Non Lotus related question

Non Lotus related question

Author
Discussion

dbebb55

Original Poster:

109 posts

257 months

Tuesday 8th April 2008
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Hi Kids...My son and I have been enjoying your tv show, Top Gear, but we've been wondering why they call the "race driver", the stig??. Is that Brit slang for something? Great show...Beats watching nascar crap on Speed over here.

Dave
90 SE

subaqua

892 posts

226 months

Tuesday 8th April 2008
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Welcome Dave,

The Stig... as far as I can tell references two things. Firstly, its a reference to the fact that the scandinavians produce a suprising number of good race/rally drivers... and he is named after Stig Blomqvist... a sucessful rally driver in the 1980s, World Rally Champion in 1984. The second reference, which fits in with the quaintly British piss take humour that Top Gear uses... is that of Stig of the Dump.. a children's book and TV series in which the main character, Stig was a caveman who lives at the bottom of the old quarry close to Barney's grandmother's house. Since the quarry is no longer in use, people throw all their rubbish away down there. Brits might also find it a bit funny, because people with poor hygiene, or tramps might also be referred to as Stigs, named after the caveman.

Stig apparantly means path in Swedish and Danish and the name indicates that the person isa pathfinder... you learn something every day!

Flat_Steve

1,534 posts

261 months

Tuesday 8th April 2008
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Yeah, I always took it as a generic Scandinavian name, due to that country's propensity for producing a disproportionate number of the planet's world champions in motorsport.

Edited by Flat_Steve on Tuesday 8th April 23:03

dbebb55

Original Poster:

109 posts

257 months

Friday 11th April 2008
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Mark...Stig of the dump???? What are you teaching your kids??? Ah.. English humor. Thanks for the imput.

Dave

Kinky

39,876 posts

283 months