Jeep driver gets through a canyon and over a stream with a little bit of rubber and a whole lot of guts.
The Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon is the definition of Trail Rated, meaning that, among other things, it’s capable of getting across certain bodies of water. The JKU Rubicon in the above video has no problem handling water, but it does it in a unique and impressive way.
Most of the time when you see a Jeep near water, you end up watching the rig splash through in spectacular fashion. Keyword: through. This particular Wrangler Rubicon doesn’t do that, at least at first.
Its owner makes it straddle a stream, the edges of its tires gripping canyon walls with all of their meaty might. No slips. No scrapes. No white knuckles are visible through the windshield as far as we can tell. As he gets further into the crevice, he keeps at least one aired-down tire on the rock face as he makes his JK’s suspension bend and flex and contort in ways that defy the laws of metallurgy.
At one point on his way up a short waterfall, it looks as if the steel-nerved adventurer has his Jeep on only two wheels – diagonally. He got this far on just rubbery edges, so ascending the slippery slope shouldn’t be a problem. Sure enough, it isn’t. He presses onward and upward. Despite the water rushing underneath, the Rubicon powers over a hump and onto flatter land – where the driver can finally plant all four corners of his Jeep. We can only imagine what other badass stuff he goes on to do when he has 100 percent of his tires under him.
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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.
