They drove their Cybertrucks in a Mardi Gras parade. Then the crowd turned on them.
Cybertruck owners Joshua Hazel and Christina G. said they each face thousands in repairs after experiencing vandalism at a Mardi Gras parade.
Joshua Hazel
- Joshua Hazel and Christina G. were excited to participate in a Mardi Gras parade with other Cybertruck owners.
- The parade turned hostile with alcohol, beads, and insults hurled at the Cybertrucks.
- Both said they faced thousands in damages — but that it promoted them to buy more Tesla shares.
When the owners of two Cybertrucks were asked to participate in a Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans, they felt honored — but they didn't expect to leave with their vehicles damaged and costly repairs.
"It was not like any other Mardi Gras," Joshua Hazel told Business Insider in an interview, adding that the reaction he received from some in the crowd was "aggressive," "hateful," and "violent."
Christina G., who asked not to be fully named out of fear of retaliation, is friends with Hazel and also owns a Cybertruck. Both are part of a group of Tesla owners who share common interests, including their enthusiasm for Tesla and SpaceX.
Hazel said they were both "pumped" to be asked to transport the parade marshals in their Cybertrucks for the Orpheus parade with three other friends. The parade organizers had electric vehicles carry parade marshals to monitor part of the procession, Hazel said.
The friend group of Cybertruck owners started the day at around noon in a pre-staging area at a convention center, Hazel said. They decorated their Cybertrucks with American flags and wraps, and throughout the day, people approached them to take photos.
"It was all just high energy, enthusiasm, awesome," Hazel said.
Some in the crowd began harassing the drivers
The events that transpired later that evening shocked Hazel and Christina, who have attended Mardi Gras parades for years and didn't consider their participation in the parade a statement.
"The energy shift was just so dramatic from what we experienced," Christina told BI.
Christina said it started with alcohol being thrown at the vehicle and worsened as they drove further down the route.
Hazel, who was driving the vehicle with his wife, said his Cybertruck windows were down when someone ran up to the vehicle and forcefully slang beads at its side. The beads hit his wife in the head, Hazel said.
"This guy just comes up with full force running from the crowd, and slings a handful of beads," Hazel said. "And they're, you know, there's some thick beads, very large beads in there, a handful of them, right at the side of the truck."
The truck's glass panel that covers the camera area was also shattered, he added.
Hazel posted a video of the incident on social media.
