http://www.journalinquirer.com/towns/somers/somers-church-to-host-electric-vehicle-parade-rally/article_16c928ba-7a8f-11e6-b02b-170237f0c2dc.html Somers church to host electric vehicle parade, rally September 14, 2016 Will Healey
SOMERS--The Congregational Church of Somersville is hosting an electric vehicle parade and rally to coincide with National Drive Electric Week and the Four Town Fair on Saturday, Sept. 17. National Drive Electric Week, which started Sept. 10 and runs until Sept. 18, is a nationwide effort to raise awareness about plug-in all-electric and hybrid-electric cars, trucks, and motorcycles. The Four Town Fair, the annual fair celebrating agriculture in Somers, Enfield, Ellington, and East Windsor, runs from Sept. 15-18. Rev. Graham Van Keuren, who heads the church, and his spouse, Eric Elley — both strong proponents of electric vehicles — are organizing the event. According to Van Keuren, people are invited to march or drive their electric vehicles in the parade, which will start at the intersection of Routes 190 and 83 (Main Street and South Road), and proceed down Field Road to the Four Town Fairgrounds on Egypt Road on Saturday. Following the parade, an electric vehicle rally will be held on the grounds of Conval Inc. at 265 Field Road. Van Keuren, who, with Elley, initiated the installation of the town’s first dedicated public electric vehicle charging station on church property on Maple Street last October, said that the rally would feature several electric vehicles for people to test-drive from local dealers and private owners. Representatives from Solar City will also be on hand to talk about clean energy methods for powering vehicles, homes, and businesses. Van Keuren said such awareness-raising events are important to expose people to the technology in electric vehicles, which he said is “maturing very fast.” “It’s important to just get people in one (electric vehicle),” he said. “They’re so quiet, zippy, and fast. Even an economy car, it can fly off the line if you want it to.” Van Keuren said it is also important for potential converts to electric vehicles to talk to electric vehicle owners, who can alleviate fears of getting stranded between charges. “There are range-extending engines, fast-charging stations,” he said. “It’s not as scary as it seems.” Van Keuren said he and Elley own a 2013 Chevrolet Volt, which he said is a plug-in hybrid that stays electric for the first 40-50 miles of a trip, and kicks in a gas engine for longer trips. He said the car gets around 115 miles to the gallon, which has saved them “a chunk of money.” He said he and Elley regularly take the car on trips to visit family in New Jersey. “We take it everywhere,” he said. “We don’t baby it.” Those interested in participating in the parade and rally can register at the website driveelectricweek.org Once on the website, search for the Somers event. Parade participants should meet in the rear parking lot of the Somers Congregational Church at 599 Main St. between 8:30 and 9:00 a.m. Saturday. The parade starts at 10 a.m., and at 11 a.m. those participating in the rally will split from the parade and join the rally on the Conval property. All parade participants will receive free admission to the Four Town Fair. Those participating in just the rally can go directly to the Conval parking lot at 265 Field Road. Setup for the rally runs from 8:30 to 9 a.m., and the rally goes from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. According to the event page on the National Drive Electric Week website, 21 attendees have signed up for the Somers event so far, with 12 electric vehicles —including four Chevrolet Volts, a Nissan LEAF, and a Tesla Model S — registered. For more information, contact Elley — Somers’ Drive Electric Parade and Rally captain — at somcong @aol.com or visit the Somers event page on driveelectricweek.org [© 2016, Journal Inquirer] ... http://ndewsomers.org Somers Drive Electric Parade and EV Rally 265 Field Road, Somers, CT 06072 http://ndewsomers.org/#venue ... https://api.plugshare.com/view/location/73285 Congregational Church Ports EV Plug (J1772) Address 22 Maple St, Somers, CT 06071 Phone (860) 749-7741 Hours 24/7 Description Free, Public Dual Level 2 32 Amp Chargers provided by Congregational Church of Somersville and the State of Connecticut. Pull into driveway nearest post office and drive through parking lot behind church. Chargers are located between the church and Parsonage. https://www.google.com/search?q=plugshare+06071 For EVLN EV-newswire posts use: http://evdl.org/evln/ {brucedp.0catch.com} -- View this message in context: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/EVent-NDEW-plugin-parade-rally-Four-Town-Fair-11a-2p-9-17-Somersville-CT-tp4683752.html Sent from the Electric Vehicle Discussion List mailing list archive at Nabble.com. _______________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Read EVAngel's EV News at http://evdl.org/evln/ Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
