I thought I would arrive before 9am, before the 9a-1p EVent was to begin, but as I came around to enter the entrance, I purposely passed it because I was amazed at how many plugins were already there, as I could see them parked to display their personal vehicles and chat/yak with any and all of the public that came. I had previously contacted the NDEW coordinator. His plate was already full other other non-NDEW tasks, when he was assigned this additional work-load. So, with his permission, I did some of the (unofficial) legwork, and submitted it to him for his use (in my 30 years of attending, coordinating, and helping at these EVents, a lot more gets done if you don't seek all the credit, and just hand-it-off on a platter= things get done that way). An done they were. The drivers were all together, so they could network and chat with each other (keeping drivers happy means they likely will attend again). There was a wide variety of plugin brands/models/types for the public to view. But this was not the same location as the last two years being held in (locally renown/famous) Pearl Brewery Shopping Center. So, many of those year's public foot-traffic didn't know the EVent was relocated. The NDEW coordinator tried to hold it again at Pearl, but he could get a hold of the Center's Mgr. With EVent date near, time was running out. So, he punted, relocating the EVent to be held at the Wonderland-of-the-Americas Shopping Mall. That location had lots of potential, but where the Mall Mgr allowed the EVent to be held (in the back of the target between their dumpsters and Burlington-store) meant nil foot traffic (nobody knew we were there, nor what we were doing or why). If the EVent coordinator had been given the time and resources, more pr/public awareness could have happened by contacting the media (TV & radio stations, etc.) and place the EVent on several social media calendars, etc. As it was, the first half of the EVent was the drivers having a good time mingling, enjoying themselves, but no public foot traffic. And as usual at these EVents, it wasn't until the end of the EVent do the public actually come. And those were only a few. So few, there weren't any crowds or long lines for EV rides. The few public that came during the last 2 hours had all those plugins to themselves to peruse, gander-at, sit in, and get rides in. >From my perspective, it was a much different experience than the previous 2 years when it was held at Pearl Brewery. Back then, I was talking EVs non-stop to all the passersby. But at this EVent, I was at a slower pace, which had its moments to reflect on. In this part of South Central Texas, reminds me a-lot of what it was like in the 1990's back when I began talking to the public about plugins in Silicon_Valley-CA. Similarly, many of the sa public don't know the facts about EVs. They only have the misinformation, and fears spewed by the local media. Oh sure, they have heard of the name Tesla, but have never sat or ridden in one. Nor, did they know that there are a plethora-of/several other plugins available both new and at lower-cost, used plugin vehicles. But there were several reminders of how much I knew and of when not to (data-) dump that EV-history on them. Example, it is best to talk about what is currently available in the here and now. And only after they know, and still want to talk EVs, to I elude to the long past of trying to get automakers to produce EVs. I qualify what I am to say as I am an old, old-school ... as I go back to the days of GM's 1st 1990's EV, the EV1. Many of the sa public don't know of the GM EV1 nor, of the movie 'Who killed the Electric car'. I told them there is a free download of it on Youtube https://www.google.com/search?q=Who+killed+the+Electric+car&tbm=vid There there was a gal that looked very much like Clare Bell (an EVangel long before I ever was). The woman I talked to was pleased to know of the We're it Woman's EV racing team that built and raced their own EVs. I also regaled her with more of Claire's efforts like she supported the PIVCO CityBee EV as part of the SF-CA station car program https://www.google.com/search?q=electric+PIVCO+CityBee+station+car+program&tbm=isch The gal had no idea there was such a rich EV past with so many people involved. She was especially intrigued when I told her that Claire was also part of the wilder racing crowd of the time, that built and raced electric shopping carts. She thought that was pretty wild, until I let her know that crowd also raced Electric Bar Stools (an even more wild-n-wooly/dangerous sport). I'll end this with a note of all my personal 'one on one' efforts to inform the sa public of this EVent. On the EVent's last hour, a different gal I had talked to at a sa local grocery about this NDEW. She saw me from afar, and sought me out. She outreached her to shake mine, saying 'thank you' (for letting her know), that this is everything you said it was. Its likely she had never seen some many plugins in one place. I am pretty sure after talking to all the other drivers of each brand and model plugin, she came away much more EV-informed. Which is the whole purpose of having these NDEW EVents: to offset all the media's misinformation, and show there is a huge community of plugin adopters enjoying daily-driving Electric on our roads and highways. So, was the EVent a bust, No. It was good, many had fun, and a few of the sa local public were now, much more plugin knowledgeable. For EVLN EV-newswire posts use: http://evdl.org/archive/ {brucedp.neocities.org} -- Sent from: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/ _______________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub ARCHIVE: http://www.evdl.org/archive/index.html INFO: http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
