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In your daily journey from point A to point B, what would you say the ratio of positive to negative responses you get from hypermilling?

I'd be intrested to see if there are states or cities that are more eco friendly when it comes to our rides.

I'd say mine is 3 bad to 1 good when I'm in Apex, the exact opposite of that when I'm in Cary.

In Chicago I get about 3 to 1 good to bad. I doubt anyone knows I'm doing any thing environmental (not that I care, I don't need their accolades, nor do I deserve them in the rest of my life). What they respond to is the fact I will leave large gaps where they can merge, I drive slow enough where they can actually leave a parking lot without needing a v12 to accelerate up to speed. I think also being aware of traffic around me allows me to drive more courteously.

Heh, I've got two opposing salutes at roughly the same time... I slowed down to let someone in and got a thank you from that person... only to get cursing and hand flailing from the one behind me. I don't know why, but I seem to notice much more driver interaction since I've been driving the insight... maybe its because I'm paying attention more.

I get the occassional thank you wave for letting someone in but I've never gotten a thumbs up. It is probably because I drive a pretty commonplace vehicle and no one has clue I'm doing anything but driving slowly. If they only knew the numbers I've been seeing... ;)

Much of the time, other drivers act like they don't have a clue as to what's going on.

This is particularly true in residential areas.

Typical situaton: there is a four-lane road by my house I often do a glide a quarter-mile to the stop light. Occasionally neighbors will be about to board this road, so I move from the right most lane to the fast lane so I'm out of the way. Still they wait until I pass, then quite often they gun their engines and peel off. :rolleyes:

Quite a few thumps up and no middle finger salutes.

Thats because your car is awesome... I'm stuck with just an insight ;)

Probably equal numbers of thumbs up (one on Friday from an HCHI, does that count?) and angry honks, but not very many of either. No middle fingers extended at me, at least that I've seen. They probably think the little Insight can't go any faster, or they're just too busy multi-tasking.

In the other direction, I confess to awarding middle fingers to people that can't be bothered to get out of my lane when blitzing past me. Maybe ridge-riding encourages this misbehavior? At warp speed they probably don't see my salutations anyhow, so maybe it's pointless for me to react.

As has been recommended here, I try to smile at all other inept driving, including my own.

i don't know if it's because in minnesota people wear mittens half the year so you couldn't see a thumbs up or not, but i never get that. i often will give thumbs up to another hybrid driver, because i do see a lot of prius's around here, but since my HCH is so bland, i am sure they aren't sure why i am doing it. if i see a hummer driver close and can make eye contact, i make sure he sees my thumbs down.

around here i generally get more action than the thumb, and most of it is negative. that would include tailgating, high beams in my rear view mirrors, fast and loud passing (usually done by trucks). the only time i ever see anything that even resembles a positive event is the rare morning that this one black prius and i end up together on the road. then he/she goes slower and manages to keep a decent space between us and the speed jockies behind us.

when i was visiting my friend yesterday, who drives a toyota echo, i believe, she also drives 55 on the 4 lane on the way to work (we work at the same place, so she's on the same road i refer to). she said at first it was daunting and scary, but more and more now she is seeing others going slower, so perhaps there is hope.

I think I avoid the middle finger salute bacause my car falls outside most people's automotive pre-conceptions. Most conventionally extreme cars such as the Insight, Prius, or H2 ellicit a polarizing response, either positive or negative, depending on their own personal views, and then they react with either the thumb or the finger. When they encounter my car on the road, it ellicits the same response that the average person would if they encountered one of those wrought iron VW Beetles out driving, "what the heck is that" and then they are too busy staring to think about mundane things like "He's going too slow, get outa my way!". It also helps that I tend to drive at normal traffic speeds (except for allowing a few mph to slip away on the uphills).

I get thumbs up from younger people (especially from the tuner crowd, which always catches me off-guard) and the occasional bird from middle-aged people (especially those in jacked-up and/or over-sized trucks).

I get around 3 thumbs up to 1 middle finger but both usually occur in the Spring and Summer. In the Fall and Winter people seem to just hunker down and "git 'er done".

I have never gotten a thumbs up that I can remember. But I can also say that I can't remember any middle fingers either. One thing that I have noticed lately is that every once in awhile, I find someone driving slower than me on the interstate (60 in a 70 zone). In that case I just and bump down the CC to match thier speed, following at 4 car lengths. I have also found that many times, someone will close in from behind and stay for miles and miles. Usually they are on the cell phone and don't realize that they are going so slow.

Most conventionally extreme cars such as the Insight, Prius, or H2 ellicit a polarizing response, either positive or negative, depending on their own personal views, and then they react with either the thumb or the finger.

Agreed. In the Mazda3 (with it's "sporty, zoom-zoom image), I definitely get more fist-shaking and middle fingers than I do thumbs-up or polite waves. Probably on the order of 4:1 Bad:Good.

I get about a 15:1 thumbs-birds ratio in the Mustang. Probably 5:1 on the bike.

Nobody much notices the Focus, even the rice-boys - only the other SVTF driver in town and another yahoo who drives a non-SVT Focus hatch have ever given a thumbs up to it. Birds...probably gotten two of those, too, so I'd say it's a 1:1 ratio :D

I get a lot of the slut slap waves. And the finger. I am getting better at not mirroring there gesture.

Here's a new one, not sure whether it falls in the thumbs up or middle finger salute category:

Getting onto I-95 this morning, I merged into the right lane just ahead of an older guy in a Honda Accord. Easing it up to my usual 50-55, I looked in the rearview and saw him making bicycle pedaling motions with his hands! Don't think he meant for me to see. After a bit, he switched to the left lane and went on his way.

BICYCLE PEDALING?! LOL!!!!

Here's a new one, not sure whether it falls in the thumbs up or middle finger salute category:

Getting onto I-95 this morning, I merged into the right lane just ahead of an older guy in a Honda Accord. Easing it up to my usual 50-55, I looked in the rearview and saw him making bicycle pedaling motions with his hands! Don't think he meant for me to see. After a bit, he switched to the left lane and went on his way.

LOL nice!! I get the one handed bicycle pedaling often... as in aww come on, hurry up!!

About two months ago I had a guy making visably angry faces at me as I was FASing up to a red light... when it opened up where there was a left turn lane the stomped on the gas, only to slam on brakes less than 150 feet later. I slowly rolled up to the light, rolled down my window and looked at him. He rolled down his window and said "yes?". I said, "I noticed you were obviously very upset with me coasting to the red light... where did you think you were going to go once you got here?".. too which he replied, "Dude you were going like 15 mph... what was that all about?" I said... the light is red, where do you want me to go?


He just looked at me like I was stupid... I just smiled and said have a nice day.


People are stupid sometimes

For the most part people jsut ride my tail, then when they finally decide that they have had 2 open lanes to the left to pass in for the past 5 min they get the finger from me along with a nice display of foul language. Many of my friends say that I will most likely die because I pissed off the wrong guy on the wrong day <shrugs> oh well, at least the stupid !@#$ knows what I think about him/her

I've noticed that a lot of those conversations, if they happen,
end with "have a nice day" but it generally really means "F* off
and die, twit". It is often used to terminate conversations by
call-center personnel that clearly need to be doing something
other than talking to the public.
.
_H*

Hmm. Can't say I get much of either. Most of the roads I drive on that are busy enough for my driving to annoy people very often are also 2+ lanes each way. Either people simply go around or it's too congested for me to be holding them up anyway.

I definitely see people get annoyed and race around me, but since I started hypermiling back in May I can't say I've gotten enough thumbs or middle fingers to bother counting.

Of course most people don't realize what I'm up to, and that's about to change. Soon I may finally get around to putting on my "Try Eco Driving, Not Ego Driving" bumper sticker. I expect to start getting both thumbs up and middle fingers. I suspect it will be more fingers than thumbs, but we'll see.

Yesterday afternoon, a silver Prius waved. :)