BEAGLES, EVs, AND THE AMERICAN WEST

OPERATION FRODO IS A WONDERFUL STORY OF 12 volunteer drivers delivering 16 Beagles from Omaha, Nebraska, to Portland, Oregon, more than 1700 miles in four stock EVs over June 7 through June 10, 2026.

SAE International Automotive Engineering, August 2026, contains Sam Abuelsamid’s “The Navigator: Planning a Trek Across America With Dogs in EVs” and Sebastian Blanco’s “Road Ready: Four Electric SUVs, Five States, 16 Beagles.” Sam also recounts “16 Beagles, 4 Electric SUVs Across the American West” appearing in GreenCars, June 30, 2026.   

Here are tidbits and happy snaps gleaned from all three reports. 

Operation Frodo. Sam describes, “We’ve been transporting homeless beagles from the Midwest to the Pacific Northwest since 2022…. Automakers loan us press vehicles, donations help cover costs, and we all use the air miles we accumulate from our jobs to get to Omaha.”

The EVs. The Operation Frodo electric fleet included a Cadillac Escalade IQ, Hyundai Ioniq, Kia EV9, and Lucid Gravity. 

Sebastian notes, “The four SUVs in this year’s drive all offer real-world ranges of at least 300-ish miles—and two [the Gravity, 450 miles; the Escalade, 465 miles] offer far more—and have NACS DC fast charging capabilities (or an adapter) that made the trip possible within our time constraints.”

Torque = Acceleration. Hence… Electric motors produce their full torque inherently at 0 rpm, and hence EVs are renowned for amazing acceleration figures: The huge (Hummer-size) Escalade gets to 60 mph in less than 5 seconds, albeit with range going to hell if exercised overly often.

Range Anxiety? Not! Sam reports, “I went with a combination of Google Maps and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data Center (AFDC). AFDC is an amazing resource when looking for relatively up-to-date data… including charging, hydrogen, biofuels, natural gas, and more.” 

Sam notes, “I filtered the AFDC search down to DC fast charging stations with at least 350-kW and four chargers and picked charging locations about every two-and-a-half to three hours along that route.” Sebastian recalls, “The stops we took every 2-3 hours became a smooth routine: line up the vehicles, make sure the beeps and glowing lights indicate charging, then focus on our little friends.” It’s clear that Beagles were excellent travelers, napping much of the time and enjoying the charging-session romps.

Speed and Altitude. Sam recounts, “The only notable issue we encountered was the combination of 80 mph (129 km/h) speed limits [evidently enjoyed…] and elevation climb led to higher than anticipated electric consumption. [Of course.] As a result, on the final two days through Utah, Idaho, and Oregon, I added a couple of charging stops. But no one ended up stranded, and the charging stops only added an hour each day to the travel time we’ve experienced with gas vehicles on prior trips.”

“And,” Sam concludes, “the drive experience was nice and serene for humans and canines. With the 16 beagles we transported on this trip, Operation Frodo has moved 106 dogs over the past four years, and we’ll have many more in the future.” 

Yap, yap, I say, echoing the Beagles’ enthusiasm. ds

© Dennis Simanaitis, SimanaitisSays.com, 2026