Opinion & Comment

Rural Motorists & Etiquette

APPALACHIAN NOTEBOOK, By STEVE ODEN

Folks who drive around with cell phones plastered to their ears need to stay in the big cities. Out here in the country, where the pace of life is slower and more satisfying, we need our hands free to wave at oncoming drivers.

It's a fact of life in Appalachia, from North Alabama through Tennessee and all the way up into Ohio: If youÕre driving along rural roads, you better get ready to wave. Total strangers will invariably nod, throw up a hand, or raise their fingers (not the road-rage finger) in greeting when they roll past your vehicle. This is a tradition steeped in the past, when rural roads were rutted wagon paths and you hardly ever met someone who you didnÕt know.

The neighborly thing was to greet the approaching wagon driver or horseback rider and stop for a visit. This was a time to catch up on family news, chat about crops or politics, and swap community gossip.

The advent of automobiles and telephones did little to change the tradition, except now folks are less likely to stop in the middle of the road. They still greet one another. A brief flash of fingers from the top of the steering wheel is supposed to be acknowledged before the vehicles pass.

WhatÕs communicated by these quick, friendly gestures between strangers? Simply, the message is: ÒHowdy. IÕm okay. Hope you are, too. Be careful.Ó

Sometimes, the greeting is a little more frenetic. I had once been deer hunting with a friend when the driver of a passing car stuck his arm out the window and waved wildly. We both backed up Ñ it was a straight and lonely stretch of farm-to-market road Ñ and rolled down my windows.

He grinned, Òare you missing something?Ó

In response to my puzzled expression, he pointed to the top of my old SUV, where I had placed my gun case while removing a pair of muddy boots. I had driven down the road five miles with the gun case perched on the roof. It contained my favorite rifle.

The etiquette of greeting is always observed when two pickup trucks meet, or when you approach a tractor. Gravel or paved surface makes no difference. YouÕre supposed to wave.

ThereÕs a feeling of camaraderie arising from this old tradition. Whether I motor the rural roads near Fayetteville, Oneida, Greasy Ridge, or Vinton, folks greet me with a wave. Most are complete strangers.

From this tradition has arisen a unique type of rural organization called the ÒShun-pikers.Ó Unincorporated communities and farming areas, especially in the mountains, might have Shun-piker groups. These loosely organized clubs get together on weekends to drive country roads, exploring old lanes and trails. They Òshun the main pikes,Ó hence the name.

The groups arm themselves with maps and lists of objectives Ñ to find an old cemetery, a mill pond or a railroad bed Ñ and they drive slowly, taking in the scenery and absorbing the peace of nature. They meet for picnics at historic sites to share their observations and discoveries.

Shun-pikers always wave. You never see them with cell phones glued to their heads. Most of the places they go are far between cell phone tower signals, and reliance on such modern contrivances would ruin their rural ruminations.

On these glorious autumn days, a drive in the country is always uplifting. Just remember to wave when you meet a passing vehicle . . . and leave your cell phone at home.