[Oeva-list] Feedback notes from last meeting

[Tim Kutscha]

Hi OEVA folks,

  Thanks for the excellent feedback y'all offered at the last meeting.  I'm including it here so you can see what we discussed.

Cheers,
Tim
p.s. Don't forget our election meeting coming up in September.  You need to be an OEVA member to vote.

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Feedback from EV Awareness Day 2009

Good Points
- There was plenty of electricity there
- The solar carport was really cool
- The charging station was cool
- The platform with microphone/speakers was good
- We had a huge number of EVs including the White Zombie
  and a Tesla!  There was a boat and a Bearfoot ATV too.
- We had good sponsors
- The location was effective at raising public awareness
- We got the Mayor and two VPs to speak

Things to improve:
- Need more media coverage
- Let's get even more EVs!
- The vendors had plenty of outlets, but the EV owners
  needed to rotate spots.  Could we get an extension cord
 to move the outlet around instead of the cars?
- Have the speeches later in the day when more people are there
- Parking to attend the EVent was difficult. Find a lot or
  direct people to a local parking garage.  Suggest taking Max
  from a parking area like Lloyd Center
- Contact lotsa newspapers to have our EVent listed in the
  "weekend events" or "Arts & Entertainment" sections
- Hang the large banner the day before to pique interest
- The Pioneer Square staff seemed to tear down the tents early
- Contact corporate sponsors way ahead of time, some
  need four months of lead time

Other ideas
- Have the EVent next to the Farmers Market to attract crowds
- Get some protestors to make a big fuss and attract attention :)
- Have a TV or computer monitor running a bunch of video clips
  of electric vehicles like the White Zombie or KillaCycle

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General Feedback for what Members want to see in OEVA

- People want to know the latest news on the upcoming "user-friendly"
  EVs being made available by the auto manufacturers. Point to a website
  with the latest data
- Every meeting announce new EVs available for purchase (converted and
  commercial) so people are aware of what's available
- There's a shift in interest from building EVs to buying them
- Have a "garage crawl" tech session with a BBQ/Social gathering so that
  people can see all the projects currently underway
- Have Mike Brown from ElectroAuto come up to give a weekend session
  on how to convert a vehicle
- Have more gatherings that are "hands on" with the vehicles, less talking
- Have lectures on different EV components (motors, controllers, batteries, etc...)
- We need more and bigger OEVA signs to raise awareness of the group
- We should have OEVA (not just EAA) flyers and posters to direct people towards our group
- Keep doing outreach - We need a dedicated and effective outreach coordinator
- Have events that give rides (possibly test drives) of electric vehicles to raise interest
- Contact other local car modding clubs and have joint events, perhaps go to an auto show
- We need more committees to delegate responsibilities to so that individuals
  don't get burned out
- We should have more OEVA specific EVents that focus on the needs of the members
  like building/technology items
- It would be cool to be in the Rose Parade or Electric Light Parade
- We could have joint events with car stereo competition events (they do electric too!)
- Reach out to electronic geeks (FreeGeek?) for more interest
- It's really cool that Nissan picked Portland as a target city for their "Leaf" car
- Associate OEVA with new electric cars that come out to increase our positive image
- Promote the OEVA more, not just the EAA (we mostly use EAA flyers)
- The World Trade Center is an excellent place to meet, let's not lose this meeting place
- Have a joint technical meeting with the SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers)
- Join forces with HPV (Human Powered Vehicles) for events