The Tesla Cybertruck may be less than a year old at this point, but it’s come to represent so much more than just an EV. Even in a state like Maine.
Earlier this year, Travis Carter became one of the first Pine Tree State residents to own the much-hyped vehicle, according to the Portland Press Herald. That’s brought the cannabis store owner a lot more attention than he bargained for—along with plenty of vitriol.
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Carter, who lives and works in Portland, owns one of only two Cybertrucks currently registered in Maine. He was one of the first 5,000 people to reserve the EV back when it was first announced 2019 but forgot about the pickup after it was delayed numerous times. Then, at the beginning of the year, Tesla reached out to him about buying an early example and he leapt at the opportunity. Now he wonders if that was a wise decision.
That’s because the angular, stainless-steel Cybertruck stands out, and not in a way that Carter considered before dropping around $100,000 on the vehicle. Nearly everyone in town, from other drivers to pedestrians of all ages to municipal tennis players, stops and stare when he’s out for a drive (a source in Portland told us that they’ve seen the vehicle several times and that they “enjoyed” seeing it in person).
“I don’t like attention. It wasn’t an attention-seeking move,” Carter told the paper. “People have taken my picture so much. I’m shy, so it has been a weird experience, where you pull up to a red light and every single person stares at you.”
But not all the attention has been positive. As the novelty has worn off, Carter claims he’s become the recipient of an unexpected amount of anger. He says that the vehicle has been spat on, scratched and that drivers and pedestrians alike regularly flip him off. He’s not quite sure why people are so mad. The paper, though, suggests it might have something to do with Tesla’s controversy-prone CEO, Elon Musk, who it notes has been accused of transphobia, anti-semitism, and racism in recent years.
Whatever the reason for the hate, Carter is trying to make the best of the situation. After just a few weeks driving around the vehicle, he slapped a large QR code sticker onto it that directs people to the website for Vice Cannabis, the marijuana store he owns and operates with his wife Phoebe. He also parks it outside the shop, which some customers have told him is what brought them in.
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