[15x07] December 21st, 2010 [Special]

[15x07] December 21st, 2010 [Special]

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I think Americans might have misunderstood the question when asked "what's the best Driving Road in the world?" Most Americans being so far removed from motorsports or at least motorsports involving more than left hand turns would think of the scenery, not the driving thrill being what defines a good drive.

Maybe they should have asked "what's the most exciting and twisty road in the world?"

Or maybe: "witch one of dem mawnt'n roads is tha skerriest to drive in a v8?"
 
Sik Pony said:
cool, im just down the road for the next few days in greensboro. damn, its cold here!
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Welcome to the area! You may be here for the 1st white Christmas in a long time! :santa:

It's good to see other NC folks on here too.
 
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brandondrums said:
I think Americans might have misunderstood the question when asked "what's the best Driving Road in the world?" Most Americans being so far removed from motorsports or at least motorsports involving more than left hand turns would think of the scenery, not the driving thrill being what defines a good drive.

Maybe they should have asked "what's the most exciting and twisty road in the world?"

Or maybe: "witch one of dem mawnt'n roads is tha skerriest to drive in a v8?"
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first of all, as an american motorsports enthusiast, i can tell you that there are plenty of us, and we do understand what it means for a road to be the best driving road in the world. The reality is that in the past, TG has had the roads they use for these types of challenges blocked off by police so they can rev to their hearts content, and at full speed I guarantee you to the Blue Ridge Parkway would qualify as one of the "best" or "most exciting and twisty" roads in the world. Recall that places like the Stelvio Pass do have speed limits, top gear just dont have to follow them because they get special permission most of the time.
 
jigielnik said:
The reality is that in the past, TG has had the roads they use for these types of challenges blocked off by police so they can rev to their hearts content, and at full speed I guarantee you to the Blue Ridge Parkway would qualify as one of the "best" or "most exciting and twisty" roads in the world. Recall that places like the Stelvio Pass do have speed limits, top gear just dont have to follow them because they get special permission most of the time.
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Correct... for example, for the ending of the Romanian trip, the authorities actually completely shut down the northern section of the Transf?g?r??an for a whole day.
 
jigielnik said:
10/10

That said it wasnt all perfect, I do wish they had simply gotten a large part of the Blue Ridge Pass blocked off to go as fast as they want, as they often do other times (but we don't see) but the turn of events that followed created for what i thought were some genuinely classic Top Gear moments.
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The Parkway is owned by the National Park Service, and therefore they are notoriously Nazi about this sort of thing.
 
After having to watch TG America for the last few weeks (a few good moments, a few crigneworthy ones, mostly meh) it is SO good to have the boys back. I've been singing the Hallelujah chorus from Handel's Messiah all morning, and not because it's Christmas!
 
bwkrupp said:
Quite frankly, I was disappointed. It felt lame. The scripted bits felt more scripted, the comedy half assed, and missed opportunities abounded.

Compared to the brilliant cheap-car challenge of TGUSA this week, in which I had tears running down my face from laughing so hard at the Eaton Proving Ground bits, this was just very ho hum. 4/10

...the stab in the back joke about the stig was great though
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I had absolutely no respect for the TGUSA epsiode since they copied every single little bit from the TGUK BL special. It was funny, but completely copied.
 
They were in my old neighborhood and I didn't even know it =(. Awesome episode. 9 here.
 
TomCat said:
The only thing I didn't like was the way they handled the Stig. I was hoping for more class. I can't help but feel sorry for Ben. It seems like he was treated second rate while on the show and even worse now that he's left.
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I don't know if I agree with you on this. Ben knew that the role of the Stig was exactly what it was when he signed on. He wasn't going to get a speaking part, he wasn't going to get to do car reviews, he was going to get paid to drive incredible cars and provide production support. He was a behind the scenes person who by contract wasn't going to identify himself and was very well paid for this role. Behind the scenes people figured out who the stig was while he was already righting his book about the experience.

Ben knew the score with Perry McCarthy, he knew the deal with the black stig and he went to court for the right to publish his book.

A deal is a deal is a deal, Ben broke the deal and in doing so slapped his friends pretty hard and removed a fun game that had been going on for years.

But...

race drivers are a dime a dozen so its time to get a new one and away with the old
 
No too thrilled, I don't think I'll ever see a TG episode without any sort of challenge any more. But it was entertaining, I'm glad it's back.

They missed a joke though, I was sure they would do something with the stig-cut outs after the shooting. I expected Clarkson driving over the cut-outs, maybe a pint of petrol and set them on fire. On just (fake) pee over them.

@Clarkson, the SLS does NOT have the most powerful NA engine ... INTA World.
Add, "car", "production" and crucially "V8" to that sentence and it's nearer the truth.

p.s. What car would be your choice for an unknown, twisty up and down road in a heavily forrested area.
The Merc is too heavy, the other too are just dangerous. (fine on a track mind you, but on such a road it would just scare me)
I'd like a EVO/GTI kind of car, maybe a S2000.
 
jsausley said:
I had absolutely no respect for the TGUSA epsiode since they copied every single little bit from the TGUK BL special. It was funny, but completely copied.
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Because it is the same writers and producers. I'm sure they want to use UK proven test as a measuring stick for US TV ratings.
 
Jupix said:
The drag race in the wet was cringeworthy. How hard can it be to just accept after the first try that the electronics alone won't stop the wheels spinning if you just floor the throttle?
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Actually the reasonably priced car seems to get away in the wet most times. I propose a drag race between that and the other two, in the wet :)
 
jigielnik said:
The reality is that in the past, TG has had the roads they use for these types of challenges blocked off by police so they can rev to their hearts content
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I've often wondered that, and even assumed it was true, but sometimes they'd encounter oncoming traffic, so I'm not 100% sure.
 
prizrak said:
They had Jeremy get off the Brooklyn Bridge like 3 times in that race :) All part of the deal I suppose.
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And how did Hammond get out of going into the Holland tunnel. It would have been months until he got back into Manhattan. Did I see a cop car parked behind Jeremy when Hamster got there? Maybe that's how.

Still, entirely enjoyable. How I've missed thee, Top Gear.
 
prizrak said:
They had Jeremy get off the Brooklyn Bridge like 3 times in that race :) All part of the deal I suppose.
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They really should have either taken the time to plan the shoots out in a different way, so that the film could have better flow and continuity without the large need for artistic license, or done something different that didn't ruin the suspension of disbelief. NYC is one of the most populated and most visited cities in the world, so many people will feel like Top Gear has been dishonest with them. Limited time and limited money must make it very hard to make a believable film in a world where people are growing more intelligent, more learned and more sophisticated.
 
I have to be honest. I wasn't really that impressed, but that's just my preference. If it has to be a "road trip" I prefer somewhere exotic - Vietnam, the Pole, etc. I much prefer the challenges when they have to "buy X for 500 quid and do Y", and even more when they have to build something.

Still, funny in parts, and it's great to see TG back!
 
Tang said:
And how did Hammond get out of going into the Holland tunnel. It would have been months until he got back into Manhattan. Did I see a cop car parked behind Jeremy when Hamster got there? Maybe that's how.

Still, entirely enjoyable. How I've missed thee, Top Gear.
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I wondered about that too. I've been at the entrance of the Holland tunnel. There is no going back once you get to the point where Hammond was.
 
jsausley said:
I had absolutely no respect for the TGUSA epsiode since they copied every single little bit from the TGUK BL special. It was funny, but completely copied.
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.......so? Both shows have the same writers. And it was funnier than the BL episode, and more relevant, even added to the challenges. I have no problem with reusing skits, so long as its entertaining.
 
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