A Total Eclipse from the Car!!!! (New England Spring Lucid Rally)

[Cosmo Cruz]

Congratulations guys. You win.

Now I'm wondering if I can race along in the shadow of Totality from W to E ... from Buffalo to Watertown... like ...on Crematoria.

 

[Cosmo Cruz]

...take 90 E out of Amherst all the way to Syracuse, then 81 N up to Watertown, veer into Rt. 11 and go to Plattsburgh, take the ferry across lake Champaign ... you should be out of charge by then. Ask Bernie for a lift. I have to calculate the speed of the moon shadow, and need a ground crew, like a CannonBall run. Wonder if anyone is doing this ? Could be done with light aircraft ?

You know, with all the rain happening ... be careful out there.

 

[Dortreo]

Looks like you folk picked the better option. I already booked a room in Binghamton, NY (half way) and at a small-town Opera House between Rochester and Buffalo, where it's now forecast to be 65% cloudy. Burlington VT now has the best skies, albeit still cloudy by eclipse time. Gotta love the irony: Burlington VT has better weather than nearby cities. Burnie must be proud. It's one of three sunny days / year in that town.

Anyway help me pick the correct beach chair for the event:
View attachment 19612
I figure the one on the right will keep me dry...the one on the left is good for watching bikinis, and the one in the middle holds the Heady Topper.
View attachment 19614

@Cosmo Cruz : Come to Stowe. I will buy you Heady Topper.

 

[Cosmo Cruz]

No, it's too late. There's one road in and out of the viewing prime area along the top of Champlain / Stowe...
I looked into last moment changes but no joy.

 

[Dortreo]

No, it's too late. There's one road in and out of the viewing prime area along the top of Champlain / Stowe...
I looked into last moment changes but no joy.

It’s not the eclipse. It’s the Heady.

 

[Cosmo Cruz]

How yins doin' up there?
We left home at 11 AM and got to Binghampton, NY at 3 PM.
Charged to 99% at home; arrived with 53% ( doing 86 mph, strong N headwinds, climbing 2200 feets) Perfect bluebird day. Can't see a cloud anywhere.
Highways pretty crowded for Sunday. First charger EVolve at Loves off of 81N full with 3 people waiting. Looked at a Rivian getting 32kW at 30% SOC and decided to move on. Found an EVolve charger in town. Pulled 134kW with 52% SOC. Happy. Went to 95% while walking along Susquahana River. Red Roof Inn has level II charger. We are connected now, having a New Zealand SB / vermont cheddar / pretzels.
Life is good.

Tomorrow we plan to leave before sunrise, as it's obvious everyone on 81N is going to the eclipse. There is one charger stop before Syracuse, and all the chargers in Syracuse are (not going anywhere near them). I have enough to make my destination, not see the sun (100% cloud cover expected), have a nice dinner at the opera house, sleep soundly, and deal with chargers sometime on Tuesday.

 

[Bunnylebowski]

I have to work overnight but will be on my way at 7:45am, hoping traffic doesn’t sabotage it or that my charging plan and backup charging plan don’t fall through, but I think it will be just fine, I’m hoping more people are driving today than tomorrow?

 

[Cosmo Cruz]

Are you going to the Stowe party? It would be cool to see another Lucid while up on the S. shore of L. Ontario. I don't think the people who live up here have heard about electricity. I'm OK....this is the last eclipse I am likely to visit, so even though I have not seen anything but blue skies all day ... ok ... I'm kinda bummed and thinking I need to trade my Lucid for a sailboat and sail until I'm under the moon.

we're looking at overcast skies tomorrow afternoon ... even Vermont is on the list.

 

[Spin Doctor]

I think we’re headed for St Johnsbury, but will make the final call in the morning based on the weather

 

[Snafu]

Got a spot with a prime western view of the eclipse just north of Colebrook. Not a cloud in the sky. DCFC to 80% for the trip home.

 

[Snafu]

Got a spot with a prime western view of the eclipse just north of Colebrook. Not a cloud in the sky. DCFC to 80% for the trip home.View attachment 19776

 

[RM-S8]

I stayed home (eastern PA) and that's what I've got
No filters, pure Galaxy S23 ultra, zoom 80-100%.
Now, iPhone fans, show me your zoom capabilities

 

[Lucken]

Here’s a shot I took at an effective 450mm with a Nikon Z8

 

[Lucken]

Here’s an early bite of the sun…an appetizer for the moon. . You can see a couple of sunspots.

 

[RM-S8]

Here’s a shot I took at an effective 450mm with a Nikon Z8View attachment 19797

Excellent, you've got a great steady hand, or it's a tripod?

 

[Lucken]

Excellent, you've got a great steady hand, or it's a tripod?

Can’t lie, a tripod. I shot it at about a 1/500th second, so even without a tripod it probably would have been steady. But I do shoot a lot of 8K video sans tripod. The camera’s IBIS really helps steady things out.

 

[borski]

Random last minute shot in Chicago

 

[RM-S8]

This is too funny and very American

 

[borski]

This is too funny and very American

Also very American to ignore that sign completely and park right under it lol

 

[Cosmo Cruz]

This is a picture of my wife on the Southern Shore of Lake Ontario, just before total eclipse, Monday 8, April 2024

Tail of the Dragon. Before the Eclipse, looking directly at the sun (that yellow orb behind the thick cloud layer). Lake Ontario, half way between Buffalo and Rochester. It was so dark and so strange I forgot to take a picture, and I had almost 4 minutes. We could not see the sun at all so we looked at the shadow racing toward us from the SW, at 1600 mph. Not possible to describe it. Kinda scary.

We went back to Brent's and had a fantastic dinner. The suite is outstanding = to die for. Elegant and classy.

That red chair in second floor window = that's out suite. Fantastic rooms!