Here's proof that only passengers should hold their breath while passing through tunnels

Thinkstock

Here's proof that only passengers should hold their breath while passing through tunnels
(Image credit: Thinkstock)

I used to play this game when I was a kid, too. The reasons why — superstition, to make a wish, to see who can make it to the other side — varied depending on who was in the car. But the rule was always the same — when you drive through a tunnel, you hold your breath.

One teen in Oregon recently proved the childish tradition is in need of an amendment. What might have gone unspoken should now be stated out loud: Only passengers should voluntarily go without air while the car passes through a tunnel. With such knowledge, Daniel Calhon, 19, might have avoided his current legal mess.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Lauren Hansen

Lauren Hansen produces The Week’s podcasts and videos and edits the photo blog, Captured. She also manages the production of the magazine's iPad app. A graduate of Kenyon College and Northwestern University, she previously worked at the BBC and Frontline. She knows a thing or two about pretty pictures and cute puppies, both of which she tweets about @mylaurenhansen.