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A Smokin' Ride: A car that's made of hemp and runs on hemp seems like the idea of someone who has watched one too many Cheech and Chong movies — and not America's most famous auto manufacturer, Henry Ford.

Yet the man behind the Model T was a big believer in bio-diesel fuels. Ford's hemp mobile, devised in the late 1920s, consisted of a steel chassis with fiber and plastics made from hemp resin.

Two years ago, Kellie and Grayson Sigler of Virginia honored Ford's vision of a petroleum-free car when they crossed North America in their HempCar — a modified Mercedes station wagon that trekked 13,000 miles burning this whacky weed.

The good news: The HempCar got 27 miles a gallon. The bad news: Hemp fuel presently costs about $50 a gallon. Nevertheless, the Siglers say hemp fuel burns clean, and nobody compared the exhaust fumes to a big fat joint.

Even if you don't have hemp in your gas tank, you might have it on your chassis. The University of Toronto is experimenting with superheated hemp to make biodegradable car bumpers that are lightweight and tough, helping to make a bad trip better.

Junkie Food:

Hemp baker Lynn Gordon says the only thing that's addictive about her Healthy Hemp Sprouted Bread is "the great taste."

Two years ago, the Drug Enforcement Administration tried to crack down on the growing market for hemp-based food, which now includes a hemp breakfast cereal, hemp waffle mix and — if you still have the munchies — "hempzel" pretzels.

Now, you can expect an explosion of more hemp products, thanks to a federal appeals court in San Francisco. Judges recognized that hempseed in products like Gordon's bread have no more danger than poppy seeds, which contain trace amounts of opium but pose no harm to bagel lovers.