--- title: "Maine Man Alarmed When Everybody Mocks His Cybertruck, Flips Him Off" description: "A Maine Cybertruck owner knew he'd be one of the only in the state to own the expensive Tesla, but didn't expect everyone to hate it." date: "2024-05-14" modified: "2024-05-14" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/maine-cybertruck-hate" categories: - "Advanced Transport" tags: - "cybertruck" - "reddit" - "tesla" - "the digest" --- # Maine Man Alarmed When Everybody Mocks His Cybertruck, Flips Him Off ![A Maine Cybertruck owner knew he'd be one of the only in the state to own the expensive Tesla, but didn't expect everyone to hate it.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## Cybertruck on Maine A Cybertruck owner in Maine knew he'd be one of the few people in the state to own the futuristic-looking vehicle — but he didn't expect everyone to hate it as much as they seem to. In an [interview with the *Portland Press-Herald*](), Cybertruck owner and apparent introvert Travis Carter claimed that he didn't buy the $100,000 vehicle to turn heads. So when people in the coastal town began gawking at his angular truck, he was shocked. "I don’t like attention," Carter, the owner of a cannabis dispensary, told the newspaper. "It wasn’t an attention-seeking move. People have taken my picture so much." It's yet another sign that the Cybertruck has [quickly become a symbolic representation]() of Tesla's brand and its controversial CEO Elon Musk. To many, the divisive vehicle is [more of a lifestyle choice]() than an electric pickup truck. ## Bad Publicity As the *Portland Press-Herald* notes, Carter is one of only two people in all of Maine to have registered a Cybertruck. Its most populous city, Portland is home to [less than 70,000 people](), so there's little doubt that no-nonsense Mainers have taken notice of the vehicular anomaly in their midst. According to Carter, people not only act as paparazzi when they see him driving around in his muted stainless steel behemoth, they've even reportedly flipped him off and yelled insults at him. It's as if the vehicle is the embodiment of the ["away" that Mainers love to hate](), and Carter, who told the paper that he hails from Kingston, New York and only moved to Portland seven years ago to open his dispensary, is bearing the brunt of that prejudice. "I’m shy, so it has been a weird experience," he continued, "where you pull up to a red light and every single person stares at you." Online and offline, Portlanders have taken to trashing Carter's Cybertruck, and some have gone so far as to advise others not to patronize his dispensary, Vice Cannabis, due to their disagreement with his taste in electric cars. "It's actually nice of Vice Cannabis to do people the favor of giving them the heads up to stay away," [one disgruntled resident wrote]() in a thread on the town's subreddit. "No way would I trust someone's judgment that would buy a Cybertruck." **More on Cybertruck:** [*YouTuber Melts Down as Tesla Refuses to Replace His Lemon Cybertruck*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()