To ride shotgun was to be a passenger on a moving vehicle, sitting alongside the driver or pilot. After experiencing a mind meld with Tuvok, reliving his service aboard the USS Excelsior under the command of Captain Hikaru Sulu during an attempt to rescue James T. Kirk and Leonard McCoy from Klingon custody just prior to the Khitomer Conference, Captain Kathryn Janeway mused that she would have loved to ride shotgun on a mission with the likes of Kirk, McCoy, and Sulu because she believed that Starfleet officers of that era (the 23rd century) were rougher and more resourceful. (VOY: "Flashback")