The man behind Vehicle Virgins and his girlfriend go off-road for the first time in a lifted and modified JK Jeep Wrangler Unlimited.
Vehicle Virgins‘ Parker Nirenstein is used to driving fast cars. He has a Lamborghini and recently took delivery of a 603-horsepower 2018 Mercedes-AMG E63 S. He’s driven a variety of high-performance and exotic machines. One thing he hasn’t done? Driven a Jeep off-road…until now.
The above video starts off with Nirenstein and his girlfriend Becca at the Hungry Valley State Vehicular Recreation Area in Gorman, California. What will they use to make their way through some of the adult playground’s 19,000 acres and 130+ miles of trails? Perhaps a Hummer H1 or a Bentley Bentayga or a Lamborghini LM002? Nope. They go with the vehicle that seems to be the most common site at OHV parks everywhere: a JK Jeep Wrangler.
The one they rent has had some work done to make it more capable of traversing the SVRA’s roughest terrain. The slant-backed JKU has Bushwacker mods, wears a four-inch lift, and sits on 37-inch tires. A heavy-duty front bumper with a winch is in place for worst-case scenarios.
Becca and Nirenstein take turns climbing the various inclines and descending the dirt slopes of the park. When the ground levels out, Nirenstein flies down the dirt paths. He and his gal don’t get anywhere close to the beefed-up rig’s limits, but it doesn’t matter. They’re hooting and hollering and having the time of their lives. The wide-open spaces of the park and the views it offers blow his mind. Nirenstein points out the JK’s simple interior and poor fuel economy but, ultimately, he understands why Jeep Wranglers are so beloved and why off-roading is so enjoyable. For being a first-timer, he sure learns quick.
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.
