Tesla Owners Converge on Cocoamoda, May 20, 2017

[bollar]

Join us for the first Texas statewide group road trip to Cocoamoda !

PLEASE REGISTER AT THE EVENTBRITE LINK FOR MORE DETAILS AND TO LET US KNOW YOU ARE COMING!

The Tesla clubs in Texas invite all Tesla owners to converge in Calvert, Texas to socialize, have lunch and enjoy the Best Little Chocolate Shop in Texas!

COCOAMODA is a Texas-based gourmet chocolate business. They operate out of the historic town of Calvert, Texas on Main Street (Highway 6), where they create their chocolates and have a chocolate boutique.

Their mission is to continue to produce the highest quality truffles and confections using the finest grade of chocolate and freshest ingredients sourced from across the globe.

A little more than a year ago, Chef Ken Wilkinson sustained a traumatic brain injury. While he continues to heal and recover, their gourmet restaurant is put on hold, but his wife Jacqueline continues to produce the best chocolates in Texas!

Proceeds from this event benefit the Chef Ken Fund!

Tesla Owners Club of North Texas has primed the pump with a $100 contribution.

REGISTRATION

This event is open to all Tesla owners. PLEASE REGISTER, so we know how many to look for at our starting locations and to give Cocoamoda the courtesy of knowing how many chocolate afficianados to expect.

Tesla Owners Converge on Cocoamoda

 

[bollar]

The question of "why Calvert" is really dependent on Supercharging infrastructure. When planning a day trip for all of us in the triangle, there's a very, very small patch of Central Texas that's within round-trip range for a 60. This picture shows 80 mile circles from Corsicana, Bellmead, Huntsville and the planned North Austin Superchargers. Although Austin isn't open, I wanted it to be at least feasible for an 85 to make that round trip from Austin without having to Supercharge at all. Calvert is right in the center of that patch, I know Coccomoda and thought that Chef Ken's recovery made for an interesting story that we could rally around.

 

[TexLaw]

Sounds good, and I hope we can make it. In all my years of driving Hwy 6, I've never stopped in Calvert (except at the red light).

 

[ThisIsTrue]

Join us for the first Texas statewide group road trip to Cocoamoda !

Thanks to @bollar for pointing this page out since I was going down to Bryan from Dallas. We stopped here on the way, and as soon as Jacqueline heard me say "Tesla" she popped out of the back to say hello. She's really looking forward to the event. Her husband gets out of the rehab hospital next week -- 14 months after his injury. Here's a little display in the store about him:

She wanted to see my Tesla, so I took her out -- and gave her a quick ride around the block. She hopes that someone at the event will give Ken a ride. I told her I was SURE one of you would do that for him.

We bought a box of truffles, but they didn't have any milk chocolate ones left -- so she quick pulled some out of the fridge, and finished them for me so I could get some:

I won't be able to join you all for the trip -- we're from Colorado, after all! -- but I told her to have a BIG stock of truffles ready for you all on May 20. They are pretty darned good (be sure to try the Key Lime!)

 

[bollar]

Awesome @ThisIsTrue ! We're looking forward to our trip in May.

Jacqueline was excited to see you as well!

COCOAMODA

 

[BerTX]

Looks like fun. I couldn't make it from SA without first going up to Waco. Well probably be out of state then anyway.

We do like our chocolate, though!

 

[TSchaefer]

The COCOAMODA drive today was fantastic. Rain threatened, but it held off, except just a few sprinkles, and the overcast skies made for pleasant temperatures in Calvert, Texas.

The town is small and quaint, but a few of us scored goodies from a table set up by a local organic farmer. We saw him pull in and set up his table and just had to check out the Texas homegrown goodness.

A nice gift shop and a couple of antique shops were open and browsing was fun. There were plenty of places to get out of the sun beneath the awnings which covered most of the sidewalks along Highway 6. This is just the kind of town I remember growing up in North Texas and there are more of these kinds of towns in Texas than there are giant metroplex areas.

There was MORE THAN enough off street parking on the street next to COCOAMODA and we lined up the vehicles for a nice photo op. A few owners, including an early adopter’s signature red Model S lined up out on Highway 6 in front of COCOAMODA for a really nice photo treat. Today's event saw not one, but TWO early signature RED Model S's, one from North Texas Club and one from the Houston Club. What a treat and how unusual to see two of them loose in the wild, in the same location. An added bonus was a North Texas member arrived in his fairly new Model S-P100DL and he took Chef Ken for a spin that the good Chef will never forget.....BAM! I believe almost everyone in the Tesla group had townspeople, out for a Saturday errand, stop by and ask questions about our vehicles and they were genuinely interested. I really enjoyed talking to George L. who had a 90 acre spread west of town and had lived around there all his life. His wife really liked the fact that the frunk had extra storage space! I only encountered one person who drove by in a big 4WD truck and honk like he was making a negative statement...but we all just waved.

So, yes, we had 18 Teslas, including 2 Model X's and 40+ people from North Texas, Austin area and Houston area, driving their $80-$130K+ vehicles, parking on the street, having lunch and visiting, without incident or fear of vandalism. So in spite of all the propaganda, it was a great experience and a nice day for a drive in the country. Thank goodness we did not have to endure a hay ride into town as previously suggested by some negative Nellie who thought the trip would be a laughable disaster.

Chef Ken Wilkinson and his lovely wife, Jacqueline arrived and we had a photo op with them. They are a genuinely lovely couple and they are taking each day as it comes, in his long road to recovery. But let me tell you, Chef Ken has a firm and sturdy handshake, a big smile and twinkle in his eye. We had a good visit with both of them and I, for one, could feel the love they have for one another. Jacqueline gave her testimony as a wife whose husband was critically injured, in a coma for 60 days and did not even recognize her for many months after awakening. She described the long road to recovery and the journey is not over yet. There was not a dry eye in the room. They were gracious hosts to our group and so grateful for the donations made to the Chef Ken fund.

Our entire group was accommodated inside of COCOAMODA for lunch, which included yummy handmade truffles in the restored 1870's bank building. The truffles in the display case were disappearing by the dozens as people purchased them to take home.

One of our members discovered that there is actually some charging infrastructure (NEMA 14-50) at Main and Burnett Street. So now, by adding it to PlugShare, COCOAMODA-Calvert, TX is on the PlugShare map.

Thanks so much Logan Boyd, Thomas Knowles, Rick and Leesa Bollar, Frank Miragliotta and others for the awesome photos.

 

[TexLaw]

That looks like a great time! It is a shame our schedule kept us from hitting the road with everyone else, so we'll just have to look forward to the next time.

Cheers!

 

[ThisIsTrue]

Just as an FYI, we went through town on our latest trip (to Houston this time), and wanted to stop here again. Alas, but Cocomoda's Calvert store is now closed, and their phone disconnected. However, according to their web site, they are apparently open now in Waco.

 

[bollar]

Just as an FYI, we went through town on our latest trip (to Houston this time), and wanted to stop here again. Alas, but Cocomoda's Calvert store is now closed, and their phone disconnected. However, according to their web site, they are apparently open now in Waco.

Yes, you just missed them. They moved the store last week, which works out well as it's close to their home and Chef Ken's rehab.