Parking Lot Practice

Getting a feel for your Jeep and where your tires are is as important as getting that bumper installed. It comes with time spent driving – and not everyone has the time or ability to hit the trails everyday. But with some extra time and a few (preferably used) beer cans and a parking lot, you can begin to hone those skills.

Here are some parking lot exercises to sharpen those driving skills:

Slalom

Cones/cans are placed 8 -10 ft apart in a straight line. The goal is to weave the front tire through the cones. Rear tires do not count.

Skinny Ridge

Find a spot in the parking lot you can approach from multiple angles. Park the Jeep and place two beer cans on the outside of each tire. Place the cans 1-4” away from the sides of the tires, depending on difficulty. Thread Jeep through opening. For intermediate drivers, take an approach from the side. For advanced drivers, try this progression in reverse. 

Thread the Needle

Park the Jeep in a spot with plenty of room. Place a row of beer cans both inside and outside of one tire, 1-4” away from the tire. Thread front passenger tire thru. For more advanced drivers, do not hit cans with the front tire, but instead thread the rear tire through. 

Kiss the Beer

Place one beer can in front of the Jeep, where you can see it from the drivers seat. Drive vehicle to where the passenger tire just kisses the lip of the beer can, but does not crush the can. For advanced drivers, do this with a rear tire.

Crush-a-can-test 

Randomly place cans around the lot in a “rough” line from one end to the other, spaced between 8 – 12 feet apart. As you move from one side to the other, the goal will be to crush all the cans with as little backing up as possible.

These drills can also be used to train spotters. In this case drivers shall pretend to be “brainless” and only follow the exact movement instructions of the spotter.