheel even when you’re not driving. Our weekly newsletter will inform and entertain you with feature stories, interviews and videos. From auction results to car care to Hagerty. market analysis, this is an auto enthusiasts’ goldmine! https://www.hagerty.com/ For people... articles-videos/Newsletters/ Classic-Cars-Weekly who love cars.

20 By Andrew S. Hartwell

Introducing Nick Parks of Parks Detailing

“It was amazing In this issue of Cruizin’ Newz we would like to introduce a new to me to learn so vendor partner for the ZSCCA, Parks Detailing, located in Char- lotte, North Carolina. Nick Parks is the owner and he and our many Z owners former President, Eric Peck, have worked together in the past in are DIY and detail support of the club at ZFEST and at the Schuh Syndikat event oriented.” that Eric holds each year.

21 Nick will be providing some detailing related DIY content for so much. They told me I wouldn’t want to be working in the this magazine going forward. We feel fortunate to have his bank in six months so why not go in the direction I really expertise in this area added to the mechanical related con- wanted instead? tent already provided by Ed McKernan at www.bimmerbum. com and the DIY articles written by Jay Parnes, the Area “It really gained traction very quickly through Facebook. I got Chairperson for our club. my business license and started out without a website, just making posts to Facebook. I made a business page there and We talked with Nick to learn about how an early interest just, you know, reached out to people I had done work for in keeping cars clean motivated him to make that the focus in college. I have always been a huge BMW enthusiast so it of his career. He has become an employer and business- was just a natural thing that once the word got out with the man, with his success built on his time-honed skills for mak- BMW crowd, within a year I was very busy. It was paying my ing people’s rides look their best. We look forward to having bills and rent and everything else so I stuck with it.” his continued support as yet another resource for all club members to enjoy in their continuing quests to drive beauti- ‘Sticking with it’ has taken Nick off the road and into a per- ful BMW Zs. manent location from which to work his magic.

Nick, and his wife, Lauren, live in the Charlotte, North Caro- “I was running out of a mobile set up for a few years, as well lina area, where he grew up. We will let him tell you his story. as out of my garage. After some time the projects I was tak- ing on were very extensive and not really things you could “I turned 30 this year.” Nick said. “I started out detailing cars get done unless you wanted to travel back and forth to that for money all the way back in high school. I would detail location day after day. Three years ago I moved into my first my car and friends cars and just try to figure out ways to commercial location, where I still am today. I’ve expanded it solve some of the paint issues we were having with our cars. a little bit and I hired my first employee – a detailer – about There was a lot of trial and error and mistakes were made a year and a half ago. He has been great. I hired my second along the way! While I didn’t work for a detailer, there was a employee about seven months ago to be my sales manager. I body shop around the corner from my house and I would needed that help as things just picked up to the point where spend time there helping out and learning about detailing. I I couldn’t answer the phones and do the detailing work.” befriended a few guys there and while they were not really a high quality shop, I did try to learn all I could about products With an eye towards the future, Nick decided to maximize to use. This was around 2006 to 2008 or so. his opportunities to build his business. To that end, he de- cided to learn about a facet of the paint protection business “Back then, YouTube videos were out there but there was that he would come to master, much to the delight of his still a lot of gray area. I volunteered at the shop and worked customers. on cars after they got out of the paint booth. I’d do wet sanding and buffing and learned a lot from my time there. “A big key factor in my business is that 5 years ago I took Primarily, though, all my work was taking place in my garage, training for paint protection film application. It is a clear, 8mm at my parent’s house. In high school I didn’t have a business thick film that goes on the paint to keep rocks and scratch- license or anything. I was just doing it mostly for friends and es off. I decided that just cleaning and polishing cars would their parents. Often I would help them get their cars cleaned not be enough of a business base to make the living that I and ready when they were planning to sell the cars. wanted to. I had a tremendous amount of demand from my clients for me to be trained on this as they wanted someone “I started getting a little more serious about it in college. As who could do a professional job. At the time, it was usually I worked other jobs I came to have the means to buy some the guys who did window tinting or vinyl graphics that did better products and equipment to use. I didn’t go crazy, just paint protection work. It is very hard to find someone with something better than my $80 polisher and cheaper com- the skill and knowledge and experience to do a really good pounds and whatever. When I would come home during job of applying that product. summer breaks I would line up more extensive detailing jobs to keep me busy. Looking back, they weren’t high-end jobs “It took me a couple of years to get to a point where I felt but there was enough work to keep me busy and earning comfortable charging a premium for that kind of work. It is a money. bear of a product to work with.

“When I got out of college I had an internship with a bank “The film has an adhesive backing on it. I use a water and here in Charlotte, NC. I felt fortunate to have been hired alcohol mix to put it down. The majority of people who ap- there but I kind of knew it really wasn’t the kind of work I ply this product use a plotter cutter to create panel pieces to wanted to do long term. My parents were very supportive apply to the body. I still do that sometimes because it makes and they encouraged me to go into detailing as a career as sense, but the pinnacle of applying this film is to lay down a I had so many contacts from college and enjoyed that work sheet and then hand cutting it so you can get a very flush 22 and perfect fit. The precut pieces can be installed cleanly but “The brand of film I use is very easy to remove, while some wrapping edges and making it look cleaner requires a lot other brands are a bit more difficult to remove. more hands on work. And it takes a long time to develop the skill to where you can be considered proficient at it. How As a detailer, the idea of putting something on that is difficult long it takes to apply the product comes down to the car it- to remove doesn’t sit well with me. The whole idea with self. Additionally, being that my background is in detailing, a lot the film is to protect the paint. We went through a bunch of the people who come to us want the job done a specific of different brands and some of them I just couldn’t see the way. That often means we are taking a lot of things off the car point as they were leaving a mess. The film that we use is the so we can tuck in those edges and do a more complete job. STEK brand. It is detailer friendly to apply and take off down the road.” “A car like the Tesla is a straight forward install. You don’t have many things to remove first. With a car like a BMW, you Nick is a ZSCCA member, having owned a Z3 that he sold have grills, and door handles and vents and more. The most to help start his paint protection film venture. That car led common install is a front bumper and that can take several him to meet and interact with Eric Peck and from there, the hours depending on the car. two have become friends and that led to Nick’s new associa- tion with our club. “Some people do wrap the whole car but the costs really mount up when you start adding in all the quarter panels, “I am a former 2000 Z3 M Coupe owner. A car I still miss to rear bumper and trunk. Most just do the front end and the this day and wish I still had. I grew up here in the Charlotte rocker panels because that is where the most damage is area and have always loved the BMW brand. Eric Peck and likely to occur. Every so often we get someone who has I have known each other for some time. I would often help their ‘forever car’ so to speak, and they opt for the whole car. Z club members answer some technical question on the Sometimes it’s a customer who has the budget to wrap an Facebook page. Our relationship started when I offered to entire daily driver.” donate some wash supplies for ZSCCA events. I knew they By Michael Sheads were buying regular store products for the car washes. I also We asked how long this paint protection could be expected knew that what we sell is more concentrated and ends up to last. costing less. I would donate wash buckets and drying towels and soap, which was great for me because my logo was on “I normally tell people with a daily driven car, doing 15,000 the buckets and that helped generate some buzz for my miles or so a year, that the film should last about 5 years business. or so. Cars that only come out on nice days, or are garage queens should find the protection lasts from 6 – 10 years. 23 “After I sold the Z3M Coupe, I kept my ZSCCA member- asts detailing and protecting their vehicles, and I hope to be ship active and at the end of last year Eric asked me if I would able to lend some support through my interaction with club be interested in being a vendor partner for the club, which members on Facebook and in the pages of Cruizin’ Newz.” would include answering detailing related questions of the members and being listed in club literature, on the club web- Members can reach out to Nick with questions site and in Cruizin’ Newz magazine. I said I absolutely would and comments at [email protected] like to have that involvement. Visit their website at https://parksdetailing.com

“Ed McKernan (BimmerBum.com) and I are friends and he From the website: “Parks Detailing has been providing pre- has sold me various components for my BMWs. I have an mier detailing and protection services to the Charlotte re- E30 and an E60. I know that he has provided input to help gion since 2013. Maintaining a reputation for the highest answer member questions and when Eric asked me to also quality prep-work and paint correction techniques is what lend a hand I was happy to be asked to do something similar. sets Parks Detailing apart from the rest. With an unprec- I plan to write some short DIY articles for Cruizin’ Newz.” edented level of care for each individual vehicle, Parks De- tailing provides various levels of services ranging from the Nick plans to expand his involvement with the club and one everyday driver to exotic show car.” first step, taken in 2019, towards that end was his opening the business to ZSCCA folks in the Charlotte area for a day of learning and social interaction.

“Last year we had an open house at Parks Detailing, for the ZSCCA guys in the area. It turned out great. It was an open forum for questions and we went over a bunch of differ- ent detailing topics and we ran a little sale on some of our products. About 18 months ago we started an e-commerce THIS ZFEST 2020 is part of the business where we sell the products we use in being rescheduled! the shop so we had a little sale for the people who attended YEAR Watch for more information the open house. on the ZSCCA website “It has been a really good relationship with Eric and the lo- and Facebook page! cal Z community. It was amazing to me to learn so many www.zscca.org Z owners are DIY and detail oriented. I am all for enthusi- 24 Introducing Jim Dunn our NEW Membership Liaison Manager & ZSCCA’s “Z-vangelist” By Jon Moorhead

This is a quote his wife about about life from how much fun one of Jim Dunn’s it would be to favorite authors own a convert- and perhaps en- ible. He and his compasses the wife found a feelings that many 1.9 liter 1998 share with be- Z3 roadster ing members of for sale at a car ZSCCA. Jim is lot just around our newly elect- the corner. Not ed Membership ever owning a Liaison Manager BMW before, and we can look he decided to forward to him go ”fancy” as treating this position with the same passion. He is a believer he had only owned Honda’s and Toyota’s for most of his in that friends make a difference and help each other flour- life. The price was doable so they test drove it and soon the ish. In his new role he looks forward to connecting with the purchase was made. area reps and other Z enthusiasts. Over the years he has learned what he can fix himself and Jim and his wife, Teresa, are now enjoying the life of retire- what needs to be taken to a mechanic. About 4 years ago ment and it is allowing them the time to enjoy their Z’s. Being he found he had some ‘extra’ money lying around and so retired, life is different he began his search now. He presently for another Z to add volunteers at a local to his arsenal. Finding high school teaching another 1998 Z3 on math and chemis- eBay that was located try, sleeping in a lot, in North Carolina, he working out at the submitted a bid think- local gym, and work- ing that someone ing the audio control “What draws people to be friends is that would outbid him. The panel at church on auction ended and lo Sunday mornings. As they see the same truth. They share it.” and behold, Jim had a child, he considered becoming a police officer as his occu- another Z! So Jim and Teresa flew to North Carolina, met pation but ended up pursuing a different route. His– interestC. S. Lewiswith Eric Peck who suggested a local shop to have the car in becoming a chemist resulted in Jim working for the city of checked out. When they received the go ahead that the car Seattle for almost 30 years as a Supervisor in the chemistry was in good enough shape for the drive back to Seattle, lab as a Water Quality Analyst. they hit the road.

Jim refers to himself as a “Z-vangelist” as he is so excited They now own two BMWs, a 1998 1.9 Z3 and a 1998 M about ZSCCA and the focus on our Z cars. He has the bug roadster. of being connected with other Z owners to share the joys of Z driving. One day he made an off-hand comment to

25 A couple of years ago, as the Z’s were sitting in the driveway, the 5th grade and loves the sound that it creates. Add the a young gentleman walked by and inquired if one of them ability to play the guitar and we may see Jim on the road was for sale. Jim pondered his offer, thought of the 1.9 Z3 with his instruments crammed into the trunk and stopping that needed a new exhaust - amongst other high mileage at roadside cafes to play gigs. things – and decided to sell that car, telling himself he really only needed one. Because of his great understanding of drinking water, Jim has recently become involved with a non-profit organization Teresa wasn’t keen about driving the Z3 as it was a manual out of Portland, Oregon, called Pure Water for the People and she much preferred an automatic. Soon, they were on in which he puts on seminars in the small remote villages of the trail again, looking to purchase a non-manual Z4. They Honduras and the Dominican Republic teaching sanitation ended up purchasing a 2005 Z4 2.5. How could he say no and the proper procedure to make safe drinking water. This to his wife? fits nicely into Jim’s motto of “leave the world nicer than how you found it”. When asked which Z he liked the best, Jim stated “the Z3 because it’s a bit more active whereas the Z4 is more pas- Jim holds close a secret talent that he shared during ZFEST sive. I feel more connected to the road in the Z3”. in Blacksburg. There he showed off his skills of being a former cheerleader at Seattle Pacific University as he performed a Jim’s organizational skills and the ability to reach out and perfect cartwheel much to the admiration of onlookers. connect with people make him ideal for the membership liaison position. He’s approachable and easy to speak with So if you ever find yourself in the Pacific Northwest, look which is a bonus for that office. for Jim and Teresa driving down the coast towards a favorite pizza place in Canon Beach, Oregon, and exercising his col- With his extra time since retirement, Jim has chosen to live lege cheerleading days by doing cartwheels in the sand. Yes life well with goals of improving his Spanish and learning to Jim, you are definitely making this world better than how play the cello. As for the cello, he played when he was in you found it!

Meet Bob Rowland: Coordinator of Volunteers for ZFEST 2020 Making a successful Springs. The car’s top ZFEST takes a lot of was down and I liked coordinated effort by it a lot! I wasn’t in a a dedicated group of position then to buy people, all of whom are one but I did plan volunteers. To ensure ev- to own one some- eryone knows what their time in the future. It roles are, someone must took a while, but five be in charge to direct years ago I met my traffic, so to speak. We 1996 Z3! Not long are pleased to introduce after buying the car, the man who will be coordinating the volunteer’s efforts I became an active for ZFEST 2020 at Snowmass, Colorado. His name is member of the Hi Bob Rowland. RockeeZ chapter of ZSCCA. Bob has been a sports car enthusiast for a very long time, enjoying the thrill of top down motoring since the “I’m excited to have been asked to fill the role of Coor- late 1960s. He brings his love for our kind of motoring dinator of Volunteers for ZFEST 2020! It’s a great per- to his new role. sonal opportunity for me to have direct contact with “In 1968 I bought my first car. A 1958 Triumph TR3.” Bob members willing to give of their time and knowledge to told us. “Several months later it caught fire at a traffic help make ZFEST 2020 a huge success! I can’t wait to light. show off my Z. I’ll be arriving by way of Independence Pass (elev. 12,095’). “That car confirmed my love of roadsters and many years later I sat in a 1996 BMW Z3 on display at a new “I hope it doesn’t catch fire!” car show at the Broadmoor World Arena in Colorado 26 Randy Mason’s Travelz in 2019 By Randy Mason

For the last seventeen years, I have been the proud owner of a 2002 M Coupe that I purchased new from Earhard BMW in Farmington Hills (Detroit, Michigan area dealer). After purchase, I quickly learned to appreciate the performance of the M Coupe. This car is such a joy to drive; es- pecially, on hilly twisty roads.

That is why this driving season we have taken a cou- ple of trips south to drive some mountain roads in North Carolina and Virginia. Anybody that drives the roads here in south east Michigan understands that we don’t have much in the way of fun or challenging roads. That is not the case once you’re south of Ohio.

On our first trip in April, my wife and I went to Franklin, NC to join a fourteen car group of Z3 and Z4’s. As usual we had the only M Coupe amongst a group of Roadsters. The roads in the Franklin area are in really good condition and lend themselves to some aggressive driving.

The mountain roads around Franklin are really a lot of fun. You can jump on almost any road in that area 27 and find something entertaining. However, the group leader The road we drove is called the “Back of the Dragon”; it did pre-drive our route so the organized drive was well runs from Marion, VA to Tazewell. This road is thirty two planned out. miles long, with four hundred and thirty eight turns and reaches an altitude of just over three thousand feet. On this trip we drove one thousand six hundred and forty two miles in four days. The trip was extremely enjoyable and The turns on the Back of the Dragon go from mild to wild. only served to inspire me to do another long drive. There are numerous switch backs where a lead car literally goes out of sight until you round the corner. There are many In July, we drove one thousand six hundred and eighty three heavy braking areas and shifting to lower gears to climb miles in five days. Our destination was the ZFest convention steep grades can be quite frequent. in Blacksburg, VA put on by the ZSCCA (Z Series Car Club of America). On both our trips, we were very impressed with the scen- ery. There are many beautiful vistas to enjoy. If you want to At the convention we had over two hundred Z3 and Z4 take the time to stop, there are many overlook areas along coupes and roadsters. During the convention the group did most of the roads. a planned drive from Blacksburg to Marion, VA to drive a road called the Back of the Dragon. All in all, I have to say that both NC and VA are well worth your time to visit. The roads are very well maintained with Many of you have probably heard of the “Tail of the Drag- plenty of challenging corners to grab your attention. There on.” This road is very popular with motorcyclists, especially are so many scenic areas to see and the locals are very on weekends. And unfortunately, it has a reputation for car- welcoming. bike collisions. 28 Meet Z Members

Rob Kaminski – A Man of Many Rides and Interests

By Andrew S. Hartwell

“I love developing and solving problems as I tend to be a little analytical and look for better ways to accomplish things. “

Rob Kaminski recently stepped up to fill the role of Area Rep for the Steel City BMW Z, covering the Pittsburgh, PA region As he enters his seventh decade on the planet, he can look back at a long run of behind the wheel experiences and car club activities that position him for success in his new role. 29 times of interest tempered with exasperation. But he per- severed and went on to hone his skills at speed in a varied assortment of vehicles.

“My first car was a Corvair Corsa.” Rob told us. “Iwas around 17 and this was the car I drove to high school. I loved that car. When I bought it I didn’t know how to drive a four speed, even though I said I did. I made it all the way home but our driveway had a bit of elevation and I couldn’t get it up to the garage. My Dad came out and helped me with that. Two days later, after shining the whole thing up I decided to take it out but Dad said not to as I wasn’t too skilled at driving it yet. I tried like hell to get the car backed out of that garage but I failed!

“Since then, practically every car I have owned has been a manual shift. I have had a couple of Mustangs, a motorcycle, Volvos, and a couple of boats, a Datsun 240Z, an Audi A6 and a TT, a Mazda RX7, Mercedes SL Convertibles, a 300 and a 350, and several BMWs along the way. I said I would never have an SUV but I eventually did in fact decide to get one so I got a Mercedes GLK, which I loved. I then moved on to a Porsche 911, then a Cayman S and then traded in Rob became a Z4 owner in December and, as we had this the SUV and bought a Porsche Macan S with 385 horse- conversation in January, he had yet to log many miles on his power and an M package. That car can stay with a Lotus on new ride. The coming of spring will be welcome to this man the track. I also had a BMW M3. who loves to tour in beautiful sports cars. Like many of us, his first experiences with driving a stick shift provided some

30 “Along the way I joined the Mercedes club, the Porsche been retired for about 7 years now. I’ll turn 70 at the end of club, the BMWCCA and the SCCA and just about any April, 2020. I’ve probably held just about every type of job group tied to the cars I owned at the time.” you can imagine. I’ve worked in Media with companies like the Gannett Corporation and Scripps News. I’ve worked Today, Rob has a bit more time to work as the area rep with direct mail start-up companies like AVRO. I have been and enjoy being out touring in his Z. This comes after a trained in quality and I am always looking for ways to ac- lengthy career working in primarily marketing and media complish things. Many CEOs have been my mentors and I areas while employed by several national companies. am thankful to have had those experiences.

“I like history and learning how things work and why they are done the way they are. I love developing and solving problems as I tend to be a little analytical and look for bet- ter ways to accomplish things. That goes back to my days in marketing, dealing with some of the largest companies in the United States.”

Growing up in western Pennsylvania, Rob would venture up north after high school and find a career path that would put him right at the forefront of a unique marketing ap- proach for advertisers.

“I was born in 1950 and went to school in western Penn- sylvania. I lived there until 1968 when I left to attend the University of Vermont. After graduation I started a career in the newspaper industry with Scripps Newspapers. They handled papers out of the northwest and various small newspapers across the country. I spent about 8 years with them. My roles included Sales Manager, Marketing Manager “I am married to Janet and she retired from her position and General Manager. as Administrative Assistant for the Chief Financial Officer of ALCOA. We live in an area called Hampton Township, “I later received another offer and gravitated into a posi- outside of Pittsburgh. We don’t have any children. I have tion with the Gannett Company. I went through positions

31 in sales and marketing and then became a manager. Later I would be if we used a major grocery chain that needed joined ADVO systems, which was a small startup company. to reach customers in, say, western PA we would use their That company provided a service that became the alter- advertising as the jacket to a packet of ads from companies native to newspapers across the country. We became the operating in the same zip codes. Think of it as a circular largest customer the US Post Office had. We specialized in packet of targeted ads, delivered directly to homes via the demographic lifestyle targeting. Back then we used credit post office. We literally were able to reach every household card information and as we grew we expanded into areas in the United States that the advertisers needed to reach. across the demographic spectrum. We saved the advertisers a lot of money over the cost of newspaper ads. “We worked with major department stores and major nationwide companies like Toys R Us and Home Depot “I sometimes think of this as a prelude to what Google does and Goodyear and so on. These companies switched from with their on-line analytics, where they show you ads that tie newspaper advertising to marketing to specific groups in in to what you have been looking and searching for previ- their immediate areas. We later became even more efficient ously. I feel like we started that but we did it with printed in how we interacted with the customer’s needs. ads. The advertiser would identify the radius of the area they want targeted. Later they moved towards consumer goods “At ADVO we coined the term ‘marriage mail’. An example specific targeting instead.” Photos Wanted for Cruizin Newz! The Cruizin’ Newz team would love to see your BMW!

We would like to feature 4.Please include your name and any comments you photography of wish to include about your car. Especially, the year, your BMW in the VERTICAL mileage and location of your photography. pages of our maga- FORMAT zine. Why not share 5.Please be sure to include additional contact your car with your information in case we might need to follow up fellow members? with you. Everyone enjoys seeing a BMW in 6.Vertical format is encouraged if you wish to various settings. Be see your car on the cover of Cruizin’ Newz! creative and show But horizontal photos are also welcomed. us your vehicle at its best! Remember too that we have limited space available in the magazine so there may be some works that This isn’t a contest we cannot include in print. We also reserve the and no prizes will right to choose not to publish works that may be be awarded. We just deemed offensive or want to highlight the HORIZONTAL otherwise inappropri- many talented people FORMAT ate for presentation in out there in the ZSCCA these pages. But, we by providing a venue to show your encourage you to think work and sports car. inclusion rather than exclusion and show us Requirements: your work! 1.You must be a current, paid member of QUESTIONS: Please the ZSCCA to participate. contact Ric Genthe, Creative Director, 2.Submissions must be of high resolution. Cruizin’ Newz. [email protected] 3.You can send your photographs via email to [email protected]

32 With his marketing and advertising days behind him now, Joining ZSCCA after ZFEST 2019 had already taken place; Rob is pretty sure his days of punching a clutch and stroking Rob has yet to experience our annual event and the com- a gear knob are also a part of his past. All those shifting rides ing together of hundreds of like-minded ZEDS. He won’t be and all those days chasing a tennis ball in anger led him to there in Snowmass in July this year but he is looking forward decide it was time to make a change. That decision brought to 2021 and is laying the groundwork for the Steel City him into the ZSCCA fold. BMW Zs to have ample representation should the decision to hold the event closer to home come to pass. “I am at the time in my life where I don’t need to do any shifting anymore. 30 plus years of playing tennis has taken “When I first became a member of ZSCCA, I wanted to get a toll on my knees so I just take my touring a bit easier. I a feel for the club so I went on Facebook and joined many love the touring aspect of the convertible. I traded in my of the Z groups across the country. I found it fascinating that Porsche for my newest love, a 2020 Z4 in Dolomite Silver, there is a definite culture in this club and I am excited to see with paddle shifters and an M package. I was scared that the how well I can develop our group and get them to partici- 40i model would be too powerful for my wife to drive so I pate with other groups in the club. I appreciate the unique- felt getting the 30i model would be a better choice and still ness of each generation of the Zs and I love meeting new be quick enough. people and interacting with them and gaining an education on them and their cars. “I ordered the car from Austria and it arrived in the first week of December. I immediately put it to bed. I have driven “I’m not going to make 2020 ZFEST but I heard through it but not all that much. I intend to use it for touring out in the grapevine that ZFEST 2021 may come back east. I have the country. I do like to go to watch auto races and one kind of put myself out there to be the ZSCCA rep for the time I even had the opportunity to participate in a Porsche Pittsburgh area. Steel City BMW Zs is the name of our area. parade around the Indy track. I have also run at Watkins When I knew the car was coming and that I would be step- Glen and done similar things with the BMW club. I even ping up as the rep, I started reaching out to area shops to attended the driving school run by the Porsche club. That try and secure discounts and friendly arrangements for the club tends to be more about driving fast where the BMW members. clubs tend to be more social so, within the Porsche club we started a group called the Porsche Touring Crew. We kind of The shops are helping me to identify their customers with select different eateries across the Pittsburgh region and Zs and that should work to build membership ranks. In April have a lunch together and admire each other’s cars.” I will try to tie in all the contacts so we have a support net- work for the shops and us.” 33 Rob’s other interests include his “gravitating from tennis to “I also play the guitar. I love to read about history. I shoot pickle ball. It’s kind of like ping pong on a court the size of skeet at a few skeet clubs. I cross a lot of boundaries!” a tennis court. You use a solid paddle and a wiffle ball. A lot of former tennis players moved to pickle ball. The game is played inside or out, but if it is windy, the hang time on the ball decreases quite a bit! ZSPOT FOR PHOTOZ Do you have a great photo of your Z that you really love? Send it to [email protected], along with a short caption and we might just feature it in Z SPOT FOR PHOTOZ! We love to see great looking Z’s! I was just walking out the door to go to dinner, and the two Zs (my wife’s 2000 2.5 roadster and my 99 2.8 coupe) were just randomly parked in the driveway and illuminated with a single spot light from above the garage door. I’m always taking pictures of the cars, but the light was hitting them just right, so I had to hang back and grab the shot. For Me, photos are always about shape and light. And as you know the subtle curves of the Z3 always lend themselves to interesting shots. Back when I was creating fine art images of automobiles, I loved to shoot cars as a pair, to get the shapes working together. Honestly, this was a happy accident. It might have taken all day in a studio to set up, but it was just timing and catching See more of Jeff Dorgay on page 13. the image.

34 DIY Parking Brake Adjustment for Z3 and E85/6 Z4

By Jay Parnes, Technical Editor Difficulty level 1 / 5

I had the weird experience recently of setting my contact the inside of the rotor flange, preventing parking brake on an incline and watching my car the wheel from turning. Over time the cables can slowly roll down the slope. WTF!! Parking brake pads stretch so that pulling the parking brake lever to its really don’t wear much because we ask them to hold maximum doesn’t expand the parking brake pads the car when it’s not moving, so what happened here? enough. Alternatively, the self-adjusting mechanism of the parking brake pads can fail and the system needs The parking brake acts like a drum brake system to be manually adjusted. The method described here inside the rotor. When you pull up on the hand lever, will address both of these situations and is pretty easy cables connected between the lever and the braking to do. However, it does not apply to E89 Z4s with the mechanism cause the parking brake to expand and electronic parking brake.

Tools Needed: Just a few: Impact wrench or breaker bar with a 17mm deep socket, flathead screwdriver, ¼” socket wrench with a 10mm deep socket, torquewrench.

35 STEPS 1. The rear wheels need to be raised off the ground. Place wheel chocks at the front wheels and a floor jack under the rear subframe (just forward of the differential) or the differen- tial itself. Just be sure not to contact the differential cover with the jack. Raise the car enough to place jack stands at the right and left jacking points. Now remove the rear wheels using the 17mm socket and an impact wrench or breaker bar.

2. At the brake handle, pull up on the boot to release. You will see 2 10mm nuts. Using the deep 10mm socket, loosen the nuts (do not remove them!) so that the cables are slack. In the photo you can see that one of the nuts has been loosened already. Now lower the handle completely. 1

3. Back at the wheel, we will now adjust the parking brake. You do not have to remove the caliper and rotor. You actually can not complete this repair with the rotor removed. I removed it just so that you can more easily see what it is we’re going after: the adjuster with the knurled ring. On the left side, it is located around the 2:00 position, 10:00 on the right side. (Let’s take a minute to clarify something that’s often confused. The right and left sides of a car are as you are sitting in the driver’s seat). With the rotor on the hub and using a flashlight, turn the rotor so that the knurled ring can be seen through one of the wheel bolt holes. Take your screwdriver and turn the ring towards the back of the car if you’re on the left side. On the right side, turn it towards the front. Keep turning the 2 ring until it stops moving and the pads are touching the rotor flange, and then back it off 10 clicks. The knurled ring will click against the adjacent spring. Now do the other side of the car.

Go back to the hand lever and raise it 2 clicks. This next part is a little bit of trial and error. Turn the rotor to see what it feels like with no contact from the parking brake shoes. Tighten the 10mm nuts just enough so that when you rotate the rotors some resistance is felt. When you have found that sweet spot, raise the lever one more click. The rotor should not be able to be turned any more. Push the boot down on the handbrake lever. Install the wheels and torque the bolts to 88 ft/lbs.

3

36 ByLife Gene and with Robin Warren, the Maryland Area2020 Reps G29 Z4 M40I

You’ve may have read all the articles, seen all the YouTube videos and perused all the online postings about the new Z4 M40i (G29) from all the “experts”, but what is it really like? In this article we will give you our impressions balanced against our 2006 Z4M Roadster (M Roadster) and our 2014 M235i (M235i). All three cars have been driven on the same roads in West Virginia during Hard Charger events. Hard Chargers is serious driving on challenging, tight radiused back-to- back curves with occasional long straights. These roads are exceptionally smooth and usually have very little traffic.

37 An overview of the M Roadster and the M235i is a good were Robin’s idea by the way. “This car leans lots more in starting point to understand our perspectives on the G29. the curves than the M Roadster” translates to “let’s Hot Rod the car”. • The M Roadster was purchased in July 2007 with only 1800 miles on the odometer. Since then we have accumu- General impressions of the 2020 G29 are: lated 137,000 miles on it. It is essentially a stock vehicle with • Physically bigger than the M Roadster its the exception of the installation of Bilstein B6 shocks. All direct comparison bushings have been replaced with urethane bushings and • It feels heavier all other “routine maintenance” has been performed. The M • More room in the cockpit area Roadster was our learning car and as we drove it on more • The trunk is larger and more challenging roads, we became more comfortable • Lots and lots of electronics with its handling characteristics. The end result is that we • Plenty of horsepower and torque became quicker and safer. • Brakes are strong and I have felt very little fade during hard technical driving • The M235i was ordered in February 2014 and delivery • The transmission is very intuitive with smooth and was taken at the Performance Center in Greer, SC in July. quick down and upshifting and 4 modes: Eco, Comfort, After I retired in July 2016, it became my “Hot Rod”. New Sport and Sport Plus springs and bump stops were ordered from Dinan that • Heads-Up-Display resulted in the front being lowered ½”and the rear 1”. A • Fit and finish is good. lower control arm monoball kit has been installed, along • The sounds coming through the exhaust are with Dinan front and rear sway bars. Further, a Dinan Stage intoxicating, especially in Sport and Sport Plus modes 2 engine upgrade - along with the performance exhaust - • Quick lowering and raising of the top was installed. In short, it is one well balanced “rocket”. All • Less noise in the cabin with the top up as opposed this and it’s still a comfortable daily driver. These upgrades to the M Roadster 38 Driving impressions ever time marches on and technology keeps getting better Transmission and better. Just being able to concentrate on driving the road The G29 only comes with an automatic transmission and ahead is a plus, especially at faster speeds through curves. the other two cars are manual six-speeds, thus it is a lit- tle difficult to objectively compare this aspect of the car. Suspension When the G29 was properly broken in I began to play with The G29’s suspension is very settled and it seems to absorb the paddle shifters or just used the gear selector to move harsh roads very well. To us it feels very neutral when driv- through the gears. It is very easy to get the RPMs up quickly. ing more spirited on fun curvy roads. The M Roadster is a Upshifting and downshifting requires more attention when bit livelier in this regard, the M235i more settled, but not as driving this car at “spirted velocities” on technical roads. It much as the G29. At extra-legal speeds the M Roaster feels is easy to come in “too hot” in the curves. The M Roadster less settled and is affected by the road surface more and and the M235i both provide that visceral feel that comes begins to feel lighter. The M235i isn’t as affected by the road from shifting yourself, the feeling of having more control. The surfaces. The G29 just hunkers down and feels surer footed. Dinan engine upgrade on the M235i provides a quicker feel Since all of our cars are running the latest Michelin Super than the M Roadster, but not as quick as the G29. Sport tires, I can’t attribute this feel to the tires. I think the added weight of the M235i and the G29 add to the settled In Sport mode, we are very pleased with the G29’s au- feel; however both have more torque than the M Road- tomatic shifting. It seems to rev match when slowing for ster. Power overcomes many things! The Heads-Up-Display curves and hold the gear to maximize the power for com- makes it easier and safer to ascertain your speed! ing out of a curve. We will continue playing with and gaining experience with the paddle shifters though. Daily driving or Engine in heavy traffic, comfort mode and automatic transmission The G29 has more horsepower and torque than the M are great although, Gene always puts it in Sport mode. Roadster, and nearly as much horsepower as the M235i. It feels as though you have to rev the engine more in the We understand the emotional need for a manual shift; how- M Roadster and the M235i. The G29’s engine seems to be

39 more effortless in its power delivery. It’s as if the power is M Roadster could use a more masculine sounding exhaust, just lurking about waiting for the chance to burst free. For unfortunately many of the solutions I looked at weren’t sat- those interested in gas mileage, the G29 delivers more miles isfactory. Often they were too raspy or resulted in a drone per gallon if you have it in eco or Comfort mode. You pay at in the cockpit. The Dinan exhaust on the M235i gives you the pump for using Sport and Sport Plus. that addictive sound. The G29’s exhaust is intoxicating with it blips and burbles and even more so in Sport and Sport Brakes Plus modes. Gearhead heaven! The brakes on the M Roadster and the M235i are both exceptional and up to the task of meeting the demands we Cockpit require for our driving needs. I don’t think we have ever said, The G29 has the most luxurious cockpit of the three cars. “Gee I wish I had more brake to use”. In all the hard driving The controls are within easy reach and logical. The cuphold- we have done in the M Roadster, the front pads and rotors ers are laid out differently and are an acquired taste. The were replaced at 92,000 miles and the rear pads and rotors netting behind the seats and the pass-through to the trunk at 102,000 miles. Pads on both still had 5mm of wear left. are convenient. The mesh windscreen, standard equipment The M235i has only 52,000 miles on it and hasn’t required although easily removed for cleaning, does a great job in re- any new pads or rotors. Time will tell with the G29. It will be ducing wind noise and turbulence. The infotainment Center interesting to see with its heavier weight, automatic trans- and the I-drive are fairly intuitive. Our good friend Terrance, mission and the type of driving we do, how the rotors and who is very tall, can actually sit in it with the top up and have pads will hold out. room for a racing helmet. With the top down he isn’t seeing over the windshield like he was in his previous Z4 Roadster. Exhaust We are trying to convince him, and his wife Angela, that they Let’s face it, many of us car people who really like to drive should get one. I’m seeing them in a white one with red the cars as they are meant to be, love to hear the sound of interior and black wheels. the exhaust as we rip through the gears. We love to blip the throttle through tunnels and underpasses. I’ve felt that the

40 Top Down Driving There is a bit more technology on the G29 for our taste. The clear winner on this one is the G29. It is so much quiet- It says something about the number of technical goodies er at speed in the cockpit than the M Roadster. You can hear on a car when the manufacturer requires the dealership to the stereo and carry on a conversation. On the M Roadster have a BMW Genius. This is the poor soul that explains how you have to yell to be heard. If using the M235i on a Z event to do things to us troglodytes. When is enough, enough? Robin requires that the windows be down and the sunroof Every driving mode, Eco, Comfort, Sport and Sport Plus, in open, she wants that convertible feel. It is noisier and as you addition to the factory settings, allows you to set your own would expect there is buffeting. preferences. The Tech is what BMW calls the mechanic. The Genius is the one who knows the gizmos. Service, Issues and Dislikes The oil and filter were changed at 1,202 miles and the rear The Intel-car system is a pain. When you cross or touch a differential fluid at 4,000 miles, I believe in getting ridof center line you find yourself wrestling with the wheel as break-in oil soon after the required break-in period. It was it tries to bring you back into your lane. You can imagine hard to hold the RPMs below 4,000 during the 1,200-mile how disconcerting this is when trying to pass bicyclists or break in period! This car will have oil and filter changes ev- pedestrians. It is even more so, when driving quickly on ery 5,000 miles. curves. Robin figured out that signaling disengaged this fea- ture momentarily. This feature might come in handy on long There has been only one recall for our G29 and that in- Interstate drones. We typically disengage this feature when volved the back-up camera. Our car did not exhibit the starting the car. Funny, there are all types of customizing op- problem the recall fixed, but the software was upgraded tions with this car, but you have to turn the Intel-car system none the less. off every time you start it.

We had paint protection film installed on the whole front Robin prefers the smaller M Roadster and M235i over the end, hood and right and left front panels. The car has been G29. It’s not as intimate. I like them all as each has a different ceramic coated, including the wheels. The windows have feel and challenges you differently. been tinted including the windshield.

41 Future Heads-Up-Display! Expect to be even quicker as we get We took the M Roadster to ZFest in Branson and were in more familiar with the car. want of nothing. The only hiccup on that trip was the horn decided to come on and stay on. The other 6 cars in our In short, the G29 isn’t the M Roadster, as the M Roadster convoy parked on the other side of the parking lot while wasn’t the Z3. It doesn’t come with a manual transmission. we found the right fuse to pull. We’ll be driving the G29 to Yet, it still is a fun car to drive and drive hard. Would we ZFest 2020 in Colorado and expect to carry a small cooler buy one again? Sure! Life’s too short to drive dull cars and and for the first time in years we’ll each have our own suit- bemoan how things used to be. case. I’m watching the Dinan website to see if they offer some goodies for this car. See you on the road and through the curves. God speed. Z4sDrive30i We did take this model for a short test drive and were impressed. I prefer bigger engines, more horsepower and more torque.

Conclusion The G29 is a technology laden vehicle. It is very different from the M Roadster. It is a well-balanced and very compe- THIS ZFEST 2020 is tent as a “true sportscar”. It is an easy car for daily driving being rescheduled! and can be driven hard as required. Last Labor Day week- YEAR end at our Cumberland CruiZe event, Terrance noticed that Watch for more information I was slower in and out of the curves, the next day I was just on the ZSCCA website as quick as I am in the M Roadster and the M235i. By the and Facebook page! end of Hard Chargers, two weeks later I was even quicker. www.zscca.org It was nice seeing that extra-legal speed showing up on the

42 by Scott & Sue Briggs

My First two Z’s Our Z story starts back in the late 90’s – it was mid- we couldn’t do that in our SUVs, I asked my car sales- summer and the family was vacationing at Rehoboth man son to keep an eye open for a used Z3 that the Beach in Delaware. I always enjoyed walking around dealership may just want to send off to auction. Low town in the early evening hours watching the people and behold a couple months later he called… “Dad, and the traffic while keeping an eye on my wandering we got a 1999 Z3 just traded in, Boston Green Metal- childrenScott and traipsing behind& Suemy wife, Sue,Briggs in and out lic,– has Our about 60,000 Z miles onStory it - and in pretty good of all the shops. shape. Come take a look at it and see what you think.” Well, it took me about 20 minutes to gather up his As I walked along one of many side streets, I saw a mom and away we went on a Saturday morning to brand new Z3 – drop-the-top down and looking good. check it out. It was at that moment I told myself that if my long lost ship ever came in, I’m getting one of those. I was never It was exactly what I was looking for – something not a big Corvette fan, and I knew I’d never be able to af- perfect, needed a little TLC and a few other things I ford a Porsche, and at the time I was nowhere near be- didn’t realize at the time. We loved it. The asking price ing able to spring for a dad-toy sports car. I already had was well within my lunch money budget, so we bought one child nearing driving age, so I knew I’d be supplying it on the spot. Turns out that while it was sitting on the wheels for him soon, and not long after that his two lot that very same day, the dealership probably could brothers. So while I secretly wanted that little BMW have sold it three times – and for more than what I sports car, it was not going to happen anytime soon. paid.

Fast forward a decade or so, and child #1 was now Once we got the car and hit the road, I was hooked. selling BMWs for a living, and while my ship still hadn’t We joined the BMWCCA – Allegheny Chapter, and docked, having all three kids mostly out on their own soon after I hit the internet looking for a Z club – and left their mother and I with a little extra lunch money found ZSCCA. After a year or so of “is this a good idea and a desire to travel around with the top down. Since or not” we became intrigued with the idea of attend-

43 ing a “ZFEST” since there were really not many Z- related events near us. So out of the clear-blue sky we signed up for ZFEST 2012 in Greenville.

Off to South Carolina we went, not knowing a single person and really never having been on an organized drive. We had a great time, met a few people, realized we needed to make sure not to drink too much coffee before a drive, and learned a lot about the cars. My main takeaway being that I really wanted an M Roadster.

Come the spring of 2013 I found myself a 2000 Imola red M roadster, 80k or so in great shape – with the exception of the dreaded sub-frame issue. I sold my 1999 Z3 (rather easily – and the only time in my life I’ve ever sold a car for more than I paid for it), got the sub-frame repaired, and I once again signed us up for ZFEST 2013.

As we got closer to the time to leave for Greenville, My First two Z’s I saw a post on Facebook – or somewhere – that there was a group going to meet in West Virginia and drive the back-roads to ZFEST. That sounded great to me – my wife, maybe not so much. So I sent an e-mail to the group asking if we could join them – and they readily welcomed us to meet ZFest 2013 continued on page 48 My latest Z Sheldon Weaver - “My love affair with the BMW Z3!”

First of all, I have always loved the way the Z3 looked, but I never spent time trying to find one, because I figured they would cost too much, be unreliable, and I thought the owners were snobs! It turned out that none of that was true.

45 I remember it like yesterday. I was on a bike cruise and we all stopped to get fuel in a little town of Williamsburg, PA. I heard a group of cars coming in my direction, and here it was a large batch of Zs. (I am sure now that they were connected to the Nittany Z Club). I just stopped and stared as they rolled by. One car stood out. It was an all-black Z3M and heavily modified! The sound was awesome and I was in love!

Fast forward about three years and I was driving past a small local used car lot that specialized in trucks. There sat a beautiful red 2000 Z3. Little did I know how beautiful it was! After a week or so I stopped and looked at it, and it was perfect! A one owner car with 13,300 miles on it, and a five speed (of course). The man that owned it had died and no one in the family knew how to drive a stick.

When I talked to the dealer I found out that someone was supposed to pick it up, but because they kept pushing back when they were coming and did not put any money down. He told me the first one with $10,500 got the car. It was me! This car was perfect in every way and it was amazing to drive! Its motor was a 2.3 and I was surprised how much torque it had! That very day I learned on Facebook that there was to be a ZFEST at State College in one week’s time. I called for information and I learned that I had missed the dead- line to get registered. Being that I only lived 60 miles away, I was encouraged by Mark Bigelow to come up and check out the cars on the day they were taking the panoramic picture.

I had a plan for that epic day!

I left early morning on a beautiful day. The road I picked was one of the best driving roads in our area and went right past where I saw that group of Zs years earlier. The cool summer morning air was going through my thinning hair and I was listening to ELO on the CD and everything was great. My maiden voyage was everything I had dreamed of and even better. I had the biggest smile on my face that I have ever had driving a car and I have had many cars. I was head over heels in love with “The Red Baron”.

Just as I thought this was the best driving day ever, I decided to pull out and for the first time really get on it, and I did! I had just hit 75 in a 55 when I looked over and there sat the end of my best day of driving ever. A state trooper was looking at me with radar gun in hand as I flew by! My best day had turned out to be a very bad day.

Hold on! Every time I looked in the rearview to see him following me, he wasn’t there. But I was sure it was only a matter of time. Maybe he called ahead for a roadblock? No! He never came for me and my best Day became even better! It had to be the smile on my face that let him give me a pass, that was the only thing that I could think of that saved my butt!

46 thing about these fun cars were that the people that drive them were just as much fun and they enjoyed helping each other as well as driving together. It was awesome!

I’ve only had two problems with my little Z3, one was that it was so nice and the miles were so low, that I felt guilty driving it. The other was that I could not get that Black M out of my head! So after about a year I started looking for my dream car and found the perfect car for me. It was very nice black Z3M that had 40,000 miles on it and I knew would not feel guilty driv- ing it. After trading the Red Baron at Sports Car Shop in Ohio, where my car was the cheapest car there by more than half, I was happy! The M was more of what I loved about the Z.

Here is where Dean and his brother Mark came together to give me ex- actly what I wanted. Dean had an Ac- tive Autowerke Rotex Supercharger that was left over when he went up to the next stage. I bought it and Mark and Dean put everything together I made it to State College safe and a bit slower, but still and did everything to upgrade my car to match, but with a smile. When I found the group I parked in a lot I could not stop there, Dean had Bilstein Suspension at the top of the hill and walked down to look at all laying around that ended up on my M, he also had a the Zs. I didn’t talk to anyone because I just knew they Billy Boat Exhaust system, then later it got headers as were all snobs. So after they took the picture I walked well as a Strong Strut Trilogy and a lot of little things up to my car and took my own pictures of everyone that made it everything I ever wanted. That was until as they left. You know they all had the same smile as I they found me a hard top that Mark had painted to had and they waved and honked their horns. Could match and installed it. I don’t know if you are keeping I be wrong about BMW owners? A few weeks later track, but all this would have cost a fortune, if it wasn’t I found out the truth. Mark Bigelow had a tune and for them working on my car and providing so many of service at his brother Dean’s, where I found they had the parts I didn’t know I needed until I had them. My a whole family of Zs and I got to meet ‘Tweety’, Dean’s car looks, sounds, and I would say performs as good as 550 HP Z3. Little did I know what the future had in or better than my dream car that I remember so well. store for me! Very few times when your dreams become reality is I found out that Zs were not all that hard to work on the reality better than all the hype of your dreams. This and that they were very sturdy. But by far the best was one of those times.

47 I have made great friends from having this car. I have a stranger. It was like a big happy family and not a snob driven on some amazing roads, like this past summer at in the bunch. One car did that! All I can come up with ZFEST doing the Back of the Dragon. I have made lots is that everyone needs a little Z in their life! of great memories and plan to make a lot more with The Baron! It’s new name. Many times I have heard this said about different things. “If you don’t have one you won’t understand” At ZFEST, everyone was so nice and I learned so much! that statement has never been as true as it is with the There were around 250 Z cars there, with people that mighty little Zs! came from all over the United States as well as other countries. They were all shapes, sizes, races, ages and I’m sure different political views, but most of all they were all the nicest people I have ever met. No one was

Scott and Sue Briggs them at a small town breakfast spot somewhere in the Then, almost 20 years after seeing my first Z, I decided middle of West – by God – Virginia. It was the best it was time to go back. I had looked at and driven a thing we ever did. 2006 Z4M a year or two earlier and found it to be very comfortable – so I went back to another old Z friend After spending the night in a lodge somewhere in the who had offered to sell me that car, and took it off his Mountain state, we walked into this little café and found hands (he still has three more). five of the most wonderful “Z” people you’ll ever know – The ringleaders, Gene and Robin Warren, and their So now, my children’s mother and I are once again en- over-the-top companions Angela and Terrance Coates, joying the ultimate driving machine – roadster style. and Tim McNeish. Unfortunately, ZFEST is not an option for us this year, so I think we’ll drop-the-top and head to the beach this After breakfast, off we went on the best and most en- summer and who knows, maybe somebody will see it joyable few days of driving we have ever experienced. and think the same thing I did 20 some years ago. From that ZFEST adventure we still recall some great, unforgettable moments that even today draw a smile and a laugh. We’ve been to many of the subsequent ZFESTs that we could get to, and had a good time at every one - but none of them compare to that experi- ence in 2013. (There are videos).

In 2017 I decided to sell my red M. I was having back and knee issues, and it was just getting harder and harder to get comfortable in the driver’s seat for long periods of time – plus I had exceeded the 100,000 mile mark and the maintenance costs were starting to add up.

So I was now Z-less – but I got myself a 2013 BMW 128i Cabriolet, thinking it could replace my desire to You meet the greatest people in a Z. – the Freestate Z’s drive – I was wrong. I also missed going to ZFEST in Branson that year – since I didn’t have a car, and felt like I was missing something. 48 ZFEST 2020 is being rescheduled! Watch for more information on the ZSCCA website ZFEST 2020: Background Information About Snowmass Village, Coloradoand Facebook page. And An Updated ZFEST Schedule

Colorado - The Centennial State, no matter what the nickname may be, you can’t spell Colorado without RAD!!!!! Once here, most of you won’t reach for your keys just so you can make a gro- The Silver State, cery store run. You’ll be going for the ride….just you or with the planned drives, the car, and the road. It’ll be The Columbine State, for those of us who considers the ride itself to be the Colorful Colorado, destination. Switzerland of America….

49 ZFEST 2020 is being rescheduled! Watch for more information on the ZSCCA website and Facebook page.

SNOWMASS VILLAGE HISTORY By the 1880s, ranches running sheep and cattle came Long before skiers and even settlers discovered Snow- to occupy the Brush Creek Valley. One of the most mass ’Brush Creek Valley, the Ute Indians hunted, fished, prominent ranchers, Charles Hoaglund and his fam- and gathered wild foods here in the summers. The first ily, emigrated from Sweden to Aspen during the silver European / non-natives explored the Elk Mountains as crash and was hired to close down Aspen’s Smuggler early as 1853, during the Gunnison Survey, but it wasn’t mine. They acquired land in Brush Creek to raise cattle, until the Hayden Survey in the1870s, that the promi- sheep, wheat, and hay. Today, several buildings from his nent peaks visible from Snowmass were named. ranch have been incorporated into the renowned An- derson Ranch Arts Center. Mount Daly is named after then-president of the Na- tional Geographic Society, Augustus Daly, while the tri- Hoaglund’s daughter, Hildur, was raised on the ranch angular Capitol Peak paid tribute to the Washington, and attended the community’s one-room school D.C., building. house, which today is known as The Little Red School- house. The schoolhouse celebrated its centennial in

50 Maroon Bells - because of the complexity of bus transfers and limited parking it is best to do this by yourself or in small groups. Cost involved for the bus. If you wish to drive yourself, you must go before 8:00 am or after 5:00 pm but be prepared for VERY CON- GESTED traffic.

Leadville - this is a full day trip (just under 2 hours one way via Independence Pass). Highlights are a train ride, Matchless Mine, Silver Dollar Saloon, and Tabor Opera House. If you’re a history buff of the old west, this is a must do trip but go prepared. Leadville is the highest incorporated city in America at 10,600 feet above sea level! 1994, and still functions as an early childhood learning center today. John Denver Sanctuary - located in downtown Aspen. It’s a 30 minute drive from Snowmass Village. In 1958, Olympic skier Bill Janss began buying up ranch- Admission is free. es in the valley with an eye toward emulating the As- pen ski area’s success. By 1961, he owned six ranches The Aspen Music Festival and School is a classi- at the base of Baldy and Burnt mountains and planned cal music festival held annually in Aspen. It is noted both to build a ski area served by a European-style ski com- for its concert programming and the musical training it munity on 3,300 acres. In December of 1967, Snow- offers to mostly young-adult music students. Founded mass-At-Aspen opened with five chairlifts, 50 miles of in 1949, the typical eight-week summer season includes ski trails, seven hotels, and six restaurants. Lift tickets more than 400 classical music events mostly in the eve- cost $6.50. A decade later in 1977 the Town of Snow- ning— including concerts by five orchestras, solo and mass Village was incorporated, and the rest, as they say, chamber music performances, and fully staged opera is history. productions. The Benedict Music Tent, which opened in 2000, is the Festival’s primary concert venue and seats PLANNED DRIVES 2050. Go to aspenmusicfestival.com for more informa- (departure times and meeting locations TBD. tion. Some events will involve an additional cost). Woody Creek Tavern - (former favorite hangout MONDAY, JUNE 29 of Hunter Thompson and The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band The “Aspen Happenin” while they produced a record album based upon a Drive yourself or use the free shuttle from the Westin stay in this community). On their website they write, and travel a short distance to Aspen. Lots of shop- “A single word doesn’t do this tavern justification…it is ping and restaurants to choose from and perhaps even bizarre, strange, peculiar, odd, curious, funny, some celebrity sightings! More information is available outlandish, abnormal, eccentric, unorthodox, queer, at aspenchamber.org. extraordinary, weird, wacky, kooky and maybe even freaky”. Go to woodycreektavern.com for more infor- The following are self-guided adventures to be done mation. at your discretion at any time during ZFEST week. These will be ad hoc opportunities for individuals or Ashcroft Ghost Town - originally known as Castle small group sign-ups at the registration desk. Forks City, then Chloride until 1882, Ashcroft was a mining town located ten miles south of Aspen. A few buildings remain standing as a testament to the town’s past. While here, consider lunch or dinner at the Pine Creek Cookhouse, just a short distance further up the 51 road. One of Aspen’s legendary restaurants, the Pine mous friend of lawman Wyatt Earp, Doc hoped the Creek Cookhouse is nestled at the base of the Elk hot springs water would cure him. It did not and he Mountains. died at the age of 36.

Iron Mountain Hot Springs - Situated alongside Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park - Take fun the beautiful Colorado River in Glenwood Springs and right to the edge! Known for its award-winning rides surrounded by Rocky Mountain views that soothe and and spectacular caves, Glenwood Caverns Adventure inspire, the 16 geothermal soaking pools offer guests Park is a unique and family-friendly theme park that a pure soaking experience—the way nature intended. soars above the rest with high-flying fun and adventure. The freshwater family pool is cooler and ideal for all Explore stunning caverns and breath-taking formations ages. An attached elevated jetted spa provides yet an- in Colorado’s largest showcave. The Haunted Mine other opportunity to relax. Thoughtful amenities are Drop is the park’s newest gravity-defying thrill ride. You built in throughout: towel tree sculptures at each soak- can also speed down the mountain on the USA’s first ing pool, changing rooms stocked with complimentary alpine coaster, hang on to your seat in Colorado’s first shower products and a restaurant that serves food and 4D Ride Theater and fly through the air high above drinks adds to the ambiance. A place to relax, restore Glenwood Springs on the Glenwood Canyon Flyer, and rejuvenate. Cliffhanger Roller Coaster, Soaring Eagle Zip Ride and the Giant Canyon Swing. Glenwood Hot Springs - Originally inhabited by nomadic Ute Indian tribes, this area of bubbling hot TUESDAY, JUNE 30 springs has long been a destination for the health seek- Colorado National Monument er. In the early 1880’s, James Landis homesteaded the This is a 23-mile tightly twisting ride through the rock confluence of the Roaring Fork and Grand Rivers that canyon scenery of the Colorado National Monument. would become Glenwood Springs. Early settlers Isaac Cooper and Walter Devereux saw the potential for When this area was first settled, many thought the Glenwood Springs to become a highly regarded des- sheer-walled canyons soaring above Grand Junction’s tination and developed these amenities into a world- western sector were inaccessible. Fortunately, 100 class resort. A visit to historic Glenwood Springs will years ago John Otto, a free spirit who lived year-round take guests back in time to enjoy all of the amenities in a tent in these canyons, began exploring, building that were formerly reserved for the well-to-do. trails, mapping the geography, and promoting the grand beauty of this amazing wilderness area. The Grand Lost Forest Adventure Park - The Lost Forest isn’t Junction Chamber of Commerce, hearing of his work, hard to find — it’s just hard to see. Tucked in among sent a delegation to investigate, and the rest, as they the trees and rocks at Elk Camp on Snowmass are an say, is history. alpine coaster, zip lines, biking trails, ropes challenges and a climbing wall. There are ponds to fish in, creeks To reach the eastern end of the 23-mile Rim Rock to hike along, places to enjoy nature alone or in groups, Drive, take Monument Road just off Broadway, south- two disc golf courses and passionate guides to help west of downtown Grand Junction. Numerous signs you find your next adventure. Here, surrounded by throughout the city point the way. If the west end en- wild beauty, you’ll find your next wild adventure. Wel- trance is selected, the entrance will be south of Fruita come to Lost Forest. on Broadway, also known as Colorado 340.

Doc Holliday’s Gravesite and Memorial - From the east, the smoothly paved road is determined Glenwood Springs most famous outlaw rests some- to get you up 1,500 feet immediately to the plateau where in Linwood Cemetery, though no one knows above the canyon. For the first four miles, you will be the exact location. Hike the short trail to “Doc’s” mark- greeted by a festival of ascending curves with sand- er, and peruse other historic grave sites. The dentist stone monoliths and outcroppings to view. This begin- turned gambler and gunslinger died from tuberculosis ning gives you a hint just how kinked and crinkled these in Glenwood Springs in November of 1887. The fa- 23 miles are. From end to end it is only eight miles as 52 the crow flies. Along the way, you may wish to pull the east side of the road there is a very broad shoulder over at one or more of the 19 signed and interpretive where we can pause for photos. The pass summit is scenic viewpoints. brief and we will reach it in about 3 miles once leaving Redstone. We’ll set aside at least an hour for the 23-mile transit, and longer if stopping often, including at the Saddle- The southern descent is a beautifully bending roadway horn Visitor Center. The drive to Colorado National weaving its way through lush groves of aspen trees. We Monument from Snowmass Village is 2 hours 40 min- will pass some serious coal mining activity in the vicin- utes not including stops. This is a full day event and ity of the town of Somerset and about 15 miles of A+ there is an entrance fee for the park. driving as we follow the outlines of Paonia Reservoir.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 1 Once in Paonia, grab lunch at one of the many fantastic Redstone Castle, McCure Pass, and Paonia restaurants with wine and cider tastings also available A supremely scenic drive over a mountain pass with a at some locations. Returning to Snowmass Village is ap- stop at Redstone Castle. proximately 2 hours nonstop.

We’ll depart Snowmass Village turning left onto High- Snowmass Rodeo & BBQ way 82 and traveling north to the town of Carbondale This event will provide a variety of traditional rodeo where we will turn west onto Highway 133. First stop events furnishing a glimpse of ranch life in the West. will be at the National Historic District of Redstone. We will enjoy a BBQ dinner prior to the rodeo. Redstone was developed in the early 1900’s by indus- trialist John Cleveland Osgood for those who worked THURSDAY, JULY 2 his coal mines and coke ovens. It is said he wanted to Independence Pass take care of those in his employ and, indeed, the 84 This is a famous 43-mile alpine journey over one of the cottages and 40-room inn he built included luxuries highest paved passes in North America, ending with a like indoor plumbing and electricity. Nearby, he con- catered lunch at Centennial Park in Salida. The road tracted a 42-room mansion for his second wife, com- over Independence Pass has recently been recognized pleting it is 1902. Today it is often referred to as the by Congress as a national scenic byway. Few paved Redstone Castle. roads in North America, if not the world, go as high as this at 12,095 feet above sea level. On the west side of the road at Redstone, you will see the beehive coke ovens used to transform raw Both sides of the pass are dramatic. The western, or coal into high-grade coke needed for the production Aspen side of the pass has its own unique character, of steel. including passage on ledges of rock only one and a half lanes wide. The ascent is almost continuous as you pass At the bottom of the north side of McClure Pass, there fields of wildflowers and aspen groves. Don’t take your is a turnoff to the small town of Marble. In a way, it is a eyes off the road as there are many twists and turns semi-ghost town, for the place is much smaller than it with some not having guardrails. was 100 years ago when it could boast of having the largest marble mine in the world — supplying special As you descend, there are fewer curves which allow stone for the Lincoln Memorial and the Tomb of the you to give more attention to the magnificent views! Unknown Soldier. The road to Marble is paved for the Hopefully you’ll be able to catch your breath by the first mile or so, and then it is an easy dirt surface for time we go through the historic town of Twin Lakes. To 7 miles to town. My suggestion though is not to go to the right will be lakes by the same name with outstand- Marble as there’s not much to see. The road to the ing views. We may plan a stop here for picture taking. Crystal Mill is limited to 4-wheel drive vehicles only. There are few guardrails and basically no shoulder ex- Going up the pass through the Crystal River Valley ex- cept for small pullouts here and there. Passing slow poses a dramatic panorama and about halfway up on traffic opportunities are few and far between so my 53 recommendation is to take your time. Restroom facili- Driving Event Planning Seminar ties are available at the top of the pass. This is a hands-on clinic to use in planning local area drives for your group. Bringing your own computer is Our drive is not over as we turn south on Highway 24 optional as we will use a projector to show how this towards the town of Salida for a catered lunch of pizza, program works. If you wish to play with the Basecamp salad, and non-alcoholic drinks. software yourself, you will need to bring your laptop, GPS and a USB cable to connect to your laptop. Welcome Reception and Free Outdoor Concert at the Westin “Friday’s on the Mall” We have reserved the outdoor deck off the back of (No driving involved as The Mall is located out the back the Westin for a night of free music, camaraderie, and a of the Westin) dinner of grilled hamburgers and brats. Both alcoholic Join with fellow ZFESTer’s to stroll around the Mall to and non-alcoholic beverages will be available. There’s experience the best of Snowmass Village. also rumors of a Rocky Mountain Oyster eating con- • Live music by Aspen Music Festival & School test. This may be a “don’t miss” event!!!! students and more • Specials and surprises at restaurants and retailers FRIDAY, JULY 3 • Happy hour food and drink deals Carbondale side roads drive with lunch • Local artisans and authors at The Dallenbach Ranch • Wine tastings We will begin the day driving some scenic side roads in • S’mores and around the town of Carbondale culminating with • and more a catered lunch at The Dallenbach Ranch. This ranch was purchased by Indy Car driver, Wally Dallenbach, in SATURDAY, JULY 4 1973, The Dallenbach Ranch is a one of-a-kind Colo- A full day is planned consisting of: rado getaway. The Dallenbach family lives on the prop- • Pano Picture erty and maintains all cabins, landscaping, and manages • Zedkhana events. • Car Rally Scavenger Hunt • Aspen 4th of July Parade (still awaiting word The ranch sits on one mile of the famous Frying Pan as to how many cars they will allow) River, which is known for its gold medal fly fishing. Lo- • Detailing Clinic cated 5 minutes from downtown Basalt, the riverfront • Roundtable discussion of the history of ZSCCA ceremony space highlights the beauty of Colorado with the founders of the club, the Lester’s with the river and towering red rock as the backdrop. • Awards Banquet The property is surrounded by mountain BLM land, making it a private and unique destination. Guests also Details, times, and locations of the above events will be may gain access to fish their private section of the river. available on our website during the registration pro- Local fly fishing instructors may be arranged by indi- cess. viduals wishing to try their hand at trout fishing. SUNDAY, JULY 5 The Dallenbach family is planning to display assorted Everyone have a safe trip home! racing memorabilia of Wally Sr. including an Indy 500 pace car. Live music will also be provided. THIS ZFEST 2020 is being rescheduled! YEAR Watch for more information on the ZSCCA website and Facebook page! www.zscca.org

54 Welcome to the official magazine of The Z Series Car Club of America, ZSCCA!

We are the national car club for all past, present, We are glad you are here to learn more about our and future BMW Z-Series cars and those that ad- dynamic club, comprised of friendly BMW Z owners! mire them. We have a rich, 22-year history, evolving As a benefit of membership, you will have access to as a club with the cars we love. We are an organiza- an online edition Cruizin’ Newz, the quarterly tion of enthusiasts who feel that the road taken has magazine of the ZSCCA, with print copies also less to do with arriving in the least amount of time available for purchase. and more to do with the appreciation of the jour- ney, the road, and the car. We share a passion for Our Web site (zscca.org) serves as a central loca- the open road and the freedom that these special tion for information of interest to BMW Z-Series car automobiles embody. enthusiasts on a national level. We are an informa- tion source for everything Z related. We welcome We are a national club with more than 40 any and all Z enthusiasts as members. We love to local clubs (and growing) situated in many re- meet those who too share our passion for gions across North America. While we are all unique the fun and simplicity offered by great sports individuals, we share a common interest and we cars such as the Z1, Z3, Z4, and Z8. seek to foster the creation and growth of friend- ships between fellow Z owners. To that end we provide as many events and get-togethers as we can We love both the throughout the year. Each local area club schedules roadsters and events for their respective club members and it is not the coupes! unusual for neighboring clubs to share an event. There are literally hundreds of events per year across the local areas.

Whether you prefer cruising (or cruiZing), driv- ing events, concourZ, or just getting together with friends, ZSCCA is the club for Z-lovers everywhere.

55 PARTS Cruizin’NOW available Newz in PRINT! for the Go to magcloud.com/shop and search for “Cruizin’ Newz”. Select Love of the issue you’d like to purchase, then push “Buy Print”. Confirm your selection, hit NEXT, then enter your shipping method, shipping infor- YOUR LIFE! mation, and payment method (credit card or Paypal), and place your order!

The print edition will be uploaded to magcloud for ordering approxi- mately one week after it is available on our website. We will post a message to Facebook once available.

It was an obsession with BMW’s that caused the cre- ation of BimmerBum Co. I have been daily driving, maintaining, modifying, and racing my own BMW’s for the better part of 2 decades. It is with years of ex- perience that I carefully select the parts I sell, if I don’t think a part measures up I simply won’t carry it. BimmerBum Co. specializes in E21, E30, E36, and E46 3 Series models, E12, E28, E34, and E39 5 Series models in addition to Z3, Z4, X3, and X5 models. Be sure to join BimmerBum on Facebook for updates on proj- ects, new product information, and pricing specials.

www.bimmerbum.com [email protected]

56 ZSCCA Area Representatives USA Florida (South) Massachusetts (New England) Alabama Jimmy Zapata Jim Werner • Boston, MA Jason Smith • Birmingham, AL [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/ www.facebook.com/groups/NewEnglandZs/ www.facebook.com/groups/bmwzclubofalabama/ palmbeachzs/ Michigan (Plymouth) Arkansas (Central/Western) Florida (SW Coast) Randy Mason Scott Young • Fayetteville, AR [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/suncoastzs www.facebook.com/groups/MIZSCCA/ www.facebook.com/groups/OzarkZClub/ 239-224-9299 Missouri (Southwest) Arizona (Phoenix) Florida (Tampa Bay) Jim Stewart - Ozark, MO Martin Ercoline • Gilbert, AZ Vlad Belsky [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] https://www.facebook.com/groups/ facebook.com/groups/SouthwestBMWZClub/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/ somobimmerzs/ 480.519.4989 TampaBayZclub/ Nebraska Arizona (Tucson) Georgia (Atlanta) Emily Regan • Omaha, NE [email protected] Russ Collins • Lawrenceville, GA Cornhusker Zs www.facebook.com/groups/zazsoftucson [email protected] https://www.facebook.com/groups/cornhuskerzs www.atlantaz3.com/ California (Northern) www.facebook.com/groups/AtlantaZ3Z4/ New Hampshire Tarlock Sagoo • San Carlos, CA 770.656.9405 [email protected] [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/NHZeacoastZClub Georgia (Southern) California (Southern) Steve Mimbs New Jersey Stephen Smith [email protected] Al Mancuso • Burlington, NJ [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/Roadtwisters/ [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/ZSCCACalifornia/ http://gszscca.org/ Hawaii (Big Island) www.facebook.com/groups/GardenStateZSCCA/ Mid-Colorado Elizabeth Johnson • Kamuela, HI 609.614.0288 Jon Moorhead • Salida, CO [email protected] [email protected] New Mexico www.facebook.com/groups/hirockeez/ Illinois Denise Inight • Albuquerque, NM [email protected] Robin Blair • Batavia, IL www.facebook.com/groups/2286279228314069 719.221.1891 [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/ZSCCAILLINOIS/ New York City Connecticut 630.389.0606 Dori Komarin • New York, NY [email protected] [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/ Indiana (Bristol) www.facebook.com/groups/BigAppleZs/ ConnecticutBMWZCruiZers Will Anthony • Michigan City, IN 917.602.5566 [email protected] Florida (NE Coast) www.facebook.com/groups/HoosierZCarClub/ New York (Southern Tier) [email protected] 574.848.9322 Greg Finch • Waverly, NY www.facebook.com/groups/FirstCoastZs/3 [email protected] Louisiana (Lafayette) www.facebook.com/groups/ZonyZsofNewYork/ Florida (North) Andrew Clavin 607.738.2267 Greg Cevelin • Gainesville, FL [email protected] [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/thebigeaszcarclub New York (Western) www.facebook.com/groups/gatorzs Jay Parnes • Rochester, NY 352.331.7955 Maine [email protected] [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/FlowerCityRoadsterZ/ Florida (Panhandle) www.facebook.com/groups/BMWZMaineiacs 585.737.2784 Steve Ranner • Tallahassee, FL [email protected] Maryland North Carolina (Raleigh) Gene & Robin Warren • Eldersburg, MD Hayes Potter • Chapel Hill, NC [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/triangleareazscca www.facebook.com/groups/FreeStateBimmerZs/ 443.929.0032

57 North Carolina (Greenboro) Pennsylvania (Northwest) Virginia (Southwest) Mathew Hanson • Ramseur, NC Dana Kosiorek • Erie, PA [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/ www.facebook.com/groups/TriadAreaZSCCA/ [email protected] NRVZs www.facebook.com/groups/nwpazbimmers/ North Carolina (Charlotte) Washington (Seattle Metro) Eric Peck • Huntersville, NC Pennsylvania (Pittsburgh) Jim Dunn • Des Moines, WA [email protected] Rob Kaminski • Pittsburgh [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/queencitycrazs/ [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/washingtonstatezs/ 309.214.2753 https://www.facebook.com/groups/SteelCityZs/ 206.372.6022

North Carolina (Eastern) Rhode Island West Virginia [email protected] [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/ Adam Moore • Scott Depot, WV www.facebook.com/groups/coastalcarolinazs oceanstatezees [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/mountainstateroadsterZ/ North Carolina (Western) South Carolina (Upstate) 304.545.5261 Bill Price • Waynesville, NC David Weeks • Cleveland, SC [email protected] [email protected] Wisconsin http://www.facebook.com/groups/ www.facebook.com/groups/upstatescbmwzclub/ [email protected] WesternNCMountainZs/ www.facebook.com/groups/BadgerStateZSCCA Tennessee (Eastern) Ohio (Cleveland) Cindy Callaway • Knoxville, TN CANADA Brian Bednar • Cleveland, OH [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/ Nova Scotia www.facebook.com/groups/greatlakesbmwzs EastTenneZeeClub/ Bob Angus • Timberlea, CAN-NS [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/bluenosezclub Tennessee (Middle) [email protected] Ohio (Columbus) Jody Ruffner • Lascassas, TN Mark Kraft • Columbus, OH www.facebook.com/groups/middletennezee Saskatchewan [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/ www.facebook.com/groups/buckeyeZs PrairieCruZers/ Texas Oklahoma (Tulsa) Mike Wood • Fort Worth, TX Victoria, BC Richard & Kathy Desruisseau [email protected] Ken McLean • Victoria, CAN-BC [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/TexasBimmerZRoadster- [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/OklahomaZclub/ Rowdies/ www.facebook.com/groups/VictoriaBMWZEnthusiasts 918.577.7760 817.914.3897

Oregon (Corvallis Valley) Texas • San Antonio [email protected] Kaye and Tony Jajou • San Antonio, TX www.facebook.com/groups/PortlandZedHeads [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/alamocityzedheads/ Oregon (Portland East) Bill Kupchin Virginia (Central) Mt. Hood/Parkdale, OR Stephen Kline • North Chesterfield VA [email protected] [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/ www.facebook.com/groups/ZsofCorvallisValley zeecentralvirginiaclub

Pennsylvania (Central) Virginia (Potomac/Capital Region) Mark Bigelow • Petersburg, PA [email protected] [email protected] www.facebook.com/groups/potomaczs/ www.facebook.com/groups/Nittany.Z.s/ 814.667.2414 THIS ZFEST 2020 is Pennsylvania (Eastern) YEAR being rescheduled! Matt Cunningham Watch for more information Yardly PA on the ZSCCA website [email protected] and Facebook page! www.zscca.org

58 Doug Baliko’s Z Story

I joined the ZSCCA last summer. I had been searching for a low mileage Z4M Roadster for some time. I wanted one with less than 30,000 miles on it. Two weeks ago I found a 2006 “new to me” Z4M in Ohio. I went out to pick it up, and then I drove it all the way home to Flower Mound, Texas.

I love taking pictures of my car! thank you for letting me share my Z story!

Prepared by MagCloud for Ainsley Jacobs. Get more at cruizinnewz.magcloud.com.