Things I Want to Ride

Submission 12,850

About

Things I Want To Ride refers to a series of image macros typically attached to two to four images, usually of one human being and several motor vehicles or other transportation device. The meme plays on the double meaning "ride," the verb meaning to travel on, as well as the slang meaning for sex.

Origin

The sexual usage of the word "ride" has origins dating back before the internet, but one of the earliest known uses in an image macro occurred on February 13th, 2012. Twitter user @the1975kate posted a photograph (shown below) of singer Harry Styles on a bicycle with the caption "2 things i want to ride but can't :( ."

Spread

Over the next few years, using the catchphrase "two things I want to ride" with an image of an attractive celebrity and mode of transportation became popular on Twitter, particularly during 2013 and 2014.

On September 25th, 2015, Twitter user @harryasfck^[2] posted on the first four panel versions of the meme. The tweet (shown below) featured four images (a car, Harry Styles, a ferris wheel and a rollercoaster) with the caption "things I want to ride."

Two months later, a four-panel image macro of images from Harry Potter began circulating online. The first known example featured the Weasley's flying car, a Hippogriff, a flying broomstick and Harry Potter actor Matthew Lewis in his underpants. The caption reads "Things in Harry Potter I Want to Ride." The post (shown below, left), uploaded by Imgur user lucydawn on November 5th, 2015 and has received 4,300 views in less than two years.^[3]

On January 2nd, 2016, Instagram user @mrgiveyogirlback^[4] uploaded the same image but swapped Lewis for Harry Potter actress Emma Watson. The post (shown below, right) has received more than 12,000 views as of July 2017.