More charging stations

Yep- more chargers where they are most needed- the the density of city centers. The real trick is how to get more chargers out in rural areas. That will be an interesting challenge.

The linchpin is battery storage.

and here is proof of concept- on the scale we need.

 

80% after 521,000 miles

It’s one of the most frequent questions I get from my riders. “How long do the batteries last?” Well, here is the definitive answer... that is until the batteries are improved which is likely to be very very soon.

Tesla battery life chart
Tesla Model S and Model X battery degradation chart [Credit: Matteo via Maarten Steinbuch]

Between rides…

wilsons phalaropes

Using the wayback machine you might remember a post about “What do you do while the Tesla is charging?”  The answer was “ski” of course. That was in the winter. In the summer between rides I try and sneak in to Hallam Lake at ACES with my camera and take a few snaps of the locals.

This week we’ve had:

 

A kingfisher A flock of Wilsons Phalaropes A blue winged teal duck and right before closing time….

Mama and cubby taking a quick bath to cool off in the heat 

Yes, very happy about that looooong zoom lens for those last two shots.

Belle the Golden Eagle
Belle the Golden Eagle

Of course we always say “Hi” to Belle the resident Golden Eagle who was rescued off Aspen Mountain in 1982. She can still fly but she can’t glide so ACES is now her permanent home.

more photography

More charging options in Aspen

Now there are three… yes that’s right… three DC chargers in Aspen. One at the Rio Grande Parking garage (where a CHAdeMO adaptor is provided for Teslas). One across from the airport at Pitkin County Public works; and the newest one a Chargepoint DC CHAdeMO in back of CP burger on Galena street.

 

 

fast charging in Aspen
Chargepoint in Aspen

You’ll want to put the Plugshare app on your phone for directions and to check and see if the station is currently occupied.

Isn’t electricity made with coal?

solar panel installation

Nope. Not here at Z3ro-G limo. Yes we have a charging station for the Tesla but no, it’s not powered by burning coal.

Here’s a picture of the fabulous crew from Sunsense Solar  installing more solar panels on the roof in 2016  . We’ve been solar since 2009 but with the Tesla it was time to add a few more panels.

solar panel installation
solar panel installation

You can see a few of the original panels to the right on the roof. Those are great during the summer but during the winter clearing snow off the panels isn’t that much fun so the new panels are mounted at an angle to take advantage of the sun in winter.

Oh, so close to 1 million… soooooo close…..