Well I bit the bullet too. I got the D3 for it's ISO capability, the other features I thought were just cream on the top. But it's surpassed all my expectations... and by a BIG margin.
I shot a cycle event last Sunday in the pouring rain for the latter half and would not have got some of the shots in the darkness on any other camera. Yes I used flash, until it short circuited in the rain!!
Also shot a local event on Tuesday evening, again rain but the sky was black. I dialled in ISO 1600 just to get a high enough shutter speed... I know it's lit up with flash but just look at the detail in this shot:
Hmmm I'll post it in the gallery and see if it looks as it should...
http://www.worldphotographyforum.com...00&ppuser=2776