Today was a great day to be at the Chicago Auto Show, if you’re into social media. Although I was here for both “media days,” today was focused on bloggers, tweeters, and others of our ilk. Last night, there was even a dinner for us, but I was too busy writing to attend. Oh, the life of a dedicated blogger…
Today, I was so busy, I didn’t get to see any of the presentations I wanted to, like:
Oh well, there’s always next year…
I got some really interesting interviews today, including:
Then there was this NBC thing, but we’ll get to that…
I stood around a long time yesterday to speak with the Cadillac representative about the ELR. He was speaking with a man who looked familiar and a woman who did not. I figured they must be major bigwigs in the press, so eventually I took the hint and moved on.
Today was different. A visitor to my blog had a specific question about the ELR, and I was determined to get it answered. I walked up to the first Cadillac rep I saw and asked if we could do a video interview about the ELR. He deferred to Brian, who was very helpful. I will post that video as soon as we can get the beginning and ending edited. Here’s what I learned:
After I wrapped up the interview with Brian, I was approached by a cameraman and producer from Chicago’s NBC affiliate. They liked the interview I did with Brian, and especially liked my use of an iPhone 5, mounted on a tripod to record the interview. They asked if they could interview me about blogging. It was a fun discussion, once I got over such a large camera being so close to my face. The local NBC station is showing a one hour report on the Chicago Auto Show this Saturday, at 6:00PM. On more than one occasion, they assured me my interview would be used in the program. They were not sure if it would be picked up nationally, but said it could be viewed on their website.
Over at Honda, I spoke with Jessica about the EV-ster, an all electric sports car (or roadster, hence the name). This is a concept car from Honda that looks a lot like a Hot Wheels car I had as a young boy. Very, VERY cool. Honda has announced plans to make a two seat, electric convertible for the Japanese market, but not the U.S. (at least not yet)
Next, I shot several videos of cars rotating on turntables. Again, those will be posted, once they get a little editing done. During one of these shoots, a guy walked right in front of my camera, at which point I said, “Thanks, a$$hole.” He did not hear me, but my frustration must have been obvious, because Patrick O’Neill came over and said, “Try this and people won’t pass in front of you. He handed me a lens kit for the iPhone that I have wanted for quite a while, called the “ōlloclip.” I had been wanting one, since first reading about them, but didn’t think they fit the iPhone 5, which I use. As it turns out, they have a new version, which does fit the iphone 5, and it worked beautifully! I moved much closer to the turntable, eliminating any room between the iPhone and the turntable, assuring no one would pass in front of my camera. Patrick mentioned that there is a macro lens inside one of the two lenses he handed me. Believe it or not, I actually mentioned to G. Michael Murphy, while we were at the Missouri Botanical Center, that I wished I had a macro lens for my iPhone! Patrick was very kind and took the time to let me interview him. Ōlloclip was started as a Kickstarter crowd-funded project. I’ll be buying an ōlloclip as soon as possible.
I tried to get an interview with a Fiat rep about their new electric Fiat 500e but had no luck. They were all showing clients gasoline-powered vehicles. That’s fine, but I tried back several times and the proper personnel were always away. You’d think they were selling Volts. 😉 Of course, they may just be copying Chevy’s sales strategy.
Speaking of Chevy, I stopped by the Volt area again and spotted three people discussing the Volt. I waited for a tumbleweed to roll by and then I said, “That is one of the finest cars at the show.” They asked me why I felt that way and I started telling them my story. You know me… The fellow most interested in the Volt currently drives a Denali and spends “at least $400 a month on gas.” He is usually the only person in the SUV. He said he’d check out this blog and if he buys one, he’ll let me know, so we can post a picture of him and his new Volt.
Speaking of that, if you get an EV because of something you read in my blog, please let me know. Send a photo of you and your new car and I’ll post it here.
The final interview of the day was with Carey Chickerneo of GreenWheels. They sell a two-seat EV called the Wheego LiFe as well as EV charge stations, solar panels and windmills for generating your own clean energy. They are part of the solution, in my humble opinion. I had met Doug Snower, Carey’s partner, the day before, but I never got a chance to reconnect with Doug for an interview. Carey did a great job.
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