Triangle
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jun 26, 2023
- Threads
- 3
- Messages
- 48
- Reaction score
- 89
- Location
- Southern CA
- Vehicles
- R1S Launch Edition, 20" Brights, Ocean Breeze
- Occupation
- Cinematographer
- Thread starter
- #1
Hey everyone! Just thought I'd share my experience driving my R1S to burning man this year. I know there's a lot of anxiety about bringing an EV up there but the Rivian turned out to be the ultimate BM vehicle! I was able to hit 2x free Rivian chargers ea way (leaving/returning to SoCal) so the trip up there cost $46 and the return trip was $34. So that's $80 TOTAL for an 1150 mile road trip. I had a pioneer Rhino rack on top to carry bikes/shiftpod, but didn't notice any range reduction from it, though swinging bikes up above a glass roof in the rain was a bit anxiety inducing.
On the way in, I charged up to 95pct in Wadsworth at an Electrify America which is about 70 miles outside of BRC (Black rock city) and arrived at my camp with 65 pct battery remaining. I could have just let it sit for 8 days and then left without charging at all, but the camp had a big diesel tow plant so I just plugged into the 110v courtesy and charged to 75pct. I was planning on charging more before departure but the rains came in heavy and so I had to unplug everything.
No I wasn't one of those A-holes that bailed out at the first sign of rain, rutting the roads out. I waited until the DPW (dept of public works) gave the go ahead for 4x4 vehicles to attempt escape several days later. At 5am I made a run for it. Getting out of the city was tricky because the roads had been shredded by panicking RVs (most of which were now stuck). I made it to the road out and was then stopped by some DPW that pointed out that there was a 12ft wide "river of mud" I had to blast through at the end. I hit it at 20mph and got my first taste of the R1S's excellent off-road/mud capabilities. I made it through without issue and was headed home on empty roads.
Being that this is supposed to be an adventure vehicle, I didn't care about the mud/dust. Sure it got everywhere, but after a few washings you wouldn't know it from a garaged baby. My charge door definitely got some dust in its pivot mechanism but it still works fine with some added grumbling. The car was partially wrapped in Hexis bodyfence matte PPF, hence the mismatched panels. I installed it myself and only got half the vehicle wrapped before departure.
Overall she did fantastic! In 2022 I did see one R1T but I was the only one I saw this year. I saw one Tesla Y, and I did spot Musk's turn-key plug-and-play "private/restricted" camp on my way out. All the Musks bailed on their private jets as soon as the rain started, so they missed out on the muddy fun and left the camp cleanup to their hired "staff" LOL! Not very "Burner" of them if you ask me
I will be returning with my Rivian again next year for sure.
On the way in, I charged up to 95pct in Wadsworth at an Electrify America which is about 70 miles outside of BRC (Black rock city) and arrived at my camp with 65 pct battery remaining. I could have just let it sit for 8 days and then left without charging at all, but the camp had a big diesel tow plant so I just plugged into the 110v courtesy and charged to 75pct. I was planning on charging more before departure but the rains came in heavy and so I had to unplug everything.
No I wasn't one of those A-holes that bailed out at the first sign of rain, rutting the roads out. I waited until the DPW (dept of public works) gave the go ahead for 4x4 vehicles to attempt escape several days later. At 5am I made a run for it. Getting out of the city was tricky because the roads had been shredded by panicking RVs (most of which were now stuck). I made it to the road out and was then stopped by some DPW that pointed out that there was a 12ft wide "river of mud" I had to blast through at the end. I hit it at 20mph and got my first taste of the R1S's excellent off-road/mud capabilities. I made it through without issue and was headed home on empty roads.
Being that this is supposed to be an adventure vehicle, I didn't care about the mud/dust. Sure it got everywhere, but after a few washings you wouldn't know it from a garaged baby. My charge door definitely got some dust in its pivot mechanism but it still works fine with some added grumbling. The car was partially wrapped in Hexis bodyfence matte PPF, hence the mismatched panels. I installed it myself and only got half the vehicle wrapped before departure.
Overall she did fantastic! In 2022 I did see one R1T but I was the only one I saw this year. I saw one Tesla Y, and I did spot Musk's turn-key plug-and-play "private/restricted" camp on my way out. All the Musks bailed on their private jets as soon as the rain started, so they missed out on the muddy fun and left the camp cleanup to their hired "staff" LOL! Not very "Burner" of them if you ask me
I will be returning with my Rivian again next year for sure.
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