Getting Ready / Background

Getting ready for the no-gas all-EV cross-country road trip from our house in the mountains above Santa Cruz California to the family farm in Emanuel county Georgia.

Background:

Ever since I was a little boy I wanted an electric car. When I saw the Aptera was being developed I got on the list and even weaseled my way to get to meet the founders and their families.  I even got to ride in a prototype. But when the company brought in "car guys" the company changed and they pushed the founders out... So I settled and bought a Nissan LEAF in 2011. I discovered range anxiety and figured out how to deal with it.

I put 94,000 miles on my 2011 until it was taken from me by some asshole who rear ended me on the freeway.  I got a 2014 for $800 and the insurance settlement (discovering how very cheap EVs were that were coming off lease).  After putting another 30,000 miles on it, I got the email that my Tesla Model 3 was going to be delivered. I traded in the LEAF and grabbed it.... Good bye range anxiety!

With Tesla's excellent SuperCharger Network I thought that it was finally possible to take that cross-country trip.  For the last 8 or 10 years all of us and their husbands and signifigant others have been meeting at the family farm in rural Emanuel county Georgia. What better excuse for a road trip than Seeing the whole family for Thanksgiving? Now to convince Suzanne that sitting in the car for 4 days each way was an adventure...

Getting ready:

Yesterday I ordered a new L6-30 extension cord and Tesla L6-30 adapter from EVSEAdapters.com so that I could use my large set of plug adapters on the trip.  Dryer outlets have changed over the years and I had every one of the variants that I would be able to use at the end of my new 30 foot extension cord. In addition to the charging items, I'm also outfitting the car with all the usual emergency tools and supplies for a road trip. Being a boy scout I've had to hold back on packing a tent...

Since it's probably going to be wet and ugly on the trip (it still hasn't rained in the Santa Cruz Mountains since March), I figured that I should probably get all-weather floor mats in addition to the tire plug kit and mini-compressor. Of course, not emergency kit is complete without a towel (remember the "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe").