Man hits Wrangler, turning a Hawaii bookstore into a ‘drive-thru.’
A bookstore is a great place to spend time. You can find that novel you loved as a kid that went out of print decades ago or discover new adventures on every shelf. Normally, a bookstore is also a quiet space full of thought and exploration.
An elderly gentleman recently changed that for a bookstore in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. According to West Hawaii Today, “No injuries were reported after an elderly man driving a rental vehicle rear-ended a parked, unattended Jeep, pushing it through the wall of Kona Bay Books.”
Someone who was following the man out of the Island Naturals market and deli parking lot and onto the road reported seeing his car lose control and run into the back of the rental Jeep Wrangler.
The witness assumed that the driver may have been experiencing a mechanical problem.
‘I wasn’t going to have a cocktail for lunch, but I think I will.’
Kona Bay Books’ owner Kris Arnett was helping customers at the time of the accident. She estimated there were about 20 people in the store when she heard loud noises. “We had no idea what they were,” Arnett said. “And then we heard a very loud ‘bang.’” That resulted in books, CDs, and the shelves they were on flying forward and landing as piles of wreckage. One woman was browsing the store’s inventory only four feet away from where the Jeep breached the wall. Arnett said that after her close call, the woman joked, “I wasn’t going to have a cocktail for lunch, but I think I will.”
The California couple who rented the Wrangler was also inside the bookstore when the accident occurred. If they didn’t know it already, they probably learned that day that truth can be stranger than fiction.
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
