Million dollar caravan: Weekend electric vehicle rally starts in Colorado Springs

Want to see what a million dollars worth of electric vehicles looks like?

Take a spot by the side of the road on Saturday and watch 10 Tesla Model S EVs, each worth about $100,000, caravan from Colorado Springs to Cripple Creek during the Million Dollar Tesla Electric Vehicle Rally. Car owners will meet in the Cripple Creek city parking lot and eventually move to the parking lot at Wildwood Casino.

Mac McCauley and his wife are excited to be part of the convoy in a silver 2013 Tesla they've had for about 18 months.

"My car runs on sunshine," McCauley, 70, said. The couple's first EV was a Chevy Volt they purchased in 2011. Electric cars are powered by an electric motor and a battery that must be regularly charged by universal chargers. Tesla EVs require specially made Tesla chargers.

Why Cripple Creek? The tiny town has three locations to charge Tesla EVs and two universal chargers for cars like the Volt.

By comparison, there are also three locations to charge a Tesla in Denver, one in both Limon and Trinidad and one in the Springs at Old Town Guesthouse that's only available to guests.

"The electricity that comes out of them is free forever," McCauley said. "It's like buying a car and saying here's free gas forever."

The McCauleys have driven their EVs to Cripple Creek for years, catching the eyes of many townsfolk along the way. Bill Burcaw, co-owner of 9494: Gifts with Altitude, expressed interest in holding an EV event, but there were no nearby charging stations. Most EVs can't make the 100-mile round trip to Cripple Creek, though Teslas are the exception - they're able to travel about 300 miles at 55 mph and 200 miles at 75-80 mph.

Burcaw learned about Tesla's Destination Charging program, which promised qualified properties one free universal charger for every two free Tesla chargers and charged $1,500 per Tesla installation. City Council approved and the first charger was installed in the spring. They're located in three spots: the city parking lot, Wildwood Casino and Carr Manor, a boutique hotel and bed and breakfast.

"These guys all do their communication through their cars," said Burcaw about Tesla owners. The cars are constantly connected to the Internet and keep track of charging station locations. "Their cars tell them where to go. I've seen an increase of Teslas arriving in town. About once a week I see a new one. It's increased business for sure."

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