Hopping Trains
Thread started by
HANDBONE at 06.24.09 - 12:45 pm
lets talk about it. any experience/knowledge/plans on it ?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freight_Train_Riders_of_America
The FTRA are ruthless and we where warned about em up north.
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are you seriously thinking about trying to jump on a freight train with a bike??? Urban legends aside, are you really willing to throw your body and bike off of a moving train, do you think they're going to stop, punch your hipster one time only kool guy coupon and give you a way to go pat on the back??? Go straight to the head of the Darwin Awards and get your prize....
Buddha-head Steve06.24.09 - 1:04 pm
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yo buddha brains. smoke a spliff n chillout. i hate fucking forum-dweebs.
i actually met a cat up north who made it to oregon by train with his bike. aside from never mentioning bikes, who's looking for a pat on the back ?
and if you know me, i could definately make it into the darwin awards. i've already removed myself from the genepool. asshole.
HANDBONE responding to a
comment by Buddha-head Steve
06.24.09 - 1:10 pm
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oh and i meant from New Jersey to Oregon.
HANDBONE responding to a
comment by Buddha-head Steve
06.24.09 - 1:12 pm
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aside from nasty railroad authorities in los angeles, we have some pretty chill train yards to sqaut at.. especially if you're not vandalizing anything. anybody know ?
HANDBONE06.24.09 - 1:14 pm
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budda head....the train stops eventually dawg. that shit doesnt just roll on forever haha
and to handbone, give it a shot. tons of people do it everyday, just be safe cause theres a lot of hazards out there besides simply getting arrested for hopping trains...
ohdagyo06.24.09 - 1:32 pm
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Interesting topic. Let us know what you learn.
Good Luck!
http://www.bravedaveempire.com/empire/freighthopping/railriding/01.php
Joe Borfo06.24.09 - 1:34 pm
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Look up TRAIN ON THE BRAIN
It's my dream.
imachynna06.24.09 - 1:51 pm
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Yeah, the FTRA are a bunch of butt-monkeys that have problems with people on and off the rails.
Hell, I was riding along the tracks on Santa Fe Ave up here when one of them called me something I'd rather not say and threw a bottle at me from the train.
I called the local sheriffs station, they directed me to BNSF PD and sure enough, I saw the train stopped over by Mojave Narrows.
This was probably one of those few times where being a dick back actually worked, that and the train was moving slower than the 50-60 they usually fly by at.
Anywho, know the speed of the train and always keep an eye out for a jump-off point.
Never rode a train in that fashion myself, but the last thing you need is to go from extreme heat, to miserable cold.
Hell, even the train crews hate that shit, that's why they always stay in the loco-cab!!!
bentstrider06.24.09 - 1:54 pm
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did you really just register with the website to scare syoma?
syoma is never scared
_iJunes responding to a
comment by Buddha-head Steve
06.24.09 - 2:03 pm
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What? I cant hear you Junu. You don't have a megaphone.
Joe Borfo responding to a
comment by _iJunes
06.24.09 - 2:04 pm
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I cant find my hipster one time only kool guy coupon or else I'd join. Its gotta be around here somewhere...
SKIDMARCUS06.24.09 - 2:12 pm
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i was hoping you'd share on here. i'm definately gunna be calling you for advice on certain regions.. I dont know if I wanna start south or north... I'm lookin at starting from Texas or Montana and ride the south and northwest. I have much more research to do. I understand train yard workers can often be happy to let you know the trains destinations and directions. and homeland security. ive been told being a crusty punky chap is pretty fucked up riding along the border..
HANDBONE responding to a
comment by bentstrider
06.24.09 - 2:22 pm
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maybe riding back home after some WWOOFing
HANDBONE06.24.09 - 2:23 pm
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Why hop trains when you can ride a bike? Ask Skidmarcus about that.
Joe Borfo responding to a
comment by HANDBONE
06.24.09 - 2:27 pm
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Definitely stay away from anywhere going anyplace near the Southwest between here and Texas.
The CBP watches those trains like a hawk and have a nice set of dogs with them as well.
As far as railroad police is concerned, they have these train-checks setup at different intervals along certain junctions that go through the middle of nowhere.
When I was driving longhaul back in '07, I was going South on the 95 from Vegas to Yuma and was held up at this crossing.
From what I saw, there had to be at least 5-10 BNSF patrol vehicles rolling along each side of the slowly moving train, along with some construction spotlights lighting the sides up.
If anything, get yourself a portable scanner and familiarize yourself with a railroad map.
This way, if there's talk of the train being stopped, you'll have time to bug out at that location and kick back until the shit blows over.
In the case of that, wait for the next train and continue along.
bentstrider responding to a
comment by HANDBONE
06.24.09 - 2:32 pm
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this is becoming very fruitfull. cheers !!
HANDBONE responding to a
comment by bentstrider
06.24.09 - 2:44 pm
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cause i think if you have the chance, do it.
and yes i would love to go cross country on bike as well.
HANDBONE responding to a
comment by Joe Borfo
06.24.09 - 2:46 pm
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portable police scanner you mean ? i have a bit of experience with those.. but not with the terminology... would that really help though ? i have this vision of me jumping out a car and running through tallgrass from hound dogs and constables.
HANDBONE responding to a
comment by bentstrider
06.24.09 - 2:49 pm
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Sorry my son. You can't go. Go hike the John Muir Trail or something.
Joe Borfo responding to a
comment by Alfredo
06.24.09 - 3:04 pm
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I jumped on a very slow moving train once, said "see ya" to my friends then jumped off 1000' later.
That's my experience, it was awesome.
Mook responding to a
comment by HANDBONE
06.24.09 - 3:08 pm
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oh man... very slow moving trains turn into very fast moving trains VERY quickly. you got lucky man... a couple of my friends were in the freight yard and hung on to the ladders, before they knew it the train was prolly in the 20 - 30 mph range. oh man. both dudes jumped off and got rag dolled. whew. lost a tooth and got all fucked up. it was either that or hang tight for a couple hundred miles! LOL
I've always wanted to hop a freight... see the backyard of america....
Roadblock responding to a
comment by Mook
06.27.09 - 4:42 pm
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didnt chloe apparently break her pelvis in 6 places hopping freight trains?
also, T was a little crazy, syoma. i don't recommend. he seemed like he had bigger problems then train hopping.. maybe as a result of train hopping?
tinycities06.27.09 - 5:16 pm
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Thomas was an upstanding dude, don't be hating. BTW, if anyone has him on Facebook, tell him to add me!! Srsly. That guy is cool and I want to keep in touch.
vladster responding to a
comment by tinycities
06.28.09 - 12:40 am
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any takers for a ticket 2 portland any takers
handbone @ gmail dot com
HANDBONE07.7.09 - 3:28 am
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