I have never had any interests in cars. I have been driving
for two years and I still can’t drive on a highway or put gas in the car. If someone else is in the car, I have the
volume of the radio at a barely audible 2 and continue to pester them if I
believe they are talking above a whisper.
I call my mom or dad anytime anything in the car seems even the tiniest
bit wrong and despite my careful driving I have nicked the car about three
times.
That’s why I was surprised when the British television show,
Top Gear, was actually an enjoyable watch for me. Top Gear is show about motor vehicles. Although
I think that little description would have some people heading in the opposite
direction, it is much more than that.
Top Gear is hosted by three men: Jeremy Clarkson, Richard
Hammond, and James May. All three of
them have slightly different personalities and wants in cars but they seem to
mesh well together. They are also joined by another cast member simply known as
The Stig. He is the show’s racer and his
identity is kept a secret. The three main hosts are always having a laugh even
if it is at the expense of one of the other hosts.
They are regularly
given challenges by the producers of the show such as creating an amphibious
car or turning normal cars into stretch limos. Challenges are sometimes accompanied by long
drives to test the durability of the terrible cars they are given to modify. Another
huge component of the show is the when they talk about cars and their quality
in general. There are quite popular
celebrities appearing on the show for the segment “Stars in a Reasonably Priced
Car” where they do a lap in the car with The Stig giving directions and try to
get the best time. Their time is revealed after an interview.
I ended up watching Top Gear purely based on the fact that I
was home sick and nothing was on TV. I also was aspiring to know a great deal
of information about cars so I could make myself stand out and join in with the
conversations the guys were having during class. Ten minutes into the show, I
realized that I would never understand cars or know which ones were considered
to be great but that did not take any of the entertainment out of the show. I loved watching the three participate in the
races and the crazy antics they would pull on one another. The challenges are
always a joy to watch because often times it concludes with a car ending up
completely unsafe for driving and looking like it was rolled around in a
junkyard. The three hosts are essentially just three friends getting paid to
drive, fix and race cars all while having a good laugh and pulling pranks.
Anytime it is on TV I always find myself drawn to it. I think one of the main reasons I’m attracted
to the show, besides its humor, is the fact that I will never be able to drive
a car that fast or have any of the ideas that they have to alter the cars. I have a great appreciation for anyone who has
a skill and who can demonstrate it on TV and make people laugh. Particularly, when
that person is like me, who does not have even a basic knowledge of cars.
Here is a little sampling of the pranks that they pull on each other:
