On the morning of 20^th October , John W, Darrelle and Brad would have been having the same thoughts as all Z Car Club members who have planned excursion events in the past – will those members who committed to attending actually turn up and on time ? will the event go smoothly ? how many things will go wrong?

Fortunately, the meticulous planning and effort by all three ensured that this significant event progressed exactly to plan.

The convoy was formed at Greendale Rd , Wallacia from 7.30am . There was an almost endless stream of Datsun/Nissan Z vehicles arriving at the venue, from 240Zs to the latest 370Zs. As the numbers steadily increased , the Z cars were taking up large sections of the main thoroughfare as well as the side streets. Crowds of members, their families and guests were swelling across the footpaths to several people deep. A very impressive sight to the elated organisers of the event.

John W welcomed those in attendance and thanked Darrelle and Brad for their support and their significant efforts in helping him to organise the event. Craig introduced himself and the Executive Committee of the Z Car Club of Sydney and also welcomed members , their families and guests.

As the event had specific deadlines , the Z cars were then organised into different categories prior to attendance at the main Warragamba Dam venue.

All of the 240Zs were organised into a specific group, together with specific groups for 260Zs, 280Zs, 300Zs , 350Zs and 370Zs. The plan was to lead off with the 350Zs and 370Zs , and this group would be followed by the other categories at short intervals. This was to facilitate parking within the Warragamba Dam display area.

The convoy left Wallacia at just after 8.00am and headed towards Warragamba Dam.

With the significant number of vehicles involved – parking of the Z cars in their specific categories took some considerable time at the Warragamba Dam site . Some cars had to be reparked to ensure sufficient room for those last to enter the parking area.

What a sight ! There were 47 Z cars in total – all groomed to an exceptional standard of presentation. It was going to make the selection process for the presentation of awards by the judges very difficult indeed !

A specific stall had been set up to enable the sale of 50^th anniversary and Z car club badges as well as other memorabilia. This was staffed by members of the Z Car Club of Sydney on a rotational basis.

The 50^th Anniversary Z Car display was the most prominent and easily filled its role as the feature presentation. Also noted was a number of vintage hotrods, some FX Holdens and a few Fords and other scattered marques. There was also a collection of motorcycles, in a separate display close to the entrance of the parking area.

A number of stalls within the grounds were selling good quality hot foods , while others were selling a range of drinks including freshly squeezed juices (these were greatly appreciated as the weather had morphed into a rather humid day). There were also a few stalls selling memorabilia and car parts.

Judging of the various categories of Z cars took place using separate judges for each particular category. The outstanding presentation of the various cars made the judges job extremely difficult (this in some instances literally came down to a grease mark or a few bits of dust in the interior).

At this time John W gave a brief speech to thank all those attending as well as a special thanks to Darrelle and Brad for all their efforts in making the event so successful. Craig followed this up with a special thanks to John W (with the able assistance of Kaye) for the overall co-ordination of the event.

It was now time to cut a Z Car anniversary cake that had been baked by Kaye especially for the event. This was rather unique in having a banana flavoured end and a coconut end to cater for individual tastes.

Following this it was time to present The Z Car Club awards.

Craig presented the individual car awards while Jamie was responsible (as Point Score Officer) in presenting the Z Car Club’s point score awards.