Hitch Hiking

[Frapalino]

Anyone here ever hitched before?

Every year and the end of May me and a group of friends and strangers, about twenty in total, participate in The Great Hitch Hiking Race. It's teams of three, usually two guys and one gal. It usually works out to be one experienced hiker and two non. We start in East Texas and take I-20 all the way to Atlanta then head north east up to a spot right near the border of North Carolina and South Carolina. It's one of the most beautiful places on Earth. There are several waterfalls to slide down, a 35 ft bridge to jump off, rope swing, the shower of death, the bath of death, cliffs to jump off and on and on. We camp out there for four or five nights. We eat like kings. We tell our best gay trucker stories, we tell our crazy ride stories, we tell our jerkhole cop stories. We make friends from all across the country and world. All this insane good times only for 50 bucks. We each toss in 50 bucks for food and other general supplies.

It's coming up May 30th and I can barely sit still. I get so restless this time of year and this trip is the perfect remedy. I usually take two hitch hiking trips around the USA each year. This summer I think I am going to be on the road for the majority of it. The race really is the beginning to each summer for me. It sets the bar so high that I have to make sure the rest of the summer is amazing also.

I got a bit side tracked. Anyone else ever hitched or wanted to? If so I recommend reading this fantastic, aside from the spelling errors, slide show my buddy and organizer of the race made. It's a great how-to from a guy who has hitched all over the Earth.

The Evolution of Hitchhiking

 

[robje]

I've been hitchhiking in Europe every summer for the last 6 years. Love it. Some of my best travel stories come from weird rides. I don't use the cardboardsign technique though. I make sure I know where the reststops are one the route I want to travel and I make sure my ride can set me off at one. Then I chat people up. Ask where they are going and if they mind having an extra passenger. That ensures that I have control over who I get a ride with.

That being said; it doesn't always work out and you might still end up standing with your thumb up on an empty 'autobahn'. Eastern Europe is great for Hitchhiking. People arent very rich and it isn't uncommon for young people going to the city or even work/home by hitch hiking. So they are used to giving people rides. Also, european cars are smaller than american cars. hitchhiking with three people is pretty much unheard of here. It's always two people. Still, I might try this in America one day.

 

[Iceshadow]

I've never done it, mostly because I don't want to be turned into chili.

 

[E]

I've never done it, mostly because I don't want to be turned into chili.

:lol:

Post of the Day.

You guys are insane. Never in a million years.

 

[thee great one]

I would love to do something like this.

 

[Frapalino]

hitchhiking with three people is pretty much unheard of here. It's always two people. Still, I might try this in America one day.

I've caught one really long ride from Atlanta to Texas with five people.

 

[Planet-man]

I know one or two people who love it because they are very lucky.

As is anyone who loves it.

As I'm sure a lot of people who wound up murdered, raped and worse did at some point too.

I'm sure hitchhiking is a lot of fun and extremely convenient, so go nuts, but you're crazy if at any time you forget that getting out of the car alive is a matter of you being luckier than a lot of other people.

 

[McCheese]

I've hitched a few times, but never more than a few miles.

 

[robje]

I've caught one really long ride from Atlanta to Texas with five people.

In the same car!? That's insane! I've hitched with a group of 20 once, but we would split up in 10 groups of 2 people and race eachother to the end point. It's fun!

Loved the slideshow by the way. I don't completely agree with everything he says, (I personally dont like using signs) but he hits some things right on the money. The best conversations you'll ever have are while hitching rides. Hitching at night doesnt work. You'll get invited to dinner often when hitching alone. And people love showing you the sights if they notice you're not from around.

I know one or two people who love it because they are very lucky.
As is anyone who loves it.
As I'm sure a lot of people who wound up murdered, raped and worse did at some point too.

Does that still happen? I never hear or read about that happening anymore. I think those might just be rumors that stuck around from the 60s when everyone was hitchhiking. The serial killers knew they could easily pick someone up at any interstate and people got killed.

The worst thing that happened to me so far was being hit on by a woman 15 years older than me. She had a baby with her that she ensured me wasnt hers. It obviously was.

 

[Random]

A friend of my brother became a legitimate hobo after high school and would travel by hitchhiking. One time the a guy who picked him up got into a police chase. My friend had quite a bit of trouble convincing the police he was just hitching a ride

 

[Frapalino]

As I'm sure a lot of people who wound up murdered, raped and worse did at some point too.

I hitch hike fairly often and nothing bad has ever happened to me. All the guys I travel with have hitched ten times as much as I have and nothing bad has ever happened to them. All the shady situations they have been in could have been avoided if they were a bit more careful. And even those situations weren't all that shady, they make for great stories now.

Head Chopped Off On Bus

Holy crap that freaks me out....Junk like that happens on the bus and is well documented. Does that mean you'll never ride a bus again?

I know this is all anecdotal, but I think that's all we can go on when discussing hitch related crimes, cause how the heck is someone ever going to get reliable statistics??

I"m not saying crazy stuff doesn't happen to hitch hikers. I think the people giving me rides are more afraid of me than I of them. I'm not trying to convince you to head out on the highway right now, but I really don't think it's as dangerous as most people make it out to be.

 

[Planet-man]

Does that still happen? I never hear or read about that happening anymore. I think those might just be rumors that stuck around from the 60s when everyone was hitchhiking. The serial killers knew they could easily pick someone up at any interstate and people got killed.

It's still been happening here and there ever since. Example-wise, I remember hearing about this one because it happened close to me in '99. There also was/is what they think is one serial killer in Alberta and BC where hitchhikers and prostitutes were going missing for like ten years until '08 or something. There's also this classic.

The vast majority of hitchhiking is safe, and I really would love to do it at least once, but it's the fact that you have no way of telling when it won't be and you're putting yourself in a completely vulnerable position.... it seems like taking candy from strangers to me.

 

[ProjectX2]

I fear for my life every time I leave my house.

And sometimes even when I'm in my house.

 

[Seldes Katne]

Anyone else ever hitched or wanted to?

No, and no. I would honestly rather walk 40 miles in a downpour than hitchhike or accept a ride from a stranger. Ever.

Maybe it's different for men than it is for women, but I feel as though hitchhiking is just begging for someone to make sure I disappear off the face of the Earth permanently and without a trace. I can't imagine ever voluntarily accepting a ride with strangers. (I've done it twice, when I've had car failure, and the drivers in question satisfied me that they weren't some kind of "weirdo", but it was a very uncomfortable situation each time.)

In fact, I have an emergency kit of blankets, spare boots, and a chemical hand-warmer in the trunk of my car in case I have car trouble and need to hide out along the side of the road until help comes. It's also the primary reason I own a cell phone.

 

[J. Agamemnon]

People get killed because of the internet. you still use it. People get killed at grocery stores. You still shop. People get killed in cars. You still drive.

You're problem is that you're scared of venturing into the unknown world of chili-eating truckers.

 

[ProjectX2]

I once hitch hiked and ended up in Mexico.

It was TOG's fault.

 

[Iceshadow]

You're problem is that you're scared of venturing into the unknown world of chili-eating truckers.

Good! The world of chili eating truckers probably smells terrible.

 

[J. Agamemnon]

I once hitch hiked and ended up in Mexico.

It was TOG's fault.

Everything is TOG's fault.

Good! The world of chili eating truckers probably smells terrible

Like buffalo vomit.

 

[Iceshadow]

But seriously I hitched a ride with a trucker once. I ended up in ****ing Chinatown, and got roped into looking for some Chinese girl with green eyes.

 

[Random]

But seriously I hitched a ride with a trucker once. I ended up in ****ing Chinatown, and got roped into looking for some Chinese girl with green eyes.

God, I hate when that happens