SUSTAINABLE TRAVEL SOLUTIONS
Driving across Europe doesn’t need to cost the earth, and after a heated debate with a bar-stool warrior in my local, who will remain nameless (Jason), we decided to prove him wrong.
Jason’s gripe was that electric vehicles were rubbish because he couldn’t do his annual trip to Cornwall without stopping to charge. Which doesn’t add up for various reasons. Pull up a pew and grab a brew as we unpack the issue.
EV MYTHBUSTING
Firstly, the average person only drives around 20 miles a day in the UK. And most modern electric cars have a range of well over 200 miles. Some can do over 400 miles.
Lets not discount the fact that driving to Cornwall is a long road trip (depending on where you live). Lets say London to Cornwall is our route – Which is around 250 miles and will take around 5 hours depending on traffic.
The fact is, unless you have the bladder of an elephant, you’re gonna need to stop at least once on your journey, and most services now have rapid chargers, meaning that in the space of 20 minutes or so, you can get a decent top up to make sure you reach your destination with charge to spare. See our videos below on charging tips with “Paua” and destination charging tips with “Osprey”.
I digress! When Jason scoffed at the capabilities of electric cars, I found myself fumbling for facts, and wish I had “The Little Book of EV Myths” by Quentin Willson up my sleeve. But, I didn’t, and found myself stewing over our conversation and shared my ordeal with the team the next day. We immediately started plotting an epic road trip to prove him wrong! Oh, and also to show everyone how a trip to Cornwall could be done.
EVENGERS ASSEMBLE!
“Barstool Jase” had clearly hit a nerve, as I found myself retelling the experience to various clients, who luckily sniffed a story and a creative content opportunity, and quickly hopped on board to help make this zero emission mission a reality.
Firstly, our friends at Select Car Leasing were champing at the bit. But told us we weren’t aiming high enough. Literally. To make it a real challenge, they suggested the Alps. In winter. With French farmers revolting and blocking roads! “Ooh la laa” we said. This could get tricky.
We knew we’d need a decent EV for such a mission, and as luck would have it, we’d been hanging out with Kim Palmer and the crew at Polestar, who were eager to show the art of the possible and suggested the all new Polestar 2 MY24. Yes please, we said.
“DO YOU SKI?”
If you’ve never skied before, you’re missing out. It’s one of life’s great experiences. But one that is under threat as climate change threatens the way of life in mountain communities. And this is something we were keen to examine. And what was being done to combat the problem.
I know what you’re thinking… Skiing isn’t the most accessible or sustainable of sports and after a bit of digging, we discovered that France have a special badge of honour for those doing their bit for the environment and that Val D’isere held the Green Globe Label. We set our sat nav for Val!
SNOWBALL EFFECT
When cousin Sam Pinkham got wind of our adventure, he suggested we talk to the awesome team at VIP Ski to help with accommodation. Turns out the UK based company are super eco conscious and were eager to support our mission and amplify the messaging that driving is a great alternative to flying. Oh, and they also offered us a great deal to stay at one of their chalets, which came with its very own Evie – aka our chalet host, cook and honorary director for the trip!
SUMMARY
So, if you’re doubting the capabilities of electric cars, have range anxiety or fear the thought of charging abroad, dive into our video and let us know if you have any questions.
This video will show you not only how to drive to the Alps and back in an EV, but also give you great charging tips; advice on some of the most beautiful places to stop en route and teach you how to ski… Kind of!
If you’d like to suggest a destination for our next zero emission mission, drop us a line or comment with your thoughts.
Cheers, Ric.
