Riding shotgun: Difference between revisions
No edit summary |
|||
| Line 4: | Line 4: | ||
==Rules for Calling Shotgun== |
==Rules for Calling Shotgun== |
||
Most rules for calling shotgun are designed to provide disambiguation and fairness to all passengers. For example, one common shotgun rule is that all passengers must be in sight of the vehicle before the call can be made or at a minimum all passengers must be outside walking to the vehicle. Another common rule requires a race to the vehicle wherein the first person to put his or her hand on the vehicle has earned the right to ride shotgun for that trip. Some groups will create rules that are generally ambiguous promoting discontent among non-shotgun passengers. Another rule states that shotgun may be called any time while discussing riding in a vehicle. Other rules can be set to specify the longevity of the right to shotgun (i.e., the entire trip, until everyone exits the car, the rest of the day, etc.). |
Most rules for calling shotgun are designed to provide disambiguation and fairness to all passengers. For example, one common shotgun rule is that all passengers must be in sight of the vehicle before the call can be made or at a minimum all passengers must be outside walking to the vehicle. Another common rule requires a race to the vehicle wherein the first person to put his or her hand on the vehicle has earned the right to ride shotgun for that trip. Some groups will create rules that are generally ambiguous promoting discontent among non-shotgun passengers. Another rule states that shotgun may be called any time while discussing riding in a vehicle. In some rules, if you are not driving your own car, the owner of the vehicle automatically gets shotgun. Other rules can be set to specify the longevity of the right to shotgun (i.e., the entire trip, until everyone exits the car, the rest of the day, etc.). |
||
==History== |
==History== |
||
The first known reference to "riding shotgun" in print occurred in Western pulp fiction in the March 27, 1921 issue of the Washington Post's "Magazine of Fiction," in a story entitled "The Fighting Fool" by Dane Coolidge. It was used to refer to riding as an armed guard in the front of a [[stagecoach]], next to the driver (this would usually have been on the left, as stage drivers traditionally sat on the right, near the brake). Historians have been unable to find a use of the term "riding shotgun" in the actual time of the Old West, when the terminology actually used was riding as "[[shotgun messenger]]." The use of the phrase in print to refer to automobiles occurred in 1954 simultaneously with the TV series ''[[Gunsmoke]],'' which became extremely popular, and used the terminology of ''riding shotgun'' nearly weekly.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mrideshotgun.html |title=What's the origin of "riding shotgun"? |author=Staff |date=2004-04-13 |work=[[The Straight Dope]] |publisher=[[Chicago Reader]] |accessdate=2006-07-26}}</ref> |
The first known reference to "riding shotgun" in print occurred in Western pulp fiction in the March 27, 1921 issue of the Washington Post's "Magazine of Fiction," in a story entitled "The Fighting Fool" by Dane Coolidge. It was used to refer to riding as an armed guard in the front of a [[stagecoach]], next to the driver (this would usually have been on the left, as stage drivers traditionally sat on the right, near the brake). Historians have been unable to find a use of the term "riding shotgun" in the actual time of the Old West, when the terminology actually used was riding as "[[shotgun messenger]]." The use of the phrase in print to refer to automobiles occurred in 1954 simultaneously with the TV series ''[[Gunsmoke]],'' which became extremely popular, and used the terminology of ''riding shotgun'' nearly weekly.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mrideshotgun.html |title=What's the origin of "riding shotgun"? |author=Staff |date=2004-04-13 |work=[[The Straight Dope]] |publisher=[[Chicago Reader]] |accessdate=2006-07-26}}</ref> |
||
Today, many automobile passengers consider riding in the front passenger seat preferable to riding in rear seats largely due to it having greater control over leg room, an unobstructed view of the road in front, and access to the vehicle's [[car audio|audio]] and [[air conditioning]] systems. Another benefit is that entry and exit from the vehicle is often easier, especially in two-door cars. In addition, some passengers find that riding in the front seat reduces [[car sickness]]. There is also a tradition in family life that adults sit in the front and children in the rear, a tradition reinforced in modern times by airbags installed in vehicle dashboards which are positioned so as not allow smaller children to ride in the front seat; hence sitting shotgun provides a sense of adulthood |
Today, many automobile passengers consider riding in the front passenger seat preferable to riding in rear seats largely due to it having greater control over leg room, an unobstructed view of the road in front, and access to the vehicle's [[car audio|audio]] and [[air conditioning]] systems. Another benefit is that entry and exit from the vehicle is often easier, especially in two-door cars. In addition, some passengers find that riding in the front seat reduces [[car sickness]]. There is also a tradition in family life that adults sit in the front and children in the rear, a tradition reinforced in modern times by airbags installed in vehicle dashboards which are positioned so as not allow smaller children to ride in the front seat; hence sitting shotgun provides a sense of adulthood. |
||
Prior to the advent of seatbelts and airbags, the front passenger seat was considered the most dangerous to be seated in if there were an [[car accident|accident]]; therefore the ''shotgun position'' also came to be known as ''the suicide seat''. |
Prior to the advent of seatbelts and airbags, the front passenger seat was considered the most dangerous to be seated in if there were an [[car accident|accident]]; therefore the ''shotgun position'' also came to be known as ''the suicide seat''. |
||
Revision as of 18:44, 13 March 2008
 | This article possibly contains original research. (March 2008) |
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (April 2007) |
To ride shotgun is to sit in the front passenger seat when riding a car or other vehicle, a phrase commonly heard in the United States, Canada, New Zealand and Australia. Due to the influence of American popular culture it is also heard in several European countries such as Iceland, Ireland, Denmark and the United Kingdom, as well as other countries with large English-speaking populations such as South Africa and Israel. In contemporary tradition, in order to claim the seat, one must "call shotgun" according to some set of informal rules. It is the responsibility of each individual group to establish a formal set of shotgun rules. Most groups will also include some sort of forfeit as a punitive response to a shotgun violation.
Rules for Calling Shotgun
Most rules for calling shotgun are designed to provide disambiguation and fairness to all passengers. For example, one common shotgun rule is that all passengers must be in sight of the vehicle before the call can be made or at a minimum all passengers must be outside walking to the vehicle. Another common rule requires a race to the vehicle wherein the first person to put his or her hand on the vehicle has earned the right to ride shotgun for that trip. Some groups will create rules that are generally ambiguous promoting discontent among non-shotgun passengers. Another rule states that shotgun may be called any time while discussing riding in a vehicle. In some rules, if you are not driving your own car, the owner of the vehicle automatically gets shotgun. Other rules can be set to specify the longevity of the right to shotgun (i.e., the entire trip, until everyone exits the car, the rest of the day, etc.).
History
The first known reference to "riding shotgun" in print occurred in Western pulp fiction in the March 27, 1921 issue of the Washington Post's "Magazine of Fiction," in a story entitled "The Fighting Fool" by Dane Coolidge. It was used to refer to riding as an armed guard in the front of a stagecoach, next to the driver (this would usually have been on the left, as stage drivers traditionally sat on the right, near the brake). Historians have been unable to find a use of the term "riding shotgun" in the actual time of the Old West, when the terminology actually used was riding as "shotgun messenger." The use of the phrase in print to refer to automobiles occurred in 1954 simultaneously with the TV series Gunsmoke, which became extremely popular, and used the terminology of riding shotgun nearly weekly.[1]
Today, many automobile passengers consider riding in the front passenger seat preferable to riding in rear seats largely due to it having greater control over leg room, an unobstructed view of the road in front, and access to the vehicle's audio and air conditioning systems. Another benefit is that entry and exit from the vehicle is often easier, especially in two-door cars. In addition, some passengers find that riding in the front seat reduces car sickness. There is also a tradition in family life that adults sit in the front and children in the rear, a tradition reinforced in modern times by airbags installed in vehicle dashboards which are positioned so as not allow smaller children to ride in the front seat; hence sitting shotgun provides a sense of adulthood.
Prior to the advent of seatbelts and airbags, the front passenger seat was considered the most dangerous to be seated in if there were an accident; therefore the shotgun position also came to be known as the suicide seat.
See also
References
- ^ Staff (2004-04-13). "What's the origin of "riding shotgun"?". The Straight Dope. Chicago Reader. Retrieved 2006-07-26.