OPTIMA Unplugged powered by Clarios
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Events
- Sponsor
- OPTIMA Batteries
- Location
- Johnson Valley, CA
For the second year in a row, OPTIMA Batteries invited EV and HEV owners out to Johnson Valley, California, during the 2024 Progressive King of the Hammers, presented by NITTO & powered by OPTIMA. That's a lot of words to describe a great day of offroading in the Mojave desert. One year removed from the first Unplugged event, many of those participants returned for a second helping, with more experience under their belts and vehicles that are increasingly modified & more capabale for use in offroad terrain.
Participation was about double of what turned out in the first year, with a wide variety of vehicles from Tesla and Rivian, as well as legacy automakers Ford, Jeep, Toyota and Kia. There were also representatives from more than one automaker, who were using the Offroad Rally as an opportunity to gather some market research, to better understand how consumers and especially enthusiasts choose to use and enjoy their vehicles.
The day started with breakfast, topping off vehicles with hydrogen and solar-powered chargers provided by Clarios and a brief driver's meeting, that covered the changing conditions outside, the responsibility everyone has to tread lightly and the threat that looms over recreational offroading from those who want to restrict or close down access to public lands used for that purpose.
After lunch, the group headed out for a three-hour journey covering a variety of terrain, but nothing so extreme that it prevented anyone from returning to the OPTIMA Oasis for another delicious meal. That was followed by Tanner Foust's Trailer Park Drift Kart Invitational and a live concert performed by The Apes. Take a look at the photo gallery below to see some of the highlights from a full day of activity and mark your calendar for the 2025 King of the Hammers, so you can be sure to take part in the fun! If you'd like to see what the 2023 edition looked like, click here.
Participation was about double of what turned out in the first year, with a wide variety of vehicles from Tesla and Rivian, as well as legacy automakers Ford, Jeep, Toyota and Kia. There were also representatives from more than one automaker, who were using the Offroad Rally as an opportunity to gather some market research, to better understand how consumers and especially enthusiasts choose to use and enjoy their vehicles.
The day started with breakfast, topping off vehicles with hydrogen and solar-powered chargers provided by Clarios and a brief driver's meeting, that covered the changing conditions outside, the responsibility everyone has to tread lightly and the threat that looms over recreational offroading from those who want to restrict or close down access to public lands used for that purpose.
After lunch, the group headed out for a three-hour journey covering a variety of terrain, but nothing so extreme that it prevented anyone from returning to the OPTIMA Oasis for another delicious meal. That was followed by Tanner Foust's Trailer Park Drift Kart Invitational and a live concert performed by The Apes. Take a look at the photo gallery below to see some of the highlights from a full day of activity and mark your calendar for the 2025 King of the Hammers, so you can be sure to take part in the fun! If you'd like to see what the 2023 edition looked like, click here.