Don’t stop the EV music

Jackie Rickard steps into her late father’s role at EVTV

Jack Rickard with his daughter Jackie

The late Jack Rickard of EVTV, a long time member of Gateway Electric Vehicle Association (GEVA), is something of a legend at the St. Louis, Missouri chapter.

“From the beginning of his work to make vehicles electric, Jack believed the way to do it was to encourage individuals to convert their own vehicles to electric and show them to others,” said GEVA President Wayne Garver.

“His  goal was to get 100,000 or more DIY conversion projects going,” agreed GEVA member Daniel Howard. “His efforts lead to tremendous overall adoption and success.”

According to Howard, Rickard’s YouTube channel EVTV Motor Werks has received over 3 million hits, a majority on 507 DIY electric vehicle (EV) and other EV-related videos that Rickard produced over the 12 years he ran the company. This, Howard maintains, was a big factor in GEVA’s 175-member expansion during the same period.

“Jack had been making these videos  since 2008,” Howard said. “He was promoting the benefits of EVs and how they compare with ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicles and talking about living off the grid. Of course, this was while he was manufacturing and distributing parts for conversions.” 

Jack Rikard on EVTV

Additionally, Rickard hosted several EV Conversion Conventions (EVCCON), where “He gave out shirts which read ‘Kickin' gas one car at a time,’ Garver explained. “That was his motto.”

Now, since Rickard’s death two years ago, “Jack’s daughter Jackie has been trying to put together what her dad wanted her to do,” Howard said. “She’s doing a great job continuing his work.”

Solar charging on the agenda

Jackie joined her father’s company not long before he became ill.

“The original plan was for me to work alongside my dad to learn everything he could teach me,” Jackie Rickard explained. “But he passed so quickly… I decided to move forward with it, regardless… to step in and learn everything and keep it going.”

Over the past year “I’ve been getting my feet wet and entrenching myself  in operations,” she continued, explaining that future plans center around a continuation of conversion parts distribution, as well as encouragement of solar EV charging when it comes to the systems the company ships to customers.

“Our clients have different needs and we can customize based on how much power is necessary,” Rickard added. “Some need charging for RVs, others for their farms or a resort of some sort. One customer, Walter Crumbly,  has a hotel in Costa Rica where he powers off the grid so he doesn’tt have to worry about outages.”

Back to the Beck

Rickard explained that her father started converting cars to electric with a 1957 Beck speedster.

“The catalyst was the high gas prices in 2008, similar to what’s been going on now,” Rickard said. “My father went to the gas station one day to fill up and came away determined to figure out a way around the high cost. The only EV he was  familiar with  was a golf cart, so he tried playing around with that, and eventually converted a Beck into electric.”

According to Jackie, that’s when her father started filming his work, and it wasn’t long before he posted his first You Tube video, A Convenient Response to an Inconvenient Truth. Later, he began selling used parts and kits for EV conversions, and eventually that included salvaged used Tesla batteries as back-ups for off--grid solar living systems. 

In 2010, Jack made his first visit to GEVA, where “He came to give a talk about lithium batteries,” remembered Garver. “He was testing them and was a big proponent of bottom balancing the battery pack and not using a BMS (battery management system). Most systems do use a BMS but he found it unnecessary with the LFP (lithium iron phosphate).  I can attest to the fact that his system worked.”

Going rogue

In addition to delivering  parts for electric car conversions to EV hobbyists and enthusiasts, EVTV is still focused  on shipping off-grid systems using Tesla batteries as well as a host of other components such as panels and converters. Assembly and installation instructions are always included, as is remote support.

“I’m not sure where all of this will eventually lead,” Rickard concluded. “It’s all been very fast. But no matter what, I’m determined to continue the work and there’s certainly been a big need in the marketplace.”