Michelle Groh-Gordy is the owner of InterActive! Traffic School Online at www.trafficinteractive.com, and writes a syndicated weekly column on driving for the publications of the Los Angeles Newspaper Group.

I asked Don Votaw of Hemet if he would stop and ask for directions if he became lost while driving. His answer came firmly and without hesitation: " Nope.''

His daughter, Debbie Lafuente of Menifee, was quick to confirm that reply. " We were on vacation and Dad got lost and refused to ask for directions. We were going to Idaho and we ended up in Las Vegas.''

According to a study in a 2000 issue of the journal Nature Neuroscience, men might not ask for help when they get lost simply because they could have a better built-in sense of direction than women. The study concluded that men tend to use their brains differently than women. While most women will only look for landmarks if lost, apparently men will use both landmarks and geometric clues -- angles, curves -- to find their way.

Anna Alavarez of Rancho Cucamonga says she always uses landmarks when she gets lost. "I may not remember the name of the street, but I will remember that truck or that gas station.''

When the Department of Defense created its global positioning system, its original goal was not to assist directionally challenged civilians, obviously. Yet today's motorist gone astray can access global positioning technology for a fraction of the $12 billion our government spent to create it. Greg Williams of Alta Loma doesn't need GPS. "I have no problems asking for directions. I swallow my pride and ask.'' He quickly added, "Although my wife gets lost going to the grocery store.'' Monika Wolfe of Fontana admits her husband's sense of direction is better than hers. "I am horrible at directions. I am really bad with 'north or south.' I need 'left or right,' or I won't get there.''

I was really starting to get concerned about those of us without the Y chromosome. No one I was interviewing, male or female, was saying anything positive about the directional sense of women.

Then I talked to Sheri Shepherd of Rancho Cucamonga. I was relieved to hear her say that between her and her husband, it was a tie as to who has better directional sense. A tie!

Then Shepherd said, "But I will say my mom and my sister have a terrible sense of direction.''

So much for chalking one up for the girls.

At least all of the women I spoke to said that although they might not have great built-in directional radar, they would never hesitate to ask for help if they were lost.

While a few men proudly admitted they wouldn't have a problem asking for assistance (Don Mueller of Covina and Andy Ortega of San Bernardino), others hesitated a long time before answering (John Lopez of Riverside), or skirted the issue by dropping words like "Thomas Guide'' (Danny Solis of Ontario). The California Map and Travel Center has produced a short online video showing a businesswoman standing on a busy street corner. A man walks up to her to ask for directions, but all he can get out is, "Hey, can you tell me ...?'' before she misinterprets his intentions and reaches into her handbag for a can of Mace and a stun gun, both of which she applies to the poor, unsuspecting gentlemen without hesitation.

The title of the video? "The REAL Reason Men Won't Ask for Directions.''