Hello All,

 

Some of you may be shocked at the title because yes Japfest has changed its venue from the Old faithful (Castle Combe) to the new shiny Silverstone.

 

 

Quite a few things have changed this year with the booking process, so please read the below instructions carefully. What will be staying the same is that we have a combined stand with the 350Z/370Z club and Z Club, so it should be a good turn out for the Z's.

 

New Self Service Booking System

 

Japfest have changed the way club bookings work this year, meaning that individual club members can book their own tickets and vehicle passes for the clubs stand. Please follow the following instructions for a successful transaction:

• Club members must go to http://japfest.co.uk/club-info to book their tickets
  
• Select your Club (Z Club) from the menu and enter the Club's Personal Password - 215.408
  
• Proceed to select required tickets and place order - Make sure you choose 'Club Vehicle pass' to get on the club stand.
  
• Once booked, you will receive a confirmation email as proof of payment
  

Club space will be allocated on a first come first served basis. The deadline to book club tickets is Friday 18th March, subject to space availability.

 

If you have any difficulties, our club support helpline is available on 01959 543 724 between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday. Please call this number and do not PM me as I have no access this year.

 

Club Ticket Prices for 2016 Per Person

• Club Early Bird Package £48 - includes show entry at Japfest and show entry and pre-show camping at Japfest Rock! (previously Japfest 2) and Japfest Motorsport Heroes.
  
• Club Weekend Camping Ticket £28 - includes show entry and pre-show camping.
  
• Club Advanced Show Ticket £18 - includes show entry.
  
• We're also offering Early Bird Tracktime exclusively to clubs on the famous Silverstone National Circuit at just £30 per 20 minute session, saving £5 when booked before 31st January
  

When updating the list please put your username, ticket type wanted and when you have purchased. This lets us know how many we have attending.

 

Example. 370Ad - Stand Pass + Track Time - PAID

Beaulieu is a great day out for all. It's just the right size in beautiful settings.

I'm gona hug you first Si lol

I wasn't there as I have exams and couldn't afford the time away from revising but am going simply Japanese and looking forward to it.

 

From reading all comments, I feel as though those who were unhappy, bought a club ticket in thought of it being a club event/meet at a big event where the whole club go to japfest as a "team" (for lack of a better word) and then experience the day together, albeit some members do one things whilst others do other things but ultimately you go to meet and make friends.

 

IMO if you pay for a club ticket and have a stand, there should be some effort from members and organisers a-like to make it worthwhile otherwise you're just parking a few Z's next to each other and then do your own thing, that could be done in the car park and doesn't really feel like your together as a club.

 

I don't know if there where any organised convoys down or anything of that nature but that would be good to do (saw a few vids online of the Evos convoying down - granted it looked a bit chavy to outsiders, but for the club it probably felt great)

 

I need to note I haven't actually been to a National event and Simply Jap will be my first so I don't know if I'm talking s*** or not..

Thought I'd give my two-cents

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Come up to Coventry mate :)

 

I'm sure by then both of our exams will have finished

I'm gona hug you first Si lol

 

Awwww man! :blushing:

Come up to Coventry mate :)

 

I'm sure by then both of our exams will have finished

 

I finish on June 17th. Problem for me is my Z is at home in Cardiff so it's a bit of a journey. I'll definitely think about it!

I finish on June 17th. Problem for me is my Z is at home in Cardiff so it's a bit of a journey. I'll definitely think about it!

 

June 17 for me too. Being the AGM I'm prepared to make the trip up to Coventry, but I'll be a Beaulieu probably also.

As much as i hate to admit it, I do agree with Lexx mostly. IMO I think you were anticipating a large club meet, and not a national Japanese event.

 

It seems here like you are describing a club meet, so hopefully Coventry would be better suited to you're preference???

 

I believe you're missing my point.. I knew exactly what to expect from japfest as I have actually been before but didn't own a Z then.

My whole point here is that other than the hard work of 370AD in organising the club stand tickets etc, which IS TOTALLY appreciated by the members who booked, there was nothing else with any organisation at all.

My point here is that there are people who did make the effort to attend the event and that travelled a very long way to be there. The fact that they felt quite unwelcomed and alone on our club stand is not a nice way to think that our club has made one of its members feel.

As I said previously, I understand the fact that japfest is not a typical club event, like jae and the agm etc and I fully understand the point of people doing what japfest is about ie, looking around at other people's cars.

What I'm saying is, I was the second person to arrive behind adl phoenix if I remember correctly, and I pulled in to a car park with no guidance or clue about where to park, how to park etc.. There were no banners to indicate our stand.

In my opinion, the club could have put its own small touches on the event to make things a little more club orientated and help bring the members together for a short time and focus on our own cars aswell as the vast fields of others.

My friend attended with his celica club and they had a few nice touches added by the club.

 

The fact that we have quite a lot of members and the turn out was low was just disappointing and obviously, the fewer attendees, the less chance of people being around to chat etc..

 

I enjoyed the event, I just felt our stand was lackluster and very disorganised and after reading draxxan's post about how he and his wife felt, I actually feel quite gutted that one of our members felt this way whilst attending an event with our club.

 

I'm sure most, if not all of the members here, want everyone to feel welcomed and a valued part of our members team..

A good opportunity for those who aren't happy to make suggestions to possibly implement in Simply Jap. Smaller setting for testing :)

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

As much as i hate to admit it, I do agree with Lexx mostly.

 

 

What's so bad about agreeing with me?!

What's so bad about agreeing with me?!

Because it's not what Paul wanted the hear!

The fact that we have quite a lot of members and the turn out was low was just disappointing and obviously, the fewer attendees, the less chance of people being around to chat etc..

 

The main reason for low turn out is that Japfest is pretty much the first "show" of the season. A good majority of owners hibernate their Zeds over winter, and witht he weather over the past few months most won't look to tax until May/June. Also on top of that there is a high amount of club cars currently off the road for rebuilds/refurbs or general tinkering (I include my own in that).

 

A turn out of 10+ is a good turn out for a club that is relatively small and represents a car who numbers in the UK are not as great as many other marques.

 

Hell, when I organised the 25th anniversary meet at Coventry I had to fight tooth and nail to get the numbers into the 50's. And that was a dedicated club event, and I hammered the forum to death with info and reminders for months before hand.

The main reason for low turn out is that Japfest is pretty much the first "show" of the season. A good majority of owners hibernate their Zeds over winter, and witht he weather over the past few months most won't look to tax until May/June. Also on top of that there is a high amount of club cars currently off the road for rebuilds/refurbs or general tinkering (I include my own in that).

 

Also to add its not everyone's cup of tea, (example) FunkySi wouldn't go to an event anything like it because it's 'full of chavs with fibreglass bodykits'

I thoroughly enjoyed the day , however I did feel it was lacking the relaxed friendly feel of some of the castle coombe japfests of 3 or 4 years ago where there were a lot more 300s and lots of people sat around the cars chatting.

the tarmac pitch was obviously of benefit due to the weather (heared a lot of clubs on grass complaining), but it did feel a a bit carpark , where castle coombe grass on a sunny day was nicer.

not a complaint, just an observation

 

what I did think was shit was when we all got back from the first track sessions all the spaces were taken

 

also thought the japfest program (magazine ) was shit and overpriced. they had removed all the track time info from the website so if you wanted to know what was on when you had to hunt down a small black gazebo and buy the info for £5

if you wanted to know where the different club stalls was , the same £5 got you a map with a large area labelled "club stalls" but no more info than that, and it didn't even show the area over the bridge where most of the club stalls were as even existing. I would have expected at least with the club stall booking to get a map and a track time included

i should have had banners with me, but i only remembered when i was nearly there.

had been out all day on saturday, so did not get a chance to dig them out of the shed and get prepared.

 

as a z-club stand, the turnout was impressive, including our club.

when you look at the evo's, scooby's etc stands, they cover all of the various incarnations, much like z-club try to do, so their stands always look bigger.

if you split them down into evo iv's, evo v's, evo vi's for example, they would be smaller turnouts.

 

of the z's, the 350z is the current affordable modifiable car of choice, hence they have more members, of which more of them will attend events.

this is just the way that all car clubs go, as the models get older.

it comes down to the dedicated hard core enthusiasts to keep the faith.

 

with our club, this enthusiasm dips and peaks.

it has always been difficult to find someone willing or able to take on the organisation of club stands at all of these events, because not many people attend all of them. this is why we have regional organisers, to help organise things locally.

 

but when people stop attending, then organisers stop organising.

but also, as shows become more commercial, the entry prices increase to stupid levels.

turn up on the day, and pay £25 per person, to walk round a massive car park with a couple of trader stalls?

after a while, this gets a bit deja vu

 

if anyone has ideas and wants to help turn this around, then step up, talk to me and the committee, lets work something out.

 

this is why we are focussing on an annual club specific event, to try and encourage some club spirit back, and meet with members to discuss how to move forward.

 

come to coventry, bring your ideas, bring your enthusiasm, and make a difference

Because it's not what Paul wanted the hear!

 

Like I said, you're missing my point.. I agree with Lexx and if you read my posts about this you'd see that I have said that japfest is all about going around and seeing the OTHER CARS AND THE DRIFTING, STALLS ETC..

Regardless of what people think I want to hear, the one thing I don't want to hear is that a member of our club has felt the way draxxan did when attending a club stand at an event...

Anyway, I'm not gonna keep on about it because it seems that nobody is really understanding me here, but all I will say is this.

Draxxan, I apologise if you felt unwelcomed and I'm sorry you felt this way. I spent a lot of the day in or around my car recovering from the nights camping, so I'm sorry if I didn't appear approachable or made you or your wife feel the way you did..

Rest assured things will be different on our next meeting.. I'd have liked to have chatted more to you about your car and gotten to know you both a little too.

 

I'll leave it there..

i should have had banners with me, but i only remembered when i was nearly there.

had been out all day on saturday, so did not get a chance to dig them out of the shed and get prepared.

 

as a z-club stand, the turnout was impressive, including our club.

when you look at the evo's, scooby's etc stands, they cover all of the various incarnations, much like z-club try to do, so their stands always look bigger.

if you split them down into evo iv's, evo v's, evo vi's for example, they would be smaller turnouts.

 

of the z's, the 350z is the current affordable modifiable car of choice, hence they have more members, of which more of them will attend events.

this is just the way that all car clubs go, as the models get older.

it comes down to the dedicated hard core enthusiasts to keep the faith.

 

with our club, this enthusiasm dips and peaks.

it has always been difficult to find someone willing or able to take on the organisation of club stands at all of these events, because not many people attend all of them. this is why we have regional organisers, to help organise things locally.

 

but when people stop attending, then organisers stop organising.

but also, as shows become more commercial, the entry prices increase to stupid levels.

turn up on the day, and pay £25 per person, to walk round a massive car park with a couple of trader stalls?

after a while, this gets a bit deja vu

 

if anyone has ideas and wants to help turn this around, then step up, talk to me and the committee, lets work something out.

 

this is why we are focussing on an annual club specific event, to try and encourage some club spirit back, and meet with members to discuss how to move forward.

 

come to coventry, bring your ideas, bring your enthusiasm, and make a difference

 

I'll be coming to Coventry Craig and I'd like to chat about how we can improve upon the club's enthusiasm for attending events.. 99% of the people I've met here are diamonds and to be honest I'd like to see everyone getting together on club events and really interacting and having some fun together. The jae event last year was a cracking one and I'm gutted I couldn't stay for the duration as I really was enjoying myself there...

Anyway, the agm at Coventry I'm looking forward to.

Hopefully I'll be able to get more involved in organising some events and doing my bit to enhance the club's fun factor..

I'll be coming to Coventry Craig and I'd like to chat about how we can improve upon the club's enthusiasm for attending events.. 99% of the people I've met here are diamonds and to be honest I'd like to see everyone getting together on club events and really interacting and having some fun together. The jae event last year was a cracking one and I'm gutted I couldn't stay for the duration as I really was enjoying myself there...

Anyway, the agm at Coventry I'm looking forward to.

Hopefully I'll be able to get more involved in organising some events and doing my bit to enhance the club's fun factor..

 

For me personally, JAE was pretty weak last year. Partly due to our club stand but primarily because the whole event seemed really disjointed and, as ever, all the clubs seemed to keep pretty much to themselves.

 

I've never been to Japfest but I imagine that the main attraction for that kind of event isn't all the static displays from various clubs, but is all the things such as drifting or track action. Competing with those sorts of things, a club stand is always going to come in as a poor runner-up.

 

Take, for example, the Nissan Experience that I attended last year. You had a field chock full of beautiful cars, and people weren't hugely interested in them. Why not? Because there were passenger rides in bona fide drift cars on offer... and passenger laps on the track... and spectators could of course stand and watch all of this, rather than looking at cars in a field.

 

It's simply one of those things.

 

Draxan's thoughts and feelings regarding Japfest strike me as being a little odd considering his activity within this club has been incredibly small since he pranged his Zed however long ago! It's the equivalent of me turning up at a Celica Club meet and wondering why nobody's really bothered about me being there. Whilst nobody likes to attend any sort of show and be ignored, people in turn need to have activity here so other members at these shows have an idea who the hell they are!

 

The above is, of course, just my personal opinion.

 

I think it's a shame that there were no club banners on display, but I don't know the reason for that. I do think, however, that on overhaul of the REO and NEO positions is in order - here in the North East, for example, we have two REOs who I like to think I'm pretty good friends with: Bird and Harby300. One of them is hardly ever present on here nowadays and the other hasn't, to my knowledge, organised anything locally for absolutely ages!

 

This isn't a dig at either of them, by the way - it's simply a statement of fact. I'd love to get to more shows and meets this year, but locally at least, there aren't any. Not unless I want to go and hang around the Metro Centre under a huge police presence due to the amount of idiots that attend these things!

 

I thought Lexx did a superb job as NEO but the man's free time is limited by both work and family. I imagine the same goes for a lot of members on here. It's not a position I'd personally want to take on, but I feel that we need someone who will. Something like Japfest should be classed as a national event and, as such, needs an NEO to take the reins and ensure that things like club banners and the like are organised and present.

 

The Z32 has a very small presence here in the UK and, as a club, we could all do a lot more to enhance it's profile. We simply need someone or someones to take that responsibility on board...