August 9, 2008 by Rob.

I decided to swing by today’s AustinEV meeting and it turned out to be a good thing… there was some confusion about the date and I was the only EV owner there for an hour.  We had a big crowd of EV curious (hopefuls?) and I love a stage!  Each meeting seems to bring out more and better informed enthusiasts. I hope some of them decide to take the plunge.

It looks like production EVs are about 3 years off so the urge for conversions will *probably* start to decrease.  If that happens, I suspect we’ll go from a conversion club to an driving experience focus.

Brian “Lasso” Lasseter rescued the meeting and we expanded the topics beyond just conversions to larger market trends.  I also got to see the excellent job he did with his Saturn SL conversion.  Very clean!  He chose 18 batteries (and gets 50 mile range) and also included an AC compressor.

Posted in EVents, Electric Vehicles, Pictures, AustinEV | 3 Comments »

July 19, 2008 by Rob.

I was invited to attend a Peak Oil meet-up and learned a lot and also left with a lot to think about.  Not about Peak Oil, but about sustainability and social change.  From today, it would appear that “Peak Oil” seems to envision a catastrophic societal change driven by limited oil supplies.  I’m 100% in agreement that we need to radically alter our demand for oil (and energy in general), but I think that macro-economics will drive a paradigm shift that is not Mad Max redux.  More on that on TribalGrid.

An amazing view to sustain the soul.

As the token EVer, I got to show off the RAVolt.  This group had great questions: more about why than how. One point I’ve been making is that EV conversions are not the wholesale solution to our gas problem.  Cars (especially SUVs) have a place and will be around for a long time, but our usage needs to shift to carpools, small electric vehicles, bikes, and walking.  In some cases this will require radical changes to the status quo.

Oil is an amazing fuel.  We’re lucky to have lived during a time when it was basically free.

Posted in EVents, Rants | 1 Comment »

May 31, 2008 by Rob.

This was posted to the AustinEV list:

You and your family are invited to join us at Ramsey Park this Sunday (43rd & Burnet – Central Austin) from 10a til 2p for an art project, play-day, picnic, and parent social:

“Green Tips from Great Kids.”

We’ll have ice water, lemonade, ice coffee, lots of shade, art supplies and a huge park to play in, plus special guests: Spiral Scouts, Future Craft Collective, GaGa, and Austin Eco School. *coffee provided by Pacha Coffee, biodegradable cups by GoodCommonSense
Please visit this link for more info: ttp://greentipsfromgreatkids.com/junefirstevent.html

What is it?
We’re inviting children and students aged 4 to 18 to flip the paradigm! Give adults advice, for once! Tell us what we should do about the environment! Be creative! Bring your words, your crafty skills, and your art! (Art supplies provided).
We are collecting work for possible publication in a book.

More info available via the website: GreenTipsfromGreatKids.com–

FUN! FREE! ELECTRIFYING?

Posted in EVents, AustinEV | 2 Comments »