The Man With One Shoe

Webster and Oxford must be preparing to add this new word in the future editions...I think they will probbaly, and it will go like this.

Hypermiling: It is a technique of increasing vehicle's gas mileage by making "behavioral" changes in the way one drives, thus allowing to save on rising gas prices.

I came across this word for the first time this morning (thanks to NPR)..though a little research shows it is being discussed well among the enthusiasts for over a year or so.

As the gas price is soaring towards $5 per Gallon, there are many innovations, forums, groups being formed to tackle the crisis at the common users end and new words are being coined, tips and tricks being discussed. Hypermiling is one of them. And for this particular Hypermiler group from California (which NPR interviewed) they proudly showcased their mileage numbers..and analyzed that with what the reporter got in his trial run. It was amazingly more than the double.

Now there are so many tips and tricks...some of them are Risky (like following closely a 18wheeler on the highways to save on wind draft) , some can spoil husband-wife relation (like dont hunt on for getting best and the nearest to the mall entrance parking spot, or prefer parking face out, so that you save on by NOT reversing back and turning needlessly), some are ticket prone (like NOT doing a complete STOP on stop signs) but the one which I could not stop myself from laughing out loud was,

"Not wearing shoe on the accelerator foot to feel the pressure of the pedal more accurately"

But I guess I wont be the one who will be laughing after filling up my gas tank..... but it will be that "The Man with One Shoe" Hypermiler !