National Drive Electric Week
Liberty Lake, WA
Sep 17, 2016
Liberty Lake, WA
Sep 17, 2016
Day: | Saturday, September 17, 2016 NOTE: this event has already happened, find current-year events on the Attend page. |
Time: | 9:00 am to 1:00 pm |
Location: | The Cork House 1400 N Meadowwood Lane Liberty Lake, WA 99019 |
Event Report
It was a rainy, soggy day which was not good for the event. Yet we got a great spread of cars including a Miata conversion, Smart ED, BMW X5 PHEV along with the usual Nissan and Tesla participants. Not as many people were heading through the next door Farmer's Market as we would have liked, so it turned into sort of a club meeting with like-minded people exchanging ideas. We're already talking about next year. Our local power company representative and a Genius from BMW were exchanging thoughts about how to get dealerships willingly involved. A big thanks to BMW, who were the only dealer to show up despite previous involvement from Nissan and Porsche. City Council candidate Andrew Biviano was in attendance. CBS affiliate KREM2 did a short news piece on the event with a brief interview with me, in which I urged the public to drive an EV. All the ecological and economical talk does not compare to the quiet, powerful sensation of taking one for a spin.
![]() photo by: David Klenda Chevy Volt, Nissan Leaf, BMW X540e, BMW i3 REX |
Event Description
![](https://media.ndew.org/e/e-529-nelmwidz.jpg)
The Inland Northwest EV/PV Group invites you to its third annual National Drive Electric Week event at the Cork House in Liberty Lake. Explore vehicles from Tesla, Nissan, BMW, Ford, Porsche and more. Learn from electric engineers, solar enthusiasts and plug-in car owners. Enjoy a ride along Liberty Lake's windy back roads to experience electric torque and a the balance of a chassis built around a battery.
Have you seen the plug-ins available and think they don't fit into your lifestyle? Are the automakers not building electric machines for you? The industry is built on supply and demand. Perhaps they don't perceive the demand. Come see what is possible with an electric powertrain. Then stand up and raise your voice.
Ask
why no one is building an electric pickup truck. Why is it so hard to
find a seven-passenger plug-in? Do city busses and postal vehicles
need to be gas-powered? Where is my electric minivan? The technology
exists. Demand that the automakers build the machine you want.
Image via Flickr by Janitors
Fossil-fuels and coal-derived electricity don't need to be the backbone of our energy beast. Learn how you can create your own power with home solar. Encourage Avista to expand on its Community Solar project in Spokane Valley. You can reduce your emissions and enjoy driving at the same time.
For
members of the EV/PV Group, it's not only about being clean and
efficient. If your internal combustion powered car only shot rainbows
out of its tailpipe, we still would rather drive ours. The throttle
response is so much quicker. All the power is available at 1 RPM. Why
don't electric cars have multi-gear transmissions? Because the “power
band” is not from 4000-6000 RPM. It's all the way up and back down.
Image via Flickr by Wesley Fryer
Automakers
strive for 50-50 weight distribution and low center of gravity.
That's because the heaviest part of the vehicle is the engine block,
which typically sits on one end of the machine above the axles. They
design the car to compensate for that imbalance. An electric car's
heaviest part is the battery, which is built low into the chassis and
spread evenly from wheel to wheel. Weight distribution and center of
gravity are not an issue. Put a pure electric car around a tight bend
and you'll see what we mean.
Do
you think you won't have enough range in an EV? Talk to people who
live every day with these cars and learn what it will be like. Range
anxiety is a product of inexperience. Learn what the car will do and
you will no longer be anxious.
And the day won't be just about cars and green energy. We invited along the Rieser and Rawley Acoustic Duo to play rock, country and blues. What's more energy efficient than an unplugged six-string and a drum kit? The star of last year's NDEW after-party will be right in the middle of the event this year. Join us at the Cork House for lunch after the event.
The
Drive Electric event is right next to the Liberty Lake Farmer's
Market, if you need another excuse to go. What's the worst that can
happen? Enjoy free music, get a ride in a fast car and shop for the
region's best produce. Not a bad way to spend a Saturday.
And
it might just change your life.
Image via Flickr by desertdutchman
Registered Attendees
There are currently 66 attendees registered.
Owners of These Vehicles Have Registered To Attend
Vehicle | Registered |
---|---|
Nissan Leaf (2011-2017) | 10 |
Tesla Model S | 4 |
EV Conversion | 2 |
Ford C-MAX Energi | 2 |
BMW i3 REx | 1 |
Brammo | 1 |
Chevrolet Volt | 1 |
Tesla Roadster | 1 |
8 Models | 22 |
Registered attendees report 283,914 electric miles driven.
In the News…
- Solar Acres Farm
- Show and tell August 10 at Felts Field
- Support Avista’s proposal recommendation will be issued on March 15 2016
- KXLY news clip
- Krem 2 news
- KREM 2 news clip on AVISTA proposal to add EV charging stations
- Spokane among 77 cities vying for $50 million transportation sweepstakes
- Avista wants to install 265 electric vehicle charging stations in Eastern Washington
- Front page artical from last year "Getting There: Electric, hybrid cars get their day"
- Electric Vehicles Will Beat Gas Cars Because They Are Better, Not Because They Are Cheaper Electric Vehicles (photo from last years event)