Winners will be chosen based on their performance during off-road driving trials at Overland Expo West and 3 Land Rover Experience Driving Centers in the U.S.
Land Rover is giving people a chance to drive the new Discovery through the jungles, mountains, and desert of Peru.
Want a chance to win a spot on the trip this fall? If so, Land Rover wants to see how well and how quickly you can off-road in one of its vehicles. You’ll be judged on how precisely, quickly, and safely you can take a Land Rover through an off-road course that features side tilts, holes that display the vehicle’s articulation, down-hill descents, and other obstacles. Judges will deduct points from your score if you bump any of the guide canes on the course or get through any section unsafely. If you get the best time and take the most precise line through the course, you’ll win one of the three remaining available slots for the Discovery journey through Peru.
There are four total spots; the first one was up for grabs at the Overland Expo West, which took place May 12-14. You can compete to win one of the three other spots on select weekends between June 1 and August 31 at the following three U.S. Land Rover Experience Driving Centers:
-Quail Lodge in Carmel, California
-Equinox Resort in Manchester, Vermont
-Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina
According to Land Rover, “The four winners, travelling in groups of two, will join separate waves of the Land Rover Experience Tour Peru 2017. One pair of winners will join the program from October 28 to November 3 as the group overlands more than 500 miles from Cusco, through Machu Piccu, Pitchari, Satipo, ending their trip in Huancayo. The second pair of winners will join the program from November 4 to November 9 as the tour leaves Huancayo and drives almost 400 miles over the Peruvian mountains and through the desert to Pisco, Peru.” Depending on the location, accommodations will either be a hotel or a natural campsite.
Starting June 1, you can sign up for a trial at one of the U.S. Land Rover Experience Driving Centers by hitting this link.
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.
