Road Trip: Boulder to Steamboat, and Beyond (as Gear Support Vehicle)

[Marchin_MTB]

We were the gear support vehicle for a family reunion in northern colorado (north of steamboat) which was followed by a few days of camping with the kids. Consequently, we had to pack on a lot stuff: Kayaks, Bikes, SUP, tent, shade structures, cots, table, tons of food etc. This was more than I would ever want to pack again (I though the gear tunnel was going to explode) but the Iron Hippo handled it without complaints. Took I-70 on the way up but came back through RMNP. The Steamboat ChargePoint at the Kum&Go worked very well both times we used it. Pretty happy with the efficiency in this scenario as well (2.17 mi/kWh). This vehicle continues to be an absolute joy to use!

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[DTown3011]

Great efficiency with all that stuff strapped to the truck - I agree, this truck was BORN for the mountains!! Typing as I currently sit in Crested Butte...

 

[COdogman]

Props to you for that packing job! SO many odd shaped items

 

[mike22co]

Nice load packed up! I was in Steamboat last week watching the Rivian pass by while waiting patiently for an R1S delivery last Friday (pushed to tomorrow now due to sw issue).
Agree the Kum&Go ChargePoint wasn’t bad. I loaned our Tesla CCS adapter to a fellow Tesla that only had the j1772 one with them. They charged while we played mini golf next door. ?

 

[Denver_Paulie]

Holy crap, you guys packed a lot of gear into that truck.

You nicknamed your R1T the "Iron Hippo?" Kind of ironic since I have found that just looking at my truck the wrong way puts a scratch or dent in it. That is the challenge of Rivian designers trying to cut weight on the vehicle - super lightweight aluminum for the body results in a very easy to dent truck.

Anyway, you guys safely packed enough gear in the truck for a month worth of high country adventure. I am a little jealous!

 

[Marchin_MTB]

Nice load packed up! I was in Steamboat last week watching the Rivian pass by while waiting patiently for an R1S delivery last Friday (pushed to tomorrow now due to sw issue).
Agree the Kum&Go ChargePoint wasn’t bad. I loaned our Tesla CCS adapter to a fellow Tesla that only had the j1772 one with them. They charged while we played mini golf next door. ?

Congrats! Hope your delivery goes smoothly. We walked across the street to Hypnotic Chicken on the way back and did check out the mini golf on the way there. My hope is that station stays reliable but also that they expand the number of stalls in the coming year or two. I didn’t have to wait but that seemed to be just luck.

 

[Marchin_MTB]

Props to you for that packing job! SO many odd shaped items

Thank you sir.

Having a system for bikes over the bed worked well. It really opened up a lot of space in the bed.

However, traveling with the tailgate down added an element of time as I was constantly checking straps and making sure everything was retained.

 

[Marchin_MTB]

Holy crap, you guys packed a lot of gear into that truck.

You nicknamed your R1T the "Iron Hippo?" Kind of ironic since I have found that just looking at my truck the wrong way puts a scratch or dent in it. That is the challenge of Rivian designers trying to cut weight on the vehicle - super lightweight aluminum for the body results in a very easy to dent truck.

Anyway, you guys safely packed enough gear in the truck for a month worth of high country adventure. I am a little jealous!

Indeed and thank you. The name was more due to the front end aesthetic, color, and weight which gave us that connotation.

I find it very easy to scuff the sides Ioading the bed. Just on this trip I had the longer kayak scuff the quarter panel as I removed it and lost my balance. Also put a small dent below the taillight loading some heavy material. Am a little worried about popping off the trim at the top of the tailgate which is why I kept the tailgate pad on for this trip. We are determined to use this as a truck though and not sweat the small stuff too much.

On the flip side our kids have gone to town scrambling in and out and all around the second row and I am stunned that all the trim and the back of the seats are still holding strong.

 

[COdogman]

Thank you sir.

Having a system for bikes over the bed worked well. It really opened up a lot of space in the bed.

However, traveling with the tailgate down added an element of time as I was constantly checking straps and making sure everything was retained.

LOL I could see that you did it right, but my very first thought when I saw the tailgate down was that I would not be able to relax the entire drive if it were me

 

[Lrak1973]

We were the gear support vehicle for a family reunion in northern colorado (north of steamboat) which was followed by a few days of camping with the kids. Consequently, we had to pack on a lot stuff: Kayaks, Bikes, SUP, tent, shade structures, cots, table, tons of food etc. This was more than I would ever want to pack again (I though the gear tunnel was going to explode) but the Iron Hippo handled it without complaints. Took I-70 on the way up but came back through RMNP. The Steamboat ChargePoint at the Kum&Go worked very well both times we used it. Pretty happy with the efficiency in this scenario as well (2.17 mi/kWh). This vehicle continues to be an absolute joy to use!

I did that trip a few times last week for soccer tournaments and swim meets. The Kum & Go charging station was quite efficient, and the little side path on the other end of the parking lot is a good place to hang while charging. The Georgetown charging station, if you ever need it for that drive, is in a sketchy location if charging at night, but worked flawlessly. Did you catch any gravel chips in that awful stretch between Kremmling and Steamboat? I have a huge chip in the windshield from that. Loved the way the R1S handled the passes, though!

 

[Denver_Paulie]

Indeed and thank you. The name was more due to the front end aesthetic, color, and weight which gave us that connotation.

I find it very easy to scuff the sides Ioading the bed. Just on this trip I had the longer kayak scuff the quarter panel as I removed it and lost my balance. Also put a small dent below the taillight loading some heavy material. Am a little worried about popping off the trim at the top of the tailgate which is why I kept the tailgate pad on for this trip. We are determined to use this as a truck though and not sweat the small stuff too much.

On the flip side our kids have gone to town scrambling in and out and all around the second row and I am stunned that all the trim and the back of the seats are still holding strong.

Glad to know I am not alone with the scuffs, scratches, and dents. I put a honker of a dent in the tail gate by banging my front mountain bike wheel into it. After $600 later at a dent repair place, it looks better, but still noticeable. I keep the tailgate pad on full time now just as an extra level of protection from my carelessness.

Be safe out there!!! Cheers.

 

[Marchin_MTB]

I did that trip a few times last week for soccer tournaments and swim meets. The Kum & Go charging station was quite efficient, and the little side path on the other end of the parking lot is a good place to hang while charging. The Georgetown charging station, if you ever need it for that drive, is in a sketchy location if charging at night, but worked flawlessly. Did you catch any gravel chips in that awful stretch between Kremmling and Steamboat? I have a huge chip in the windshield from that. Loved the way the R1S handled the passes, though!

Ooof. Sorry to hear that. No chips on that stretch but I sure was worried about it. At one point I pulled over because I thought something came loose but it was just the gravel bouncing off the underbody panels. Soon after that the construction crew set up alternating one-way traffic and this slowed everything to an excruciating crawl. That may be what saved us from flying gravel. Thanks for the info on the Georgetown charger, haven’t used that one yet.

 

[Riptide]

We were the gear support vehicle for a family reunion in northern colorado (north of steamboat) which was followed by a few days of camping with the kids. Consequently, we had to pack on a lot stuff: Kayaks, Bikes, SUP, tent, shade structures, cots, table, tons of food etc. This was more than I would ever want to pack again (I though the gear tunnel was going to explode) but the Iron Hippo handled it without complaints. Took I-70 on the way up but came back through RMNP. The Steamboat ChargePoint at the Kum&Go worked very well both times we used it. Pretty happy with the efficiency in this scenario as well (2.17 mi/kWh). This vehicle continues to be an absolute joy to use!

This is good to see and hear. Outstanding adventure gear load-out.

Your Rivian is not just for show.

This is the way.

 

[Rob O]

Those efficiency numbers are incredible given the journey and elevation changes and all that crap hanging off the truck!

I just got back from a roughly 650 mile trip, with starting elevation of 4000 feet, over an 8000 foot pass then dropping to near sea level (and back). With just a cargo box and cargo basket on the roof, plus two e-bikes hanging off a hitch-mount bike carrier, I managed a whopping 1.7 mile/kWh! Conserve mode for the majority of the trip, no excessive speeds, moderate ambient temps, no major winds, etc.

 

[Marchin_MTB]

Those efficiency numbers are incredible given the journey and elevation changes and all that crap hanging off the truck!

I just got back from a roughly 650 mile trip, with starting elevation of 4000 feet, over an 8000 foot pass then dropping to near sea level (and back). With just a cargo box and cargo basket on the roof, plus two e-bikes hanging off a hitch-mount bike carrier, I managed a whopping 1.7 mile/kWh! Conserve mode for the majority of the trip, no excessive speeds, moderate ambient temps, no major winds, etc.

I am as surprised as you especially since this was entirely in all-purpose mode. I am also on the 21s but I think that is probably not a big factor in the differences we are seeing.

On the way north, the efficiency average was closer to 1.9 BTW

The seemingly small difference in our average speed (yours is higher) might hide a significant difference in maximum speeds which is when a lot of our power consumption occurred. During transit the max speed was 70-75mph on the way up and closer to 55-60 on the way back. I also did a lot of tooling around at the location, 30-50mph, which probably drove my average efficiency up.

The temperatures were moderate to slightly toasty at times (mid 80s to low 90s). We did see wind on the way back but I was able to slow down to mitigate the effect, and also because I want to take it easy with the kayak on top. Another point in my favor (in terms of efficiency) is that we were stuck in traffic on the way up for about 45 minutes and anything that drops the speed to near zero will drive the average efficiency up again.

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