Yes, it's going to getting frigidly cold over Presidents Day Weekend with temperatures dropping below zero, brutal wind chills and you maybe having to get somewhere.

The last thing you would want is to have your vehicle stolen because you were warming it up: No transportation, having to tell your friends that it was stolen because you were inside staying warm and also having to call the police.

Preventing car thefts is the reason there is the 'puffing' law in Colorado. It sounds like a misspent youth, but puffing is when you let your car run while unlocked and unattended.

Even five minutes is plenty of time, even with you watching from your warm home, for your car to drive off with someone else behind the wheel. See ya, Betty (that's if you'd named your car Betty.)

So, there goes Betty, to what we'd have to guess, is a life of crime; while you pretend that Betty will be found and returned in pristine condition.  In a majority of 'puffer' heists, neither the vehicle, nor the perpetrator are ever seen again.

Vehicles that have remote starts are exempt from the law, with a catch that they can't idle unattended for more than five minutes.

Fines vary from city to city on how much the fine is for 'puffing;' but the possibility of someone jumping in your car and darting off with it is motivation enough to not be a 'puffer.'

Get our free mobile app

5 Tips For Winter Camping in Colorado

 

 

 

More From Mix 104.3