Ryan McCaffery

Last week I had the great pleasure of hosting one of the most well-regarded Tesla Podcasters out there. I talk of none other than Ryan McCaffery the host of Ride the Lightning the unofficial tesla podcast. It was a surreal and fun chat that both myself and Nash from Tesla in the gong enjoyed immensely.  

I first heard about Ryan in 2016 when I visited USA and experienced the Tesla Model X. The driver of the Model X mentioned Ryan’s podcast. I was hooked. I listened to all his past episodes and truly had a crash course in all things Tesla. 

This education only enhanced my passion for the vehicles. When I arrived back in Australia, I booked a test drive of a model S. My wife who did not really know much about the vehicles was an instant convert. 

Like Ryan explained last week, you don’t really understand the difference from Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicles until you test drive a Tesla. Once you do, you are hooked and, in most cases, never go back. This was true for Andrew the optometrist, my friend, and is true for so many more people in Australia and globally. 

So, last week, was a bucket list item that I can tick off. Ryan was a wonderful guest and very giving of his time and knowledge to all those that joined the chat. He is such a wonderful advocate of Tesla and by his own admission he loves the vehicles and their mission. 

Lots to cover

Ryan, Nash (Tesla in the gong, and my cohost) and I delved into the world of Tesla by exploring subjects like the new refresh of Model S including the new steering wheel yoke. We also discussed the possibilities and challenges the new gear shifting could bring forward. 

Ryan recounted his origin story and talked about his co-host on the podcast “Daisy the Boxer Puppy”. He explained she had recently had some medical issues. Ryan was able to update us on how she was doing, and I am happy to say she is improving.  

Our discussion included Australia and a role that our country could play. Australia could help to produce batteries using the natural resources our country possesses.

Australia

But as Ryan pointed out when asked regarding if Australia would be a possibility for a Giga factory, he aligned with current thinking in Australia and felt that the population would not support a Gigafactory, but a smaller battery production facility might be possible. 

Australia is a country rich with natural minerals and resources and the idea that we could play a part in production of batteries for the future battery packs would be a major step forward. However, nothing has been reported that this is occurring so we will just have to see. 

The audience also joined the discussion with their questions regarding Tesla India, Ryan’s day job at IGN and the crossover of video games into the vehicles of Tesla. 

Ryan oozes exuberance when talking about Tesla and it is without a doubt infectious for all those who surround him. We were swept up in the discussion and time certainly was not enough to dive into all areas of EV’s and Tesla.

Thankful

Nash and I both were truly thankful to Ryan for taking the time to talk with the Tesla and EV community in Australia and the audience were rewarded with great conversation and information. 

Clubhouse provided a great platform that allowed all to hear and as Ryan pointed out to us, we enticed him onto another social media platform. 

What today’s events showed is that the Tesla, and by extension, EV community is passionate about Tesla, they understand and are passionate about what the vehicles can do and how they are changing the world. 

Ryan is a genuinely nice and passionate guy who is happy to talk for hours about Tesla, his passion project. His podcast Ride the Lightning the tesla unofficial podcast has been a great source of information and fun for those of us in the community. 

I am very grateful for the opportunity to talk with Ryan today and I hope we have future chance to cross paths. 

Dave