Next time you're behind another car, face to face with their bumper, make sure to a good look in your rear view mirror. The State Patrol may be staring right back at you.

State troopers are on a mission to educate drivers about tailgating.

"See how close he is right there," Trooper Keith Leary said while pointing out a car tailing another vehicle on Interstate 5. "Why is he bumper to bumper on that car? Is there any reason? Traffic is moving at the speed limit."

The driver, Rebecca Fox, said she was surprised that the distance she left wasn't enough room.

"He said it's a car length for every 10 miles you're going," she said. "Which, is way more than I've ever guessed."

Most of the drivers we pulled over were looking for some help with the law.

The statue reads, "the driver of a motor vehicle should not follow another vehicle more closely than is reasonable and prudent," the statute reads.

The question then becomes, what is reasonable and prudent?

"For the most part if you establish that two second rule, you've got good distance," Leary explained. "The two second rule is a good rule of thumb when driving at the speed of 60 miles per hour."

The two second rule involves picking a stationary object in front of you. When the vehicle passes this object, count to two seconds. Leary says if you pass the object before you've counted to two seconds, this could be viewed as not following at a reasonable distance.

If you're going the speed limit on a freeway, the two second rule would leave you approximately six car lengths of separation. That's a lot further than driver Steve Meyer, who was pulled over, thinks is "reasonable".

"I never, never see that on the freeway," he said.

If a trooper believes you are not allowing enough brake room between you and the next vehicle, you could face a ticket for $124.

If you find yourself in a situation where someone is tailgating you, troopers say the best thing you can do is move to another lane when it's safe and let the other driver go past. You should never try to force a close-following driver to slow down by intentionally braking hard in front of them.

The stepped-up enforcement is part of the state patrol's effort to reduce potential road rage situations. Troopers are also cracking down on drivers who poke along in the fast lane on area freeways.