the take
we have nothing against the Jeep community, we just don't have the social battery to join it. between the waving, the outdoorsy larp, and the whole duck exchange, a Jeep sounds less like a car and more like an obligation. it's the same energy as buying a snowblower when you live on a cul-de-sac, and yes, we explain. one of us walked past a Jeep the other day with a whole row of rubber ducks lined up in the windshield, and our first thought was: that's a lot of responsibility. we love how friendly it is. we're just not sure we could keep up.
this is the hosts' commentary and speculation for entertainment, not a statement of fact about anyone in it.
the backstory
Jeep ducking, also called Duck Duck Jeep, is when one Jeep owner leaves a rubber duck on another person's Jeep, often with a short note like "nice Jeep." It's meant as a small act of kindness, or a way of saying you like someone's ride. A lot of owners line up the ducks they've collected on their dashboard. It sits alongside the older "Jeep wave," where Wrangler drivers wave to each other on the road.
The trend is credited to Allison Parliament, a Canadian Jeep owner. In July 2020, after a frightening encounter with a stranger in Ontario, she left a rubber duck with a note on a Jeep she admired. The owner saw her do it and told her to post it online, and the #DuckDuckJeep post went viral. Jeep ducking Facebook groups had an estimated half a million members by 2022. Parliament died in June 2024.
In the clip, we explain why the waving and the duck exchange sound like a big social commitment.
where it's from
transcript
auto-transcribed from the clip audio. speakers aren't labeled and there may be small errors.
- 0:00Look, I'm all for the Jeep community, but it's like too friendly.
- 0:04It's like, I wouldn't want to get a Jeep because I feel like that I would have to be so social.
- 0:10It's an obligation.
- 0:11It's an obligation.
- 0:12It's like living on a cul-de-sac and getting a snowblower.
- 0:15Absolutely.
- 0:16It's like, you're an average person.
- 0:17You're like, I need to get ready to engage.
- 0:20I was walking by a Jeep the other day and I saw basically all of these ducks lined up in the windshield.
- 0:24And I was like, that is just way too much responsibility because not only do you have this car
- 0:29and you now need to like, larp like you live that like outdoor lifestyle.
- 0:33You now have to be friendly with waving to people and also doing this whole duck exchange.
faq
- What is Jeep ducking?
- Jeep ducking, or Duck Duck Jeep, is when a Jeep owner leaves a rubber duck on someone else's Jeep, often with a short note, as a friendly gesture. Owners who get ducked often display the ducks on their dashboard.
- Who started Jeep ducking?
- It's credited to Allison Parliament, a Canadian Jeep owner who left the first duck on a stranger's Jeep in Ontario in July 2020. Her post with the hashtag #DuckDuckJeep went viral.
- Can you duck your own Jeep?
- Technically yes, but other owners generally frown on it, because the point is to be ducked by someone else as a random act of kindness.
- What is the Jeep wave?
- The Jeep wave is a long-running habit of Wrangler drivers waving to each other as they pass on the road. Jeep ducking is a newer, rubber-duck version of the same friendly idea.
