- The Electrify Expo festival returned for its third year with a record number of EV manufacturers adding new brands to the lineup including Hyundai, Rivian, Fisker, Kawasaki, Motorrad, Luna Cycles and more.
- The weekend kicked off with Industry Day, an EV education and networking event for media, analysts, and government officials that was stacked with exclusive panels, product reveals, and press conferences from leading brands including Maserati, Ford, Kia, Volvo, and Rolls Royce amongst others.
- Rivian, Kawasaki, Fisker, Pebble, Living Vehicle, and others brought their latest electric vehicles for attendees to experience.
Electrify Expo was in Long Beach, California, this weekend, for the third year in a row. It is North America’s largest electric vehicle festival, this year growing to eight different locations. Long Beach clocked the highest attendance yet, and over 50,000 EV demos were taken over the weekend.
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Electrify Expo Industry Day
It all started with an information-packed Industry Day on Friday, May 31. There were some great panel discussions about the EV industry and rates of adoption. Electric vehicle sales have slowed somewhat from the pace they were selling at a year ago, but sales are still climbing.
“EV interest and demand from consumers is growing, not shrinking,” said BJ Birtwell, CEO and Founder of Electrify Expo. “Evidenced from our record-setting festival in Long Beach, and even in a mature EV adoption market like LA County, Southern California residents showed up in massive crowds to experience this festival. Exhibitors sold out of product, broke demo records, and attendees enjoyed 1 million square feet of the best brands the EV industry has to offer.”
So Many Important Brands in the Lineup
So many car brands were part of the show — Tesla, Kia, Toyota, Volvo, Lexus, Ford, Rivian, Fisker, and more. There were test drives available for most models in the EV Demo District Sponsored by Hankook Tire, and Ford had a Thrill Zone where a professional racing driver zipped festival attendees around violently on a track to show off the capabilities of the Ford Mustang Mach-E. It’s incredibly fun and well worth a short wait in line for if you find yourself at another Electrify Expo this year.
Volvo and Electrify Expo collaborated at the event to support Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation for pediatric cancer research. Volvo donates a portion of the proceeds from every car it sells, and the Lemonade Days events have raised over $20 million to date to support research and treatment for childhood cancer.
Rivian showed off their newest offering, the R3X, a mid-sized electric SUV designed to deliver exceptional performance both on and off-road.
Amazon was also on-location with the Amazon Recharge Zone, where attendees got their questions answered about EV purchasing, ownership, charging, and more, and they even offered iced coffee! Their booth is at every Expo event this year.
Micromobility at Electrify Expo
Kawasaki was there to show off their newest EV, an electric balance bike for kids called the Elektrode 20. It features 20-inch wheels, a 750W motor, front suspension, disc brakes, and the trademark Kawasaki green finish. They do also have a fully electric motorcycle, the Ninja e-1, and a hybrid that they were showing off.
BMW Motorrad was also there with their electric motorcycles, their first time at Electrify Expo. Niu showed off their XQi3 Street and XQi3 Wild. The former is an on-road motorcycle electronically limited to 30 mph, while the Wild is their first electric dirt bike, capable of 47 mph off-road.
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There were areas for demo rides on e-bikes, Surron-style electric dirt bikes, e-skateboards, and even an area for young kids with electric big wheels and other fun things to ride. The big takeaway here was that the Surron-style bikes are a huge deal. There were offerings from Luna, Solar, Niu, Rawrr, e-Ride, and even the dead-ringer-for-a-Cake bike from GoWow, and you could ride all of them for free.
The main e-bike area was around the beautiful grounds outside the Long Beach Aquarium, whereas the faster Surron-style bikes had their own enclosed course since they could hit higher speeds.
Electrify Outdoor Rec Presented by Falken Tires
Who doesn’t have a soft spot for the great outdoors? Electrify Outdoor Rec, presented by Falken Tires, has become the heart of Electrify Expo, growing bigger and better each time. “If you love EVs, adventure, exploring, off-roading, and outdoor living, you have to experience Electrify Outdoor Rec first-hand, and check out our camping area,” exclaimed Neil Tjin, Director of Electrify Outdoor Rec and Electrify Showoff.
Long Beach witnessed the largest outdoor recreation area yet, featuring over a dozen vendors, including Falken Tires, Dunlop Tires, Suweeka Racks, Pebble, Living Vehicles, Irv Labs, RadGnarack, Anker, Innovate Maquette, CarMart, eFireX, Pickman, Astro Ai, Ferla bikes, Polydrops and more. Attendees were able to explore and imagine traveling across the country with an electric vehicle.
“From camping gear to customized vehicles, there was something for every outdoor enthusiast! Next up is Denver, and we can’t wait to see even more outdoor rec vendors and exciting products in 2024!”
Electrify Showoff Driven by Yokohama Tire
Electrify Showoff Driven by Yokohama Tire in Long Beach had some absolutely incredible custom EVs, with plenty of modified Tesla vehicles. But there were also interesting ones from other marques, like a Skyline GT-R with a full EV conversion, and appropriately called EVZilla. With a lineup of over 150 custom electric show cars, e-bikes, motorcycles, race cars, and scooters, including some from Neil Tjin’s great collection of Super73s, MacFoxes, and JackRabbits, it was a paradise for EV enthusiasts. Additionally, Yokohama Tire announced its plans to expand the range of sizes available for its ADVAN Sport EV A/S tire.
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“Showoff Long Beach was our largest event to date, as we had more than 30 vendors showcasing their EV products,” mentioned Tjin. “Yokohama Tires, our presenting partner, came out swinging with an insane display and some of the best EV builds in the industry.”
Surrounding the Yokohama tires booth was Team Ruined, who snagged yet another Best Crew award in Long Beach. CJ Cardinalli, Founder and President of Team Ruined, continues to collect hardware with Best of Show and Best Audio in Long Beach, while Sun Kim wowed everyone with his custom Nike kicks, earning the coveted Best Kicks award. “A huge shoutout to all our Showoff vendors and participants – Toyo Tires had a massive display, as did JackRabbit, Hankook Tires, R1 Concepts, Sierra Cars, and many others.” As Showoff continues to grow, be on the lookout for the newest and hottest trends in the EV aftermarket. For additional details and the complete list of award winners, please visit the Electrify Showoff website.
Electrify Race League
The second of the Electrify Race League (ERL) races happened over the weekend, with racers competing on electric skateboards. The weekend was dominated by top pro Mario Chacon.
“Reggie Thomas failed to finish in the qualifying round, but his grit and sheer determination got him over that hurdle, ultimately landing him second place overall,” highlighted Jay Avery, Electrify Race League Race Coordinator. “Meanwhile, Mario Chacon redeemed himself by emerging victorious at the end of the Regional Championship.”
A new star has emerged on the racing scene – Estelita Leija! With her arrival, Dina Katch is no longer the lone female racer in the league. “Along with new riders come new rivalries and friendships forged in the fire – what will the rest of the season bring?” mentions Avery.
There were three classes: Stock, Mod and Pro. The first race of the series was in early May, and after Long Beach there are two more races, in San Francisco and New York coming up in August and October. It’s exciting to watch! For additional information on Electrify Race League and to check out the latest ESK8 and EUC leaderboards, visit the website. Shout out to the ERL crew – you can follow them on social at Alex Mock (@drtracinginc), Joe Dubya (@socal_legend), Jonathan Hall (@onelowcubn), and Jay Avery (@iamjayavery).
The next stop on the Electrify Expo tour will take place in Denver, the festival’s first-ever stop in Colorado, on July 13-14 at The Yards. Tickets can be purchased at https://www.electrifyexpo.com/denver. For more event photos, visit our Facebook page.
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IMAGES: TONY DONALDSON, ELECTRIFY EXPO, CYRUS PISCHEL
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