To begin with, the term 'Shotgun' has to be defined. The most common meaning is 'a smoothbore shoulder weapon for firing shot at short ranges'¹. In this case, though, shotgun refers to the front passenger seat of a vehicle. The seat received this name during the 1800s in the American West, when the man sitting next to the driver of a stagecoach was required to carry a shotgun to ward off robbers. Today, this seat is often coveted by many due to the fact that it is the only passenger seat that has any leg room to speak of. The person sitting in shotgun is often referred to simply by that title.

'Shotgun' Responsibilities

Sitting shotgun often comes with responsibilities that those in the back seats do not have. The shotgun often serves as navigator for the driver, folding and reading maps and attempting to point out the correct turn before the driver passes it. On night trips, the shotgun holds the responsibility to make sure the driver stays awake. Those in the backseat may sleep, but the shotgun must engage the driver in conversation to monitor the driver's lucidity, and, if need be, call upon another passenger to take over driving duties. But these responsibilities are the price paid for the leg room and access to the radio controls that comes with the seat.

Determining 'Shotgun'

Depending where you are and who you're travelling with, there can be many rules as to who sits shotgun. If the driver has a significant other travelling with you, 90% of the time you can kiss the chance to sit shotgun goodbye. If you are too young to sit in the front seat of a vehicle, likewise don't count on sitting shotgun. Lastly, if you fear a fiery collision, then choosing to sit in the front half of the vehicle may not be your cup of tea. Most times though, shotgun is determined by 'calling it'. The rules for 'calling it' can be as simple or as complex as you like, but it is best if the group decides upon a consistent set of rules, so as to avoid bodily injury, though this does not always eliminate the chance for injury.

As a demonstration, here are the rules used in a group of friends of this researcher uses to determine shotgun. These are often referred to as 'The Rules of the Holy Tome of Shotgun, devised at Parkway South High School², refined at Saint Louis University' or 'The Rules' for short.

The Rules of the Holy Tome of Shotgun

General Definitions

• The judge of any questions of the rules shall be a majority of the passengers, with the driver deciding ties.

• All valid calls are final and cannot be overruled by the driver.

• Shotgun shall be defined as the front passenger seat of the vehicle.

• Window-Left shall be defined as the back seat on the driver side.

• Window-Right shall be defined as the back seat on the passenger side.

• Middle shall be defined as the worst place to sit in the vehicle.

• A Call shall be defined as a verbal exclamation.

• A Surface Call shall be defined as a call that must be made on the surface (at least one foot touching) where the vehicle is parked.

• A Doorhandle Call shall be defined as a nonverbal call signified by being the first to make contact with a vehicle doorhandle.

Rules

1. Shotgun can only be called once completely outside of a building - this may often lead to footraces inside the building to reach the door. A tie prompts a surface call - yet another footrace, this time to the parking lot or street. A surface call tie prompts a doorhandle call - a final footrace to the vehicle. In the highly unlikely event of a doorhandle tie, a single round of Paper/Rock/Scissors, or a similar game, will be played to determine Shotgun.

2. Once shotgun has been called, other passengers may call for Window seats, to try to avoid the Middle.

3. Exiting the vehicle and releasing the exterior doorhandle forfeits the right to a particular seat, and the open seat may be called by anyone outside of the vehicle as a surface call.

4. Should someone call shotgun and then give up the position, a new call may be made once the rejection is verbalised. Shotgun does not fall to the original second-place caller.

Special Circumstances

• Outdoors - If the passengers have remained outdoors since exiting the vehicle a surface call shall determine all seats.

• Attached Parking Garage - Anytime a vehicle is parked within a parking garage, a call can be made once entering the garage from the attached structure.

Example

Arnold and Bart have both tied in the door and surface rules. They now race to the door handle. As Bart approaches the door, Arnold pulls out a cricket bat and smashes Bart about the head. Bart falls to the ground screaming and Arnold easily touches the door handle, winning the contest. While it is obvious that Arnold has done something illegal, he has not done anything illegal in the sense of shotgun rules, he has won shotgun. Such violence cannot be condoned, but it should be noted that morality is to be used at the discretion of those participating and is not dictated by the shotgun rules.

These rules can be edited or changed as needed to fit a given group or situation, but remember, when dealing with forces as powerful as the basic human desire for leg room in a small car, use caution.