So... Funny Story

Fun Fact: The link to register for the Launch Mode event at Pacific Raceways in Kent, WA is still live.

TL;DR

The reason I know that the link is still live is because I registered for the event a couple months ago, received tickets in an email, and then I showed up there tonight, July 10, 2025 for the event. No one at Pacific Raceways knew about the event and speculated it must have been cancelled. I brought up the tickets on my phone and saw that I received them from the Rivian Events email address on May 27, 2025. That's when I finally noticed the date on the tickets for the event was July 10, 2024. One year ago today.

But it gets worse...

I'm not local. In David's post, I took heart to the line, "For those of you who live outside the Seattle area, we know it’s a trek to get here, but we’d absolutely love to see you if you happen to be in the area at this time or want to make the trip."

I made the trip. From Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. I drove it. The trip was 881.1 miles.

But it gets worse...

I made the trip in a 2019 Chevrolet Bolt, which charges at a maximum rate of 55 kw, under ideal conditions. And we all know conditions are never ideal. It took three days, 7 charges, some hydroplaning in a big rainstorm, and some traffic jams on major freeways.

But it gets worse...

I made my wife come on the trip with me.

And it still gets worse...

As we were getting close to Pacific Raceways tonight, we speculated whether any of the Rivians we saw on the freeway might be going to the event. I planned out a bingo card for all the varieties of EVs we might see in the parking lot. I wondered if I was going to like the R3 better than the R2, and how long I'd have to wait to get the R3, even though I'm an early reservation holder for the R2. I told my wife that this event might be life changing for me. Like maybe RJ would be there and he and I would hit it off and he'd be my new best friend. Like maybe someone from Rivian would hear about our long drive in a 2019 Chevrolet Bolt and realize that I am a hearty and seasoned EV driver from the far north, and they would ask me to leave my Bolt here and drive back home in an R2 and keep it for a year so that they could get data from it in our harsh northern environment.

And the worst part is...

My wife is now making fun of me for being so disorganized and not paying attention to details. She's making fun of me for my wild imagination about it being a life changing event. And now she has an 881.1 mile drive back home to continue making fun of me.

lol

I’m registered now too!!

You're confirmed for Launch Mode

Click to expand...

See you there last year.

pointless said:

lol

I’m registered now too!!



See you there last year.

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Solid reply, there. Can't wait to chuckle about it when we meet last year.

Wow. What a comedy of errors. The important thing is it sounds like you’re still married. Anyway you look at it, you kept it adventurous!

Just signed up, too. See y'all last year!

Cheers to you for sharing.

I think you can still salvage the trip. First, you can visit the Seattle Rivian space grand re-opening, which is happening over the next three days. See https://rivian.com/spaces/seattle?lid=3trr9of8ol7f&utm_source=braze&utm_medium=email#upcoming-events
It's near the University of Washington in Seattle. Maybe they'll take pity on you and give you some free swag. I think they want you to register, but that's more for crowd control. If you're registered you can skip the line (if any) and just walk right in, but I don't think they're turning away anyone.

Then if it suits you, perhaps you can join the West Seattle caravan on Saturday. See https://westseattleblog.com/2025/07...-a-world-record-next-weekend-in-west-seattle/
Sure, I know you don't have a Rivian yet, but you can certainly get to see some R1T and R1S, and meet some fun people in the Rivian community. Alki/West Seattle has a lot of things to do, so you can easily spend the day there.

I hope you can find a way to enjoy your stay, regardless. If you need suggestions for your specific interests please message me and I'll do my best to help.

VSG said:

Cheers to you for sharing.

I think you can still salvage the trip. First, you can visit the Seattle Rivian space grand re-opening, which is happening over the next three days. See https://rivian.com/spaces/seattle?lid=3trr9of8ol7f&utm_source=braze&utm_medium=email#upcoming-events
It's near the University of Washington in Seattle. Maybe they'll take pity on you and give you some free swag. I think they want you to register, but that's more for crowd control. If you're registered you can skip the line (if any) and just walk right in, but I don't think they're turning away anyone.

Then if it suits you, perhaps you can join the West Seattle caravan on Saturday. See https://westseattleblog.com/2025/07...-a-world-record-next-weekend-in-west-seattle/
Sure, I know you don't have a Rivian yet, but you can certainly get to see some R1T and R1S, and meet some fun people in the Rivian community. Alki/West Seattle has a lot of things to do, so you can easily spend the day there.

I hope you can find a way to enjoy your stay, regardless. If you need suggestions for your specific interests please message me and I'll do my best to help.

Click to expand...

This! Make it to the weekend event!!!! Come back, we miss you already.

Marchin_MTB said:

Wow. What a comedy of errors. The important thing is it sounds like you’re still married. Anyway you look at it, you kept it adventurous!

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She actually feels pretty sorry for me. She knows how excited I was for the event. I was crushed when I realized what I had done.

VSG said:

Cheers to you for sharing.

I think you can still salvage the trip. First, you can visit the Seattle Rivian space grand re-opening, which is happening over the next three days. See https://rivian.com/spaces/seattle?lid=3trr9of8ol7f&utm_source=braze&utm_medium=email#upcoming-events
It's near the University of Washington in Seattle. Maybe they'll take pity on you and give you some free swag. I think they want you to register, but that's more for crowd control. If you're registered you can skip the line (if any) and just walk right in, but I don't think they're turning away anyone.

Then if it suits you, perhaps you can join the West Seattle caravan on Saturday. See https://westseattleblog.com/2025/07...-a-world-record-next-weekend-in-west-seattle/
Sure, I know you don't have a Rivian yet, but you can certainly get to see some R1T and R1S, and meet some fun people in the Rivian community. Alki/West Seattle has a lot of things to do, so you can easily spend the day there.

I hope you can find a way to enjoy your stay, regardless. If you need suggestions for your specific interests please message me and I'll do my best to help.

Click to expand...

Thanks for sharing this information and the great ideas. We actually have the ferry booked to go to Victoria to see some old friends, which will salvage the trip for us.

You, sir, have a fine sense of humor. And a fine wife.

elatrickWheels said:

You, sir, have a fine sense of humor. And a fine wife.

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These Rivian forums are so nice. This was my first post. I'm used to my Chevrolet Bolt Facebook groups, and I fully expected to get ripped here.

Oh man, that sucks. At least you got a funny story out of it. FWIW, it was an awesome event.

Oh wow - that is hilarious! What a fantastic attitude, you and your wife need to spread some of that around wherever you go Enjoy the island (but don't break down, BC Ferries will no longer transport an EV that needs to be towed - we don't need another chapter of "but it gets worse...")

Earplugs do wonders for these situations, maybe not for the relationship but your mental health for the drive back.

Aww, man. Great post though. Tell your wife thanks, from the forum, for not ending you.