Electric vehicle charging stations are becoming more common in Wyoming. Still, there are many remote places in the wide open spaces of the Cowboy State where they would seem out of place and subject to ridicule.
One of those places is Red Canyon Ranch, a rugged and remote 5,000-acre property south of Lander managed by The Nature Conservancy. However, two electric vehicle charging stations are prominently located at the Red Canyon Learning Center on Red Canyon Road.
The charging stations are functional and available to anyone driving one of the many electric vehicle models on the market. However, they’re more than just a couple of random EV chargers in the middle of nowhere in Wyoming. The Red Canyon stations are part of a unique experiment that tests the limits of electric vehicles in the harsh conditions of the Cowboy State.
The electric trucks have been working on Nature Conservancy properties outside of Lander and Ten Sleep for more than two years. So far, directors at both sites said they have performed incredibly well.
“I thought (the electric truck) was super capable,” said John Coffman, western Wyoming management director for The Nature Conservancy in Wyoming. “It could get up and go anywhere a jeep or side-by-side could go, and it was comfortable and suitable for the countryside.”
RT1 Results
Coffman said he and his colleagues at Red Canyon Ranch and Tensleep Preserve in the Bighorn Mountains have been driving pickup trucks built by Rivian Automotive Inc. The California-based company focuses on creating practical outdoor electric vehicles.
“The Nature Conservancy has a partnership with Rivian,” Coffman said. “We were working with their special programs group and testing the trucks on reservations. As part of that partnership, we were testing and providing feedback on how it could work for ranch management.”
The Wyoming Chapter was one of four Nature Conservancy preserves selected to test the company’s vehicles. To facilitate testing, the company installed electric vehicle charging stations for its trucks at both locations. The added benefit is that anyone who visits can charge there as well.
Coffman drove Rivian’s RT1, a van that can comfortably seat five people while going from 0 to 60 mph in 2.5 seconds, according to the company’s website, and has a range of 420 miles on a single charge.
In March 2022, Rivian trucks were shared between Red Canyon Ranch and Tensleep Preserve. Coffman had nothing but positive things to say about the RT1’s performance in the rugged terrain outside of Lander.
“It had 900 pounds of torque and 850 horsepower,” he said. “And the entire truck lifts to 18 inches of clearance. That made it suitable for going over rocks and other obstacles, which was helpful. You could get up and go.”
Left arrowRight arrow
An excellent electric vehicle
Trey Davis, director of management for The Nature Conservancy in eastern Wyoming, was sitting in one of the Rivian RT1s when Cowboy State Daily called him to ask him about it.
“I’ve had the privilege of driving three different cars,” he said. “At first, we were able to drive a prototype when the company came to visit our site. Later, I had a pre-production model, and this would have been the same one that John Coffman drove. And more recently, for about a year, I have been driving a launch edition, which means one of the first editions of the Rivian RT1.”
Davis said one of the reasons Rivian and The Nature Conservancy wanted to use RT1s in Wyoming was to see how they performed in winter. Davis said he regularly drove his test trucks over the Bighorn Mountains through the lowest sub-zero temperatures of winter in the performance of his duties, providing a perfect test for the trucks.
“I frequently traveled through the Bighorns to our Tensleep Reservation, including a lot of winter use during the harshest times of the year,” he said. “I drove it at 31 below zero and in temperatures almost as cold several times and on 8% grades in mountainous terrain.”
Davis said the harsh winter conditions affected the RT1’s supposed range, but not enough that it would ever be in danger on its travels. Fortunately, the charging stations Rivian installed at Tensleep Preserve ensured there was enough power to get the vehicle where it needed to go.
“When it comes to safely handling Wyoming winter conditions, on ice and snow, it worked very well,” he said. “Slopes and cold weather affect battery capacity and range, but I’ve been traveling mostly in the same mountain range. I haven’t had to worry much about running out of power in the winter.”
Additionally, Davis said the truck did everything any other vehicle would have to do on both of The Nature Conservancy’s Wyoming preserves.
“It has a payload of 11,000 pounds, so it can do a lot of hard work,” he said.
Energy futures
A Rivian RT1 is expensive, with the Dual Standard model starting at almost $70,000 with a range of 240 miles on a single charge. Thanks to their partnership, The Nature Conservancy now has a high-end Rivian for free.
“(Rivian) donated it to our Nature Conservancy chapter,” he said. “We drove it for quite a while when it was still his property and it was donated to us this year.”
That donation included electric vehicle charging stations at Red Canyon Ranch and Tensleep Preserve.
“They installed those chargers for us to charge the trucks, and some chargers are available to people as part of their charging network,” Coffman said.
Rivian announced the opening of its first Rivian Network adventure site in Wyoming, six stations in Cheyenne, in March 2024. A map on the company’s website shows sites in Gillette, Buffalo, Sheridan, Cody and Rock Springs as ” soon”.
The charging station at Red Canyon Ranch appears on the Rivian map, while the one at Tensleep Preserve does not. However, all stations are open to the public and are compatible with most electric vehicles.
“By the way, it’s a solar installation,” Davis said. “It was partially tied to solar from time to time, and we are working to bring it fully to solar.”
Both Coffman and Davis attested to the R1T’s excellent performance in Wyoming. After years of rugged terrain and sub-zero excursions, they believe the trucks have proven themselves as capable as any other vehicle.
“It’s not my job in any way to advertise for the company or criticize it, but I have a lot of experience with all-wheel drive vehicles in difficult conditions,” Davis said. “But the R1T worked very well and still does.”
Andrew Rossi can be reached at arossi@cowboystatedaily.com.
Keynote USA
For the Latest Local News, Follow Keynote USA Local on Twitter.