July 30, 2000



To all of our Metropolitan & Z3 friends and family,

It is our great pleasure to be able to communicate with all of you for reasons you will soon read about.  Last 
week we combined business with pleasure and took a 1,200 mile trip in our dark green 1997 BMW Z3 with 
the new Dinan chip and cool air intake upgrade to Kansas City, MO. On the trip out we stayed at interesting 
places and met interesting people. The Hotel in Kansas City, Mo. was first class. I (Bob) even went to a part 
of a session of Susan's conference.  Best of all, I got to drive the Metropolitan I sold to a fine gentleman in 
KC. After great dining and a high quality dinner theater (as the guest of the great couple I sold the car to) 
we started back to PA. The rest is history.

Hopefully, the next time you see us in a Z3 it won't be green, but yellow. Why? Because an International 
truck with no trailer decided it liked the rear end of our little Z3 better than we did, and some other truck 
decided to take the front end under its belly. (Z sandwich anyone?) Needless to say, it was a spectacular 
crash! See the pictures of what's left of our poor little Z3 (glad we didn't name it) that obviously gave its life 
for ours (what a great car!)

We escaped with only minor injuries. The state police said we should have been killed.  The rescue workers 
didn't want to look inside the car because they were afraid of the carnage. They pried open my door and I 
actually got up and walked away with only a scrape on the back of my leg ('tis but a scratch!) and a bump on 
the head. The top was up because of the rain and I guess I hit my head on the top support bar (bow). (A 
man walked into a bar and it hurt!) I limped about and was able to look at the scene from the three lane 70 
mph road before the rescue folks realized that I was the driver of the car and in shock. They threw me on the 
ol' back board and put a neck brace on me before I had a chance to tell any corny jokes.  Susan had an 
encounter with what we think was the edge of the trunk lid, which gave her a deep scalp wound and other 
scalp lacerations when the trunk lid came up through the rear plastic window. She was unconscious for a 
while. I took her pulse and knew she was breathing (she remembers nothing, but will still be able to do our 
federal and state taxes next year, yea!)  I opened the top and the rescue workers lifted her out unbroken, but 
knocked out. (A brain walked into a bar and the bartender said, "Hey I can't serve you. You're out of your 
head!")

Anyway, we were roomies in the ambulance, emergency room and hospital room, although they made me 
sleep on the couch by the nurse's station for fear I would tell another joke. We found out later that we were 
part of a seven truck chain reaction accident and the Z3 was the only car involved. There was one confirmed 
fatality and probably another since the guy in the next bay (oops, the ER is not a garage) in the hospital was 
flown out to another trauma unit. He was thrown out of his vehicle because he wasn't wearing his seat belt.   
The hospital closed its ER because all 22 rooms were filled. I had X-rays and was discharged for telling bad 
jokes and Susan had a cat scan, X-rays, and EKG along with a bunch of other tests and spent the night for 
observation for her concussion.  I stayed all night also because they frown on street people wandering about 
aimlessly in Independence, MO. The rescue squad and the hospital were wonderful and I even ate their 
hospital food, which is sometimes more frightening than the trauma of an accident.

Our new friends from Kansas City who bought my happy Metropolitan came to our rescue and picked us up 
at the hospital, helped us retrieve our luggage (such as is was) from the rescue squad and to pick through the 
wreckage of the car. We had visited a winery in Herman, MO on our way and a bottle of wine and 
champagne actually survived in the trunk so we can christen our new Z3 when we get it.

Our new saintly friends from KC then dropped us off at an airport hotel in KC and we flew home to 
Baltimore for $185 each since the only flight to Philly was $675 each one way because of the Republican 
Convention, (and they say only politicians are crooks!)  Today I'll return the rental car. Susan sleeps a lot, 
but now keeps food down. We will see our doc soon. I'll ask him if I'll still be able to play the violin, since I 
never could play it in the first place. (Drum roll and groans). Stitches come out Friday and we're off to our 
Metropolitan regional meet in Macungie, PA for the weekend. I have a cervical spine strain (I always was a 
pain in the neck) and rib contusion (I didn't bring the barbecue sauce) so it only hurts when I cough, laugh or 
burp Mexican food. When I lay down I have to take my hands to lift my head from the bed or I would lay 
there like a slug, unable to get up. ("Help, I've laid down and I can't get up!") Now I know what it feels like 
to be 91 instead of 51. (A beautiful woman offered a 91-year-old man some super sex and he told her he 
would take the soup - laugh track to be played here). Today I think I'll forgo the work out at the gym and 
just play a few sets of tennis after I cut the lawn and plow the south 40. Anyway, the pictures tell the rest of 
the story (the air bags didn't work - I guess they called in sick that day). BMW would probably like to find 
out why they didn't deploy. Maybe the car thought I had enough hot air to keep all of us safe.  But even 
without the airbags we're just fine!!

I have written this, but Susan just got showered with a silly plastic bag over her hair to keep the stitches dry 
and walked in to edit, correct my spelling and punctuation because she says there are two important things in 
life:  you should always wear clean underwear in case you are in an accident and you should never send a 
sloppy email. (Yes, we both had clean underwear on, but Susan's new bra got cut off along with the seat belt 
and some other clothes!!) 

Obviously our expiration date wasn't up and we still have some shelf life left before we turn rancid!  We are 
really looking forward to seeing all of you in the future. Keep driving those Z3s and other fun cars! We'll be 
ordering our new YELLOW Z3 soon!

It's great to be alive!!

Fondly -- Bob and Susan

Highfield Z3 Adventures - The Series Continues
Chapter 2


On a dark, but moonlit Friday night, the Highfield's took their new 2000 Z3 on a trip through the Catskills of 
New York, not realizing that their unique little car (a.k.a. Yellow Duckie) was also a skilled deer hunter. 
Yep, Yellow Duckie got her first deer before the season officially started! 

Yellow Duckie had eight deer from which to choose when they all leapt in front of her in the dark of night 
(did Santa know his team was out on the town?). Yellow Duckie spotlighted the largest deer and didn't 
duck. Instead, she took careful aim at deer number 3 (a.k.a. Prancer) and BAM! 
 
Unfortunately, the deer died and Yellow Duckie was injured. She took a dive and her feathers were ruffled. 
We regret to report that Yellow Duckie is a bit down right now. We're afraid that her wings are clipped and 
we will not be able to join in any upcoming cruises.  Prancer did a lot of body damage to poor Duckie's bill 
(a.k.a. hood) in addition to breaking the fan and puncturing the radiator.  In fact, Yellow Duckie puddled up 
and was barely able to waddle off the highway.  Although her engine still started, all her lights were broken 
and she couldn't see to drive. Even her German license plate "DU:K 612" was damaged.  Poor Duckie! 
However, in proper BMW engineering tradition, we, the occupants, were not injured in any way, except 
maybe our pride.
 
At the present time, Yellow Duckie is nesting in a body shop in Liberty, NY until she's able to fly again. If 
the insurance end goes well, she will be delivered back to her cozy barn in Quarryville via rollback truck 
within the next month.  We are told that she will receive a large bill in the $8,000 to $10,000 range. 

Until Duckie is mended, the body shop lent us a car to use. Unfortunately, it's an "Arrest Me Red" Grand 
Am with New York license plates. As a result, not far from home on our way back from our Catskills 
adventure, the car and plates attracted the attention of a small town cop who was trying to boost his town's 
ticket quota. However, when the sympathetic officer heard our sad tail and realized that we were local, he 
reduced the speeding fine to the same amount as our recent state property tax rebate. The State giveth and 
the State taketh away. 

Once again, we were not injured because of the Z3's design and safety features! So ....... Don't drive like 
us... and Z U later!!
Bob and Susan
It's a bird, it's a plane, no - it's Yellow Duckie!!

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