Top Gear : Caravan Holiday

[[R-CON]MrD]

Well, you now it's a spoof in many ways, just to get the entertainment value out of it, but 18% of people in the UK own or take caravan holidays????

The speeds they travelled at I think I'd prefer to go out in a car doing 80-90 miles an hour down the motorway and drive home to sleep in my bed each night!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/topgear/thisweek.shtml

Caravan

In America, there's a car-related pursuit whereby people fit hydraulic suspension to cars. The goal appears to be that of getting the car as low to the ground as possible. The other aspect of this pursuit seems to be that in addition to being low to the ground, a car modified in this way can be made to 'jump' about, using the hydraulic suspension to make it look like a kangaroo on crack.

On the face of it, this appears to be the most pointless motoring-related activity one could undertake.

But it isn't, because even more ridiculous than the hundreds of Americans who line up on roads across the country on a Friday night to play loud music and make their cars jump about are a group of Brits. These people attach a lump of plastic to their tow-bar on a Friday night, and then drag it across the country to a large expanse of grass and sleep in it.

It seems almost amazing that it's possible to out-stupid a car that jumps up and down. But over 800,000 people in the UK own caravans. And while there are no official figures, we're pretty sure they ALL drive up the motorway just as rush hour is getting started on a Friday.

The question we wanted to answer was: why? Why would someone subject themselves to a painfully slow journey just so they could sleep in a plastic box. This, it seems, is a question with no real answer. James, Richard and Jeremy certainly didn't seem to enjoy their caravan trip much. They certainly didn't like the embarrassment of causing huge traffic jams, and the humiliation of having to go to the loo in a bucket filled with blue water. There was however some amusement to be gleaned from James crashing into pillars. But not enough to make a weekend in hell worthwhile.

The shame they felt when big queues of traffic formed behind them, interspaced with some humour on the LED message board they bought at a garage and fitted to the rear (best message was to the horsebox driver behind them "serves you right") Even the police getting called when they couldn't do a 3 point turn in the road!!!

How many of these caravans don't have reversing pins? Like we had for land rovers and trailers in the army, you stick the pin in when both vehicles lined up and reversing is easier, the swivel joints range of movement is restricted by the pin.

Whilst obviously having some spoof moments, there were several times when I had to shut my skylights to stop anyone walking past from phoning the police to report someone getting murdered in here due to my extremely loud hysterics! I rang my parents when it got repeated tonight to tell them to watch it, then I rang them after the caravan segment to hear my dad was scaring my mother with the rip roaring laughter from the tv at the end of the kitchen when she was sat quietly in the living room!

who watched this and is left more dumbfounded at the caravanning lot that anything else in their entire life? who has a caravan themselves and can add to the hysterical events that happened in this one show? I will admit we briefly owned a trailer tent when we were stationed in germany and drove down to italy with it, but a trailer tent is smalll and compact and not in the same class as a caravan dragged behind you (although the austrian mountains with no crash barriers in the early 80's were a worry even when you didn't have anything dragged behind you!)

[mrmong]

my nan and grandad have a very big caravan and drive around spain and france for half the year, they love it.

[eddie]

Things like driving around a country must be good but for a weekend it's just stupid.

[Braddock096]

I nearly p*ssed myself watching that, as usual with Top Gear.

Still undecided as to whether the large fire at the end was a set-up or not!

[mrmong]

i wish i had a caravan for music festivals, there like heaven on wheels when your stuck in a shitty tent

[Pence]

They certainly didn't like the embarrassment of causing huge traffic jams, and the humiliation of having to go to the loo in a bucket filled with blue water.

I suspect a 'Loo' is a toilet?

Caravans are long term homes for some, like in south Chile.

[Black-Hawk]

i think the fire was set up at the end, otherwise i dont think it would have been shown as producers and all would have been running on tryin to save Jeremy. it was hilarious but, Top Gear just keeps getting funnier!

[[R-DEV]Hitperson]

Originally Posted by Braddock096

I nearly p*ssed myself watching that, as usual with Top Gear.

Still undecided as to whether the large fire at the end was a set-up or not!

blatent set up

his AK was in therre and the caravan that they trashed before got burnt down.

[[R-CON]MrD]

wel, he couldn't exactly have pulled the imitation AK out of the caravan because the police would have been called. mind you, if the firemen would have found it the anti terrorism squad would be round.

maybe his wife asked him to dispose of it? my ex wife is still trying to tell me to junk wierd assed things like that.

[Fullforce]

I'm surprised Hammond didn't blow the caravan up at first sight...


Too much Brainiac.

EDIT: Awww, no video? I missed it, would have liked to have seen this.