Do you pick up hitchhikers?

Our man in Havana

I have seen loads of hitch hikers on the roads lately. My question is would you actually stop and give them a lift?

Personally, I wouldn't for 2 reasons. If you pick up a woman she might accuse you of all sorts of sexual crimes and have you arrested. If you pick up a man, he might assault you and try to steal your car.

My question is would you, have you done it and would you still do it?

007

Max_Damage

I haven't seen a hitch hiker in years. Wouldn't pick one up anyway, I always remind myself of that hich hiker in 'There's Something About Mary'!

junkyard

I wouldn't pick up anyone either, you don't know who's out there nowadays.

franksm

Max_Damage wrote:

I haven't seen a hitch hiker in years.

There are *loads* of them under every bridge on the M50 most weekdays

Judging by the look of them (Russian mafia minus the black-leather-jackets) I wouldn't be picking them up.

mike65

There ar'nt nearly as many as say 10 or 15 years ago, but thats Celtic Tiger Ireland for you.

Reasons not to stop

Mike.

Our man in Havana

In view of the fact of my closeness to Portlaoise Prison, that's another very good reason Mike.

Actually that sign is very common on desert roads in the USA.

Blitzkrieger

I never stop for purely practical reasons. I'm always in the overtaking lane and by the time I move over and stop safely they'd be miles behind me. Also - most of the hitch hikers I see nowadays tend to be spanish girls travelling in pairs. My car essentially has two seats. You can fit in the back only if you're a contortionist midget.

There was an article on this in the Times during the week. It's becoming very common in the states where they have high occupancy lanes.

cormie

I picked up 2 before, a French couple, nice people, into their recycling:)

LundiMardi

if there was a hot woman on the side of the road wearing next to nothing and it was lashing rain, i would stop. But i'm just kind hearted like that.

ninty9er

Not a hope since I'm a weakling, maybe if I was built like an Ox and could fight off anyone who tried to attack, but still guns...knives....etc..

having said that my dad often does, but he's a courier and constantly in touch with the office so he's got a backup. someone'll know within 20 mins if he's been attacked or anything sinister like that

John R

The old cliche about hitchhikers being violent criminals still exists I see.

TBH hitchhiking is a lousy method of picking out people to rob/assault anyway. In this country even on a busy road it would typically take hours before someone would stop for a male hitcher.

I haven't seen hitchhikers for ages. I have picked up a few hitchhikers before, male and female without being assaulted once.


I have been stuck myself once and ended up having to walk 15 miles on a main road, after about 20mns trying to and several hundred cars I just started walking.

Our man in Havana

I thank the lord for the AA and mobile phones.

curiosity

I've hitched a good bit in my day. I'd still stop for folks myself. I know all the 'you don't know who you're letting into your car' tales, but I've never had a bad experience yet.

PauloMN

curiosity wrote:

I've hitched a good bit in my day. I'd still stop for folks myself. I know all the 'you don't know who you're letting into your car' tales, but I've never had a bad experience yet.

And you probably never will. Tha majority of hitchhikers are normal, sane people.

I still would never ever take the chance myself.

Anan1

I'd have no problem giving someone a lift if they looked ok. Life's too short to be scared of everything, IMO.

Lex Luthor

I wouldn't now but I did once passing Tullamore on my way to Galway on a Friday afternoon....it was bucketing down and it was a student. Couldn't refuse as I was there once myself.

Turned out to be a very nice girl....she's now my wife

mike65

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh! (if thats true!)

Mike.

cyrusdvirus

I wouldn't do it around Dublin, but that's mostly 'cos where I'd see hitchers (Between Spa Hotel & McCoys Garage in Lucan) I'm taking the next slip road anyway.

Wouldn't have a problem with it if i'm on a country run though.

Always put myself back to hitching a lift one time, started pouring rain, really hard heavy drops and people just kept on driving by. I wasn't a security risk, a small scrangly 15 year old!!

kensutz

Going in and out to Tramore this week reminded me of the hitchikers which hang around by the bus stop looking for a lift into town. Didn't stop for any but was tempted to but Cherrymount was my last stop.

Lex Luthor

mike65 wrote:

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh! (if thats true!)

Mike.

just kidding

JohnK

I've never stopped for someone and I dont think I ever will since I like my alone time in the car and I hate making small talk. That being said I have hitched in the past and always got picked up

byte

The only time I'd pick up somebody is if I knew them. Otherwise, I'd drive on by.

kippy

Used to hitchhike a lot when I didnt have a car and remember what it was like waiting on the side of a road, reliant on some stranger to give you a lift.
I found it a decent way to get around and met some dead sound people-never had a bad experience.

To be honest the hitchhiker has far more to worry about as it is them who take an equal if not greater risk-the amount of dangerous drivers out there that you would not want to get into a car with is scary.

So, where possible, I will pick up a hitchhiker. It does depend where the person is, where they are going to, how they look and how safe it is to stop. But in general, yeah I pick these people up. Most of them are normal people.

PauloMN

Anan1 wrote:

I'd have no problem giving someone a lift if they looked ok. Life's too short to be scared of everything, IMO.

If they looked ok? I'm intrigued... what does looking ok mean? Not standing there in a dirty mac and wellies like?

Life is indeed too short. Too short to spend any of it trying to put it back together after being torn apart by some nut-job.

Don't get me wrong - I don't drive by hitch-hikers at 100mph splashing them with rain water. On the contrary, I often am tempted to stop, especially if it's pouring rain or whatever, but I don't think it's worth the risk IMO.

oleras

The rain can be the make or break for a hitchhiker, just as it starts you are likely to get a lift out of sympathy, once you have been in it for more than a few mins and look like a drowned rat, not a chance anyone is gona have you soaking wet in their car !!:(

This is from experience.... used to thumb in and out to work after i finished school a few years ago, no bus service and no car and had my bike stolen.... used to hate it, releying on people for lifts, but thankfully i always got a lift, might take up to an hour on some evenings but always made it home, i came across a few strange people in that time, the one that scared me most was a small enough car, as it pulled up and the door opened i was ushered into the back to share the rear with 2 other blokes..fine i thought, a lift is a lift... driver couldent figure out how to work the radio which i also thought a bit weird at the time, later figured out through 2+2 it was stolen !.... but when the 2 in the back started rolling a big one and started to make a few smarmy comments i told them this is my stop guys... thanks for the lift.... still about 4 miles to go to work !!:D , but that was about 16 years ago and the vast majority of lifts i got were from decent people who were not afraid of being sued in an accident or being accused of sexual assault(how many times has this offence been reported to the police ?) !! but as was said earlier..... times have changed in Ireland !

cianclarke

I did quite a bit of it last year in rural Connemara, and also last month when my car broke down.
I've also picked up a few, but it really depends on how they look and where it is. Obviously Connemara feels a bit safer than Dublin!

Wishbone Ash

Like other posters, I rarely see hitchhikers nowadays on the open road. I often see people trying to get a lift home from the pub but that's different. It was huge in the 1980s. I did it a lot then myself. The only negative experience I had was getting a lift on the old N1 with a NI bank manager in an Opel Senator. This was the era before speed guns/speed traps. At Murtagh's pub in Ballough (Lusk), he was doing 130mph, travelling in the opposite side hard shoulder overtaking the overtakers. He was smoking a cigar, chatting away nonchalantly, steering wheel held between thumb and forefinger, elbow on the door. I was in sheer terror wondering how my body, which I presumed would be burned beyond recognition if he crashed, would ever be identified in a strange car. It was a white knuckle ride. The reason for his speed - he had a meeting in the Ulster bank at Dublin Airport and wanted to get there in time to have his breakfast first.

John R wrote:

TBH hitchhiking is a lousy method of picking out people to rob/assault anyway. In this country even on a busy road it would typically take hours before someone would stop for a male hitcher.

Agree John R. Although generally safe, the hitchhiker probably has more reason to be aprehensive/afraid. If anyone is up to no good, it is more likely to be the driver. They are likely to be in much more control of the situation and can chose who they pick up.

LundiMardi wrote:

if there was a hot woman on the side of the road wearing next to nothing and it was lashing rain, i would stop. But i'm just kind hearted like that.

I definitely wouldn't pick up in that scenario.

Lex Luthor wrote:

Turned out to be a very nice girl....she's now my wife

Nice one

unkel

Bond-007 wrote:

I have seen loads of hitch hikers on the roads lately. My question is would you actually stop and give them a lift?

Very few of them around in the last decade. Brings back my hitch hiking days two decades ago. My favourite was when I positioned myself at 07:55 AM on a Monday morning, I was almost guaranteed to be picked up by this business man in a fast new merc. The first time he picked me up it was in his brand new 190E 2.3-16. (did I wake ya, Mike?)

He was cruising at just over 200km/h on a pretty busy 2 lane motorway explaining the latest tax avoidance constructions and telling me not to worry as he had never been involved in an accident in his motoring career that stretched 3 million kilometers (75 times around the world). He was on his 19th brand new merc. He was in charge of the family business since his father died when he was 18. He was younger then, than I am now :eek:

oleras wrote:

The rain can be the make or break for a hitchhiker

Indeed. I always prefered better weather as it seemed to bring out the more positive (as in "ah why not stop to pick up the hitch hiker" in people)

alias no.9

I never see hitch hikers these days. I think I was amongst the last out there thumbing lifts in the late 1990's while still in college. It was always interesting to see what kind of people would stop, there were a few surprises including one mid twenties girl travelling alone, kind of cute too if I remember, which was a nice surprise and on the other end of the spectrum, a middle aged seperated woman who was really bitter with the world and told me all about it, I still have nightmares. For the most part though, it was men that stopped credit to golden vale drivers, they were always good to get you to as far as charleville from limerick even if charleville wasn't always the easiest place to get out of. There was some lunatic drivers including one guy who had a battered old peugeot 205 van with the speedo disconnected who gave me a tip for a horse that was running later that day, came in at 11 to 1 but if I'd have had money to put on a hores, I'd have got a bus.

Fey!

Rarely see hitchhikers these days, but will pick up occasionally (used to do home to Galway and Tuam to Castlebar regularly in college days, and always got picked up myself, so trying to return the favour).

unkel

Fey! wrote:

trying to return the favour

That's the way I'm thinking too. Back in my day, many people that gave me a lift, had hitch hiked when they were students! I rarely see hitch hikers these days and on long trips, the car is usually full. I guess the celtic tiger has provided many students with a car these days, or at least with enough money for public transport

peasant

In "the old days" everybody hitched ...from Granny to schoolchildren and I always gave lifts if I could.

These days all that's left is drunks trying to make it to the next pub or tourists with three tons of gear.

Ireally hate it, when there is just one (usually girl) at the side of the road and as soon as you stop another three guys and five huge backpacks appear from behind the bushes.

So ...whoever has the money for another drink or a holiday in expensive Ireland can get their lift from bus Eireann ...not me

netwhizkid

byte wrote:

The only time I'd pick up somebody is if I knew them. Otherwise, I'd drive on by.

RUU, You really are a measured guy, everything you say seems to be quite sensible. I would only do this myself if they are people I know or a hot chick wearing minimal clothing on a hot day after a sudden downpour maybe only.

fjon

I've never actually stopped for someone hitch-hiking, but I have given strangers a lift on a few occasions when I see them walking along the road and it is raining hard. Never had a bad experience (except for wet seats), and most of the time they try to offer you money (which I of course try to refuse).