Some buildings are leveled by explosives. This old house comes down with a few yanks from a 1979 Ford dually.
Ford trucks are known for being hard workers. The automaker says it itself: “We own work.” Typically, Ford F-150s and Super Dutys are shown hauling lumber or towing heavy machinery. The common theme is that Ford trucks help build things. It’s no exaggeration. Ford trucks are responsible for the construction of things ranging from homes to highways. The Ford truck in this video from Youtube user Cole Bishop doesn’t build. It destroys.
An old house needs to be razed to the ground. Bishop doesn’t say exactly why and doesn’t explain why he was chosen for the job, but none of that really matters, anyway. The important facts are that Bishop got the gig and he brought his 1979 dump truck dually. Like the house, it’s got a lot of years on it. However, after the dust settles, the old Ford will still be standing.
Bishop starts at the front of the house with a chain connecting his truck to the doomed structure. With a healthy amount of throttle, Bishop pulls away a corner and a window. A subsequent tug doesn’t lead to any substantial breakaways. Another try results in Bishop tearing the entire front of the building down.
He eventually moves to another corner. At first, Bishop’s efforts to reduce it to rubble only end up rattling the house. He persists. With the next pull, the bottom slips out, causing one half of the outer wall to fall forward. That brings the roof crashing down with it, which makes one of the side walls come down. Just to make sure the forgotten home is as flat as possible, Cole gives it one more yank. As destructive as it may be, it’s still work – and a Ford truck does it.
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.
