I love driving. I love driving EVs. Hence the challenge of driving 1200 miles around Scotland in an EV was not an opportunity I could miss. No this isn’t an autumn holiday but means I’m be taking part in the EV Rally of Scotland in a Polestar 2. I haven’t driven this route before, and nor have I driven this car before, so it is all new and exciting territory.
EV Rally of Scotland or ‘EVROS’ is a 5-day event for electric vehicles, covering some of Scotland’s most rugged and hilly terrain including iconic landmarks such as John O’Groats and Ben Nevis. Covering over 1200 miles - that’s over 150 miles per day and one mega day covering 315 miles – who better to be the breakdown partner of this event than the AA?
The AA will be on hand to support along this epic journey – using the best of our EV technical expertise. I’m doing the full trip but will have co-drivers including Dean Hedger, AA new business development manager, will be there to offer advice as an expert on B2B service charging points and Gavin Franks, our Head of B2B. Our Patrol of the Year will be accompanying the drivers offering expertise in terms of fixing and towing EVs. In short, there will be AA support from some of our best patrols to back it up if things go wrong.
In addition, DriveTech, the driver risk management operation within the AA, is official Driver Training Partner to EVROS, and will field a team in the rally using a VW ID.3 driven by Keith Freeman and Emma Loveday. Already nicknamed ‘EV Keith’ by the organisers, Keith is a qualified driver trainer and has helped DriveTech develop dedicated EV familiarisation training for businesses operating fleets (online, on road or workshops) and will be offering an EV driving tip of the day during the rally.
EVROS is a real test for EVs. The challenge will be more like the real world where 30-35% of drivers don’t have access to charging overnight due to living in flats or terraced houses – so there’ll be no overnight charging – just charging on the way. And a further challenge with the location is that with the colder conditions, battery life will be slightly reduced, and hill climbing will be using more energy than usual. With good planning and charge points working (and maybe a bit of AA support), we think this challenge will prove what EV vehicles can do.
The EV rally is very relevant being linked with COP26 where the international talks around climate change will be taking place. It should show that EVs can do long distances, even over Scottish terrain in the cold and they can be re-charged on those journeys. Personally, I can’t wait to get behind the wheel of an EV to explore some of that terrain in Scotland and to show how EVs work.
Polestar 2 courtesy of Newspress UK
You can keep up to date with the journey via my Twitter feed @AApresident or via my LinkedIn posts Edmund V King OBE | LinkedIn
After the event I will also do a full blog review of the Polestar 2 of which I have heard great things.
Wish us luck.
Edmund