#250 - Neel Vasavada

Geezers of Gear

Neel Vasavada is the founder and president of Overdrive Energy Solutions. Neel is a driving force in the movement to bring green technology to the events industry. His engineering background and experience with both sustainable energy and live entertainment business development has led him to found Overdrive Energy Solutions with his co-founder Jahn "BOXER" Hardison. In 2003 he founded Apex Speed Technology, a provider of control systems and engineering consulting for prototype, research & development and motorsports vehicle projects, Customers included early-stage Telsa, Zero Electric Motorcycles & The US Department of Energy. Neel has also led business development for capital equipment suppliers and tech companies in live events since 2012. He led eps america - one of North America’s fastest growing production equipment suppliers of the last decade. Overdrive has become a leader in sustainable energy for live events. In 2023 a partnership with sustainability non-profit Reverb.org resulted in the 2 largest solar powered stages in US history. The first was Willie Nelson’s Luck Reunion, which reduced fossil fuel use for stage power by 95%. In August, Overdrive made history with the largest temporary solar field ever for a US festival, powering parts of Billie Elish’s headlining set at Lollapalooza Chicago. Overdrive has also provided power at notable events and venues such as Coachella, Google's I/O developer conference and Dodger Stadium, with over 2.5MWh of energy deployed. Moving forward, Neel is committed to developing cost-efficient, reliable and clean energy systems for live events - and beyond. This episode was brought to you by Act Entertainment/ Ultimate Support Systems and GearSource.