Charging It Up; Washakie Museum installs electric vehicle charging station

The Washakie Museum & Cultural Center, which also serves as the Washakie County Visitor Center, officially opened its two new electrical vehicle (EV) charging stations during a ribbon cutting July 17.

Museum Board member George Sheaff stated, "Advanced technology and service enabled us to move forward with this project. It has been a part of our future planning for about three years. Our board of directors and staff at the Museum are very proud to present Worland its first EV charging station."

He added, "A large part of tourist traffic comes by here. We are the unofficial visitors center. An EV charger made sense for a whole bunch of reasons."

The Museum partnered with Wild West Electric vehicles of Riverton to install and operate the two chargers.

"The Museum chose to work with Wild West EV because of its quick-to-install solution and cost-sharing option that kept our initial costs very low," said museum director Marian Bender. "The board and staff of the museum thought this was a great way to welcome visitors to our community, and to our museum. While they charge their car, they can visit the museum and the many local businesses within walking distance."

She said at the launch party that because it takes time to charge and not just minutes like at a gas station, it is a "great way to bring visitors to the museum, always something I've been supportive, of course, but also to bring it to local businesses. Right around here, we have a lot of businesses within walking distance of the museum, a grocery store, hardware store, restaurants, coffee places, gift shops. And so by doing this ... all the people who come in to use this charging service can enjoy both the museum and other businesses here in Worland. I'm really excited about that."

In her opening remarks at the launch party and ribbon cutting ceremony, Washakie Museum Executive Director Marian Bender said, "I'm so excited to be able to bring this service to Worland, to bring it to our community."

The new charging stations are located next to the handicapped parking spaces, right in front of the museum. One is marked specifically for EV charging. The

second parking spot is a dual spot for handicap or EV charging.

They offer a Level 2 charging rate with up to 10 to 11.5kW per vehicle charging.

The chargers can be used on any electric car on the market. The charging speed will vary depending on the type of vehicle. For example, a Tesla Model Y can add 44 miles of range per hour, or a Ford Electric Mustang can add up to 28 miles in an hour.

The J1772 plug is safe to use in all kinds of weather. The high power is only turned on after payment is accepted and the plug is properly connected. Both the vehicle and the charging stations do quick automatic safety checks before supplying the high volt and amperage to start charging the car.

The charging stations accept credit card payments. Proceeds from the charging station are shared between Wild West EV and the Museum. The museum's share will cover the cost of the power.

Bender said they partnered with Wild West EV owner Patrick Lawson because the cost to install on their own was cost prohibitive. Lawson's proposal was for him to "provide the charging equipment, pay for the installation, if we would lease him two parking spaces, and provide electricity and split the proceeds. That allowed us to get this installed quickly, easily."

Lawson said, "I'm just really excited to be here that we were able to get this station in. This is the latest generation of the chargers that we've been putting in. So there's still a little bit of bugs we're fine tuning on the modem but it's really cool. It's a metered station so it charges by the kilowatt. You just plug it in, you swipe or tap or use your phone and it'll activate the charging session. When you unplug it, it stops charging."

Lawson will be responsible for the maintenance and upgrades of the station.

Wild West EV was founded in October 2016 to improve electric vehicle travel in the Rocky Mountain Area. They have partnered with many businesses around Wyoming to install chargers in eight locations including Riverton, Lander, Jackson, Cody, Dubois and Hudson. This is the first in Worland.

Wild West EV owner Patrick Lawson said he primarily installs public stations across the state, working to improve on access for EV drivers. He said he has done a few private installs in people's homes and that cost runs about $2,000.

Lawson also talked about the operations of electrical vehicles especially the Cybertruck. "Because of the instant torque and acceleration on these things, is just phenomenal." The 0 to 60 time is around "they're around three to four seconds on the on the higher end Lightnings and Cybertrucks. There's no gears so it's smooth. They're a lot of fun to drive."

He added, "They're amazing in winter, because they're warm, instantly. The hot air just flows out of them, they don't have time to need to warm up for the heat to come out. And you can heat them while they're plugged in. So it doesn't take away from your range."

It was noted you can also warm them up in a garage and not worry about emissions.

"They're amazing for traction control. There's a lot of dual motor versions that work as all-wheel drive or four-wheel drive," Lawson. "If you're into technology, the EVs is kind of where the proving grounds are. All the latest technology seems to be in the EVs."

Typical charge on a Level 2 station is about $5 for an hour. The Lightning, with a large battery, will get about 25 miles an hour. The Tesla will get about 45 miles an hour.

To fill up it would cost about $30 and take about three hours to go 280 miles.

Lawson said the Washakie Museum charging station will show up on the national registry and show up on the EVs navigation system.

EV OWNERS

Several EV owners from Worland were on hand for the launch and ribbon cutting. Lloyd and Donna Nielson were the first EV owners in Worland with Lloyd owning Big West Auto Plex and Gary Broderick Superstore in Riverton.

They still have the 2012 VOLT that they purchased new. He said "We treat it like a golf cart," as far as where they travel, but noted he did commute to Riverton with it prior to his retirement.

They both said the VOLT is their favorite vehicle and is comfortable.

The Volt is a dual vehicle with electric and gas power available.

Keristyn Carrell and her daughter Rivers Carrell brought their two Tesla EVs to the party last week, one is a 2018 and one a 2022. Keristyn said Rivers Carrell is planning to take hers to Laramie to college. They have taken it to trips in Las Vegas.

They attended a solar festival in Seattle and decided they wanted the newest model so were on a waiting list for two years to get the Tesla Model 3 in 2018. Rivers has the 2022.

"The Tesla Supercharger infrastructure is huge. We'll pass superchargers because we don't need them to get to the next supercharger," Keristyn Carrell said.

Steve Radabaugh brought his Ford Mustang and Sarah and Jason Staley brought their EV.

While non local, Lawson brought the Tesla Cybertruck he owns, including plugging in an electric grill to cook up some hotdogs for the party.

Sam Legarda of Fremont Motors from Riverton drove his Ford F150 Lightning that Fremont Motors has available.

Susan Lawson, Patrick's mother, said she drives a Tesla Model X, an SUV. She fills up for $7 from her garage station.