EVCCON 2011 – 500 miles in a day (twice), in an EV

Reader Contribution by David Hrivnak
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I had the opportunity to attend the inaugural EVCCON 2011, an Electric Vehicle Conversion Conference in Cape Girardeau Missouri, hosted by Jack Rickard of EVTV fame.  With special pricing if you bring an electric vehicle I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to attempt a long distance road trip in an EV.  With Tennessee being part of the early adoption of EV charging I thought this 510 mile trip would be possible.  It just seemed wrong to drive a gas gulping truck towing an electric vehicle to the electric vehicle conference, hence the genesis of the trip. In summary the convention was terrific and the trip educational as it was challenging taking such a long trip in an EV.

The Trip Out – The general plan was to leave in the evening and drive about 200 miles then stop for the night while gathering a full charge.  The next morning drive about 100 miles take a leisurely lunch while getting a full charge then drive the last 200 miles to the show.  I was prepared with a plan B, and a plan C which was fortunate because with the current state of EV charging; traveling is a true adventure. 

I encountered the first challenge when I stopped at the KOA to stay the first night.  I called ahead to verify they had NEMA 14-50 plugs, but for some reason the Tesla charging cable would not work.  It seemed that campground had only 120V NEMA 14-50 not 240V service.  So after 20 minutes trying a few sites I gave up for plan B.  Thank goodness for Nissan and their preparation for the Leaf roll-out.  The Nissan of Cookeville, about 20 miles down the road, was generous to let me charge overnight.  A hotel was nearby and thus with a good bed and good charging, I was set.

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