Rivian R1T EV pickup truck overview at Northeast Rivian Club event in Bridgeport Connecticut, owner Jazzy Jeff has 5,300 miles already!
If you're just here for the photos or video, no worries!
It's great to see a variety of new EVs hitting the roads of Connecticut lately, spying my first Kia EV6 just last week. Even better when a whole new category of EVs arrive for the very first time, the all electric pickup truck! The vaguely similar Kia EV9 and VW Scout won't arrive for several years, and neither will be nearly as off-road capable as the 15" clearance Rivian R1T and R1S, which are a smaller and more off-roady than the Ford F-150 Lightning. More about positioning against wildly different Silverado, Hummer, and Cybertruck here.
I was lucky to have a attended a semi-private showing of a pre-production Rivian R1T exactly a year ago. I saw another one while chatting with the same Rivian employees just last month, when another R1T was at the Connecticut State Capital. But yesterday was my first time seeing a production R1T up close with its owner, and it happened to be happening right after the nearby Teslas n Coffee meetup at the Meriden Supercharger, with several of us enjoying great weather at both of these outdoor EVents.
With 7 R1Ts in attendance at this gathering in Bridgeport, this Rivian owners' public event featured a particularly enthusiastic owner whose wife graciously offered me a chunk of her husband's time, just as the event was ending. He had his reservation in on day 1, which was 3 years ago! He has already many additions to their family's R1T, including:
- 2 additional Cargo Crossbars
- 1 Overlander Tent from Smittybilt
- 1 Surfboard
I also got to talking with Steven Latorraca, a new R1T owner from Connecticut! The event had already ended so we couldn't shoot video together, but I snapped a pic and had enjoyed a great conversation with him about the recent Rivian ~$20K price hike drama and his wife's predictable, understandable reaction. Gladly, they stayed the course and kept their reservation, and just one day later, it was all resolved. They now enjoy their R1T, at the original price at the time of pre-order made 3 years ago!
A super nice bonus for me personally was that he recognized me and my voice from TinkerTry, mentioning this as he excitedly introduced himself to me. We're both IT Professionals, a field of work that seems to have a lot of early EV adopters. It sure was nice to hear that he has been reading TinkerTry for years, including my work with virtualization, a software technology that also helps saves energy. He even bought a hybrid electric water heater after reading my article about the one I had installed in my home 3 years ago. Hearing that my work has that this kind of positive real-world impact sure made my already fun day even better, as we all strive to find ways to help each other move toward a more sustainable future.
About the author - Paul Braren owns and operates TinkerTry.com LLC, drives an EV, and is the Senior EV Correspondent for Tech Breakfast Podcast. His various podcast guest appearances are listed here, and some of his work has been featured at CleanTechnica too.
Video
Video Description:
On Saturday May 14 2022, the Northeast Rivian Club held its owner meetup at the lot next to the Brewport Brewing Co in Bridgeport Connecticut. This video features Jazzy Jeff (see https://instagram.com/jazzys_rivian_adventure & https://instagram.com/rivian.stories) who already has 5,000 miles on his R1T in the 2 months since taking delivery. He walks viewers through the features of this outdoor adventure EV, including a close look at the how the bed opens and closes, his Overlander Tent from Smittybilt (instead of the Rivian/Yakima tent), and the eventual winch location.
This video has no ads and isn't sponsored content. It was created by Paul Braren of the EV Club of Connecticut and the EV owner, who all volunteered to make this happen. No gas cars were used in the transportation to and from this video shoot.
Photos
See also at TinkerTry
- Finally, first mass market EV pickup truck deliveries by Rivian in 2021, Ford in 2022, Tesla and - Chevy in 2023, Dodge in 2024
Jun 08 2021 updated Jan 14 2022
- I saw the future: all-electric Rivian R1T pickup truck at all-electric Hotel Marcel in New Haven Connecticut
May 15 2021
- I got to see the Tesla Cybertruck in New York City with my own eyes and it still seems unreal
May 11 2021
- Affordable and convenient way to get Tesla cables off the garage floor, trip-free charging from above!
Feb 01 2020
See also
- @paulbraren's Rivian R1T tweets
- Direct Sales Bill Is Not Being Called for a Vote
May 03 2022CT News Junkie is reporting that SB 214 will not be called for a vote in the Senate. This bill is also referred to by opponents, pejoratively, as the “Tesla bill,” though it would apply to any manufacturer of exclusively battery electric vehicles that does not have an existing franchise network and is not majority owned by a company that does (Ford has a minority stake in Rivian), and would allow them to open stores for the sale and delivery of their vehicles in CT.
Social
Rivian In The House
— EV Club of Connecticut (@EVClubCT) May 10, 2022
Members of Rivian Owners Club Northeast to Bring Their Vehicles to Bridgeport on Saturdayhttps://t.co/f6pb8TgtN3
"a meetup and showcase on Saturday, May 14th in Bridgeport at the Brewport Brewing Company"
11am-1pm, directions https://t.co/XwUQtaSovR@Rivian
Family outgrew Model X, ordered Rivian R1S, here's their first look at similar R1T electric pickup!https://t.co/SN0MSdl0cK
— Paul Braren | TinkerTry.com 🖥️🔌☀️🔋🚗 (@paulbraren) April 19, 2022
Thank you @Rivian for bringing an R1T electric pickup truck to Connecticut yesterday, it was this growing family's very first look inside! They're eager awaiting delivery of their R1S SUV with 3 row seating.
— EV Club of Connecticut (@EVClubCT) April 14, 2022
4K full video - > https://t.co/qJBV4IYu7D pic.twitter.com/9eP6K6FqpJ
