The Electric Americas Foundation is filming a documentary as they travel the Pan American Highway in two Tesla electric vehicles.
The founders of the Electric Americas Foundation, a non-profit organization 501 (c) 3, drive across America from Alaska to Patagonia using Tesla electric vehicles, and are making a documentary about their driving. The journey is long and crosses 20,000 miles in seven months, ending in December 2022 if all goes according to plan. Since we published the first article about this trip, I spoke with Martin Canabal, the founder who has already started the trip.
The team consists of Martin, his wife and newborn, and Tuti Iraola and Oliver Umpierre. As they travel through 12 countries, they will work with local authorities, organizations and schools to raise awareness of climate change while promoting sustainability initiatives, all proving that today it is possible to travel without the use of fossil fuels.
Martin told me that he would create a series of documents highlighting individuals and organizations dedicated to sustainable initiatives and promoting a better and longer future for our planet. He told me that on the way he would meet fellow athletes and present ideas that inspire him while experiencing the beautiful and diverse landscapes of each country he visits.
Electric Americas drives the Pan-American Highway at 2 Tesla
Photo courtesy of Electric Americas.
The team will drive the Pan-American Highway, which is the longest highway in the world. The highway starts in Alaska and ends in Patagonia, which is located in Chile and Argentina.
Patagonia is considered by many to be the “end of the world”, as Chile is the southernmost country in the world.
“We drive electric cars from Alaska to Patagonia. We have two Teslas – one Model X and one Model 3. And we want to prove that we can drive the Pan-American Highway using electric cars. ”
Many vehicles drove on the Pan-American Highway, from passenger cars to bicycles, Martin told me, but never with an electric vehicle.
“If we can cross the Pan-American Highway with an electric vehicle, there’s no excuse for the average person not to use electric cars.”
Their final destination, he told me, would be Ushuaia, which is the southernmost city before Antarctica. Martin told me that the team expects the trip to last at least seven months. He explained that the average range is 250 miles and that in certain conditions I can drive up to 250 miles if needed. They’ve done it before.
The Documentary
Photo courtesy of Electric Americas.
The documentary is a documentary series that shows extreme sports and sustainable initiatives along the Pan American Highway. A series of documents will help prove that accelerating the transition to a sustainable future is not only possible but also necessary to avoid climate change and the disasters that result. The mission is to highlight the strength, need and importance of sustainable initiatives to achieve this goal.
The documentary will present organizations that offer solutions for a sustainable future. In each of the countries through which the team travels, professional athletes will join as protagonists to share the work of these organizations. Stories that inspire and highlight the accomplishments of environmental heroes across America will be included.
The message of the documentary is in line with what Tesla CEO Elon Musk often says:
“As long as we work hard and are complacent, the future will be great.”
This is a response to climate change and its response. Elon Musk often says that if we continue to work on it, we will solve climate change. The documentary will nicely complete Tesla and her mission.
Martin told me that he and the team plan to interview different people during the trip, from political representatives to athletes. “We are talking to government officials about what they are doing. Sustainable energy is along our path from here to Argentina and we are learning a lot. We only spent two weeks on the trip and it was amazing. Great people and amazing initiatives. ”
Charging challenges, especially in Alaska
@elonmusk it could be strategic to build super chargers and service centers in Alaska. pic.twitter.com/O52reuNhOS
– 🏳️🌈 Earl of FrunkPuppy) (@ 28delayslater) May 9, 2022
While Martin and I were talking on the phone, they literally just arrived in Whitehorse, Canada. They started their trip to Anchorage, Alaska a week ago. The weather, he told me, was super nice and fantastic, with cold nights and nice days. We talked about weather and mosquitoes for a moment, and then he shared some of the challenges with me.
One of the challenges was to find a place to charge the EV. Although they managed to find charging sockets in RV parks, the topic of Superchargers and Alaska emerged. Tesla is rapidly expanding its Supercharger network at an incredible pace and has drastically reshaped the landscape for charging electric vehicles – which is a great thing. However, Alaska still needs Tesla’s love.
Earl of @ 28DelaysLater he recently moved to Alaska and asked Elon Musk and Tesla to install more Superchargers there. Earl is not alone in this request. Martin told me about the challenges and how he solved them.
“We planned the first part of the trip in Alaska and Canada, but there are not many Tesla chargers, not even level 2 chargers. There are some Level 2 in the Yukon, but they have a different connection. We have adapters, but not here. They are currently in San Francisco.
“The amazing thing about this place is that even if we don’t have EV chargers, there are a lot of RV parks, so we plan to charge in RV parks.”
The first problem the team faced, he told me, was that one of the parks where they planned to charge was closed. It is never open for the season.
“We had to solve the problem, but I’m an engineer, so I like to do it! We searched a bit and all RV parks had 30 amp plugs, so we basically made an adapter to use it. It’s basically 30 amps to 50 amps, but switching some wires worked. It took a little longer, but we managed to recharge and continue on our route. “
The difference between this trip and Chris Ramsey’s upcoming trip
Photo courtesy of Electric Americas.
I recently wrote about Chris Ramsey’s upcoming trip to the Nissan Ariya E-4ORCE. Ramsey will be driving on the same highway as Martin, and his team and Martin pointed out that the difference between the two trips is not just in electric vehicles. Martin’s team did not specifically prepare their Tesla for the trip. These are EVs that the average consumer can buy and drive. Martin wanted to make this trip with cars that anyone can buy and simply drive. He also shared a lot of enthusiasm and support for Chris Ramsey, and I think both teams will help unravel a lot of misinformation about electric vehicles.
Convenience of the Tesla supercharger
Photo courtesy of Electric Americas.
While Tesla would do well to install more Superchargers in more remote areas, such as Alaska, it doesn’t take away too many conveniences and ease of charging. In fact, Tesla’s expansion of its network has made charging easier and better continuously, especially now compared to 2020.
“When you have a Tesla Supercharge, I think it’s pretty easy. It’s even better than a gasoline car. Usually, if you drive long rides, you only have to stop to rest. I think it’s safe to do so. So, using a supercharger is quite convenient. You charge, rest or eat, and sometimes you want the charge to last longer because you haven’t finished the food yet and you have to move the car.
“I think it’s super convenient, but I think that the trip we are going on now is not for everyone and that we have prepared and planned. We have a lot of adapters and it’s not for everyone. But it’s getting better every year.
“We planned this trip for 2020, but we couldn’t because of Covid. And now we have planned everything and we can find a lot of other chargers that were not available at the time. So, in two years, even with Covid, the charging situation is much better – not in this area where we are now, but we already planned to charge here using RV parks if I had adapters for CCS or CHAdeMO. I could charge here in Whitehorse. There is a company in the Yukon government that installs a lot of Level 3 chargers in many places and along many routes. I think next year would be even better. “
One thing Martin and his team do is educate others about charging electric vehicles when they get to the camper camp. He told me that in every RV park where they had been charging so far, people were worried about how much energy would be needed to charge Tesla.
“We are telling everyone how much energy is actually needed. Not so much. We can charge $ 11-15 for energy – full charge. But they are always worried about it, and of course I understand their point of view.
“The other thing I tell them in RV parks is that if you already have 50 amps or 30 amps, installing an EV charger is basically just a machine and costs $ 1,000, and there are more and more EVs on the road every day. So I think we should install EV chargers and people will just come to charge and spend money in RV parks. It is good money for RV parks to add this to their services. If they do, people will not be afraid to travel in EV vehicles and we will have more chargers. I think it will be normal for five years to travel across America in EV vehicles. “
He added that traveling in an EV is more affordable than in a traditional gas vehicle. Another thing Martin wanted to share with me was that during his week in Anchorage all the EV chargers he was charging on were free to use. They could easily spend hundreds of dollars on gasoline.
“I think that was great.”
Carbon footprint compensation
Photo courtesy of Electric Americas.
Martin pointed out that in many places energy is not 100% renewable, and that includes Alaska. One of the criticisms of electric vehicles is that they are charged with electricity produced in coal or gas, and this is absolutely true in many parts of the world. Martin and his team are monitoring how much energy they are spending on charging and plan to make up for it. One of the critical ways to compensate for this is the fact that electric vehicles do not produce greenhouse gases.
“We are calculating everything so that we can compensate with carbon credits. We know that in most places – in Alaska, for example – most energy is not renewable. “
I plan to stay in touch with Martin throughout the trip, so stay with us for a few sequels during the trip.
If you want to donate or contribute to the trip, you can do so here. You can follow their journey here as well. You can also watch the trailer for the documentary here.
Appreciate the originality of CleanTechnice? Consider becoming a CleanTechnica member, support, technician or ambassador – or patron at Patreon.