Would you hitchhike?

Endasaurus

Not counting all you inner-city types, far too impractical to hitch there..

But in other situations, would you hitchhike? Would you be comfortable hitching on your own or would you absolutely have to have someone with you?

I ask because I hitch about 60/70 km every two weeks or so to get home from college if I miss the bus, it takes about two hours longer than usual to get home but its free! Sometimes it takes only one lift, sometimes up to four. I have no problem hitching on my own but sometimes when I mention this to people they look at me like I'm crazy for even considering such a thing, especially on my own.

So do you hitchhike? Would you? And conversely, would you have any problem picking up people who were hitchhiking? Or would you consider either to be to dangerous?

theTinker

I did it in the US while on a 3 month holiday with friends, it was how i got to work etc.

I would never do it again though, it was only after my 4th or 5th hitch that some guy that was giving me the lift was acting really wierd. It occured to me after it that he could of driven me anywhere or dont anything...far too unsafe..its a pity its like that because it was nice getting to chat to the first few drivers. Some are interesting.

I would never pick up a guy hitchhiker(a guy myself)....I would feel alot safer with a girl though but ive got a soft/hard spot for them

Ruu_Old

I only ever hitchiked once when I was about 8 and school was finished early, I didn't want to wait for the bus to bring me home. A friend of my folks recognised me walking home and brought me home. It was lashing rain too. Too many weirdos around now so I'd rather walk, it wasn't too bad back in de day.

Alter-Ego

Done it a few times before. Lorry drivers ftw.

AdMMM

Heart warming story there . I would hitchhike but have never found a reason to do so. I wouldn't even consider lashing rain to be a reason... hear that Ruu!

Ruu_Old

I would rather the rain than stay any longer in that classroom, teacher making me cry all the time *runs away like a blubbering fool* I'll show her..anyday now. *shakes fist*

Ba_barbaraAnne

I've hitched loads of times from town to my village (about 6 miles) if I haven't got a car. I also tend to pick up hitch hikers if they look ok.

Endasaurus

Normally the people who pick me up are sound, even if they only bring me 20 minutes down the road, but I have had a few crazies..

Zooming along way above the speed limit with The Pogues blaring on the stereo was probably the most dangerous :eek: He was yelling along with the tunes and I joined in just cos I was afraid not to!

Thats a rare and extreme case though, I've also met some lovely interesting people hitching. An off-duty driving instructor picked me up last week, I was warned not to go near the set of pedals I had in front of me on the passenger side, would have been funny though

nlgbbbblth

Endasaurus wrote:

So do you hitchhike? Would you? And conversely, would you have any problem picking up people who were hitchhiking? Or would you consider either to be to dangerous?

I always consider the above to the hitch-hiking conundrum.

dangerous to hitch
dangerous to pick up hitch-hikers

can both sets of doom-mongers be right?

personally I prefer public transport but in times of necessity both of the above are relatively safe.

Mossy Monk

i have done in the past. been an absolute god send on occasions

Karoma

nlgbbbblth wrote:

I always consider the above to the hitch-hiking conundrum.

dangerous to hitch
dangerous to pick up hitch-hikers

can both sets of doom-mongers be right?

I've thought of this, and assume it'd be 'just like the movies' with everyone in the car pointing an armed gun at another.

I tried. I failed. I'm too scary to pick-up it seems (Yes; all meanings.).

Binomate

I hitch hike all the time when I'm down in the country. Mostly during summer time. It's great and very common too.

Fast_Mover

I'd never hitchhike..not even if i was with friends, nor would i never pick anyone up when im driving..

LundiMardi

Fast_Mover wrote:

I'd never hitchhike..not even if i was with friends, nor would i never pick anyone up when im driving..

finally, someone sane!!!

Fast_Mover

LundiMardi wrote:

finally, someone sane!!!

Dave!

I've never done it, would never take a lift, and would never give a lift!

I guess I'm just paranoid really! I guess it's the feeling of helplessness, like they could just take you wherever they want and unless you jump out of the speeding car (assuming it's not child-locked), you're fooked.
Similarly if you pick someone up, they could just take out a gun and rob you! :eek: That'd suck

It'd be nice though, if it weren't so scary

LundiMardi

That's a rather retarded way of looking at things.

Black Swan

This is definitely something you do not want to do in the States. It's not safe. Same goes for picking up strangers.

Fast_Mover

It's not safe anywhere! People thinking otherwise are looking for trouble!

Rb

I've never done it and never will, nor will I ever pick up a hitch hiker.
As F_M said, you're just asking for trouble if you do.

Lump

theTinker wrote:

I did it in the US while on a 3 month holiday with friends, it was how i got to work etc.

I would never do it again though, it was only after my 4th or 5th hitch that some guy that was giving me the lift was acting really wierd. It occured to me after it that he could of driven me anywhere or dont anything...far too unsafe..its a pity its like that because it was nice getting to chat to the first few drivers. Some are interesting.

I would never pick up a guy hitchhiker(a guy myself)....I would feel alot safer with a girl though but ive got a soft/hard spot for them

UNtil they claim you raped them!

Fast_Mover

yep..or if your involved in a minor accident, they'd sue the pants off you..claiming whiplash and what not..

JohnCleary

uh true story....

Went to a redneck country houst party when I was in junior cert. Woke up the next morning and realised where I was, about 30 miles away from home with no busses. Procedded to stumble down the road and stick the thumb out. Eventually a car stopped to my delight. Approached the car to find it was my english teacher! I quickly tried to un-cross the red eyes, put on a sober face and shout "ah hows it goin sir, was only messin, myself and 'mr x' are out here fishin we were only messin pretendin to hitch hike'

imeddyhobbs

i thumbed(hitchiking is american)for long enough,i often stood on the side of the road for 3 hours or more
today i enjoy the other side of life and i drive a lot
and i have to be honest about this but the type of people i have picked up leave a lot to be desired!lets just say for the sake of it that i have picked up 10 people(10 pickups)i would reckon about 1.5 of them i would be happy that i picked up,2.5 would be smelly,2 would be beggars,1 would be a fruitcake,and 3 would not open their mouth to talk to you,thats the killer type!thankfully i have not met any murderers yet..or have i
As you can see i take a little bit from all of them

xzanti

Not after seeing Something about Mary

Rudolph Claus

i thumbed(hitchiking is american)for long enough,i often stood on the side of the road for 3 hours or more
today i enjoy the other side of life and i drive a lot
and i have to be honest about this but the type of people i have picked up leave a lot to be desired!lets just say for the sake of it that i have picked up 10 people(10 pickups)i would reckon about 1.5 of them i would be happy that i picked up,2.5 would be smelly,2 would be beggars,1 would be a fruitcake,and 3 would not open their mouth to talk to you,thats the killer type!thankfully i have not met any murderers yet..or have i
As you can see i take a little bit from all of them

Lol at all that.
Maybe the mute ones were foreign?
You`ve only accounted for 9 out of the 10, what did you do with the missing 1, or is he still in your car?

Houston Griffin

<I>I did it in the US while on a 3 month holiday with friends, it was how i got to work etc.</I>

I'm glad you survived, but I wouldn't recommend this for anyone else. Hitchhicking is how a lot of American serial killers have snagged their victims.

xzanti

xzanti wrote:

Not after seeing Something about Mary

But... 7 minute abs? What could go wrong?

Mossy Monk

Hollywood has corrupted your minds

Heisenberg.

This post has been deleted.

Wez

I've done a fair bit of thumbing.. Going down the country, it's so easy to get lost and end up miles from where you're supposed to be going. I've done it in the fair city too, some australian bird gave us a lift to Faithless, we didn't know how we were getting there otherwise!

Demetrius

Yep, I've hitch-hiked in the past a few times when I didn't have a car and now I pick up hitch-hikers often enough since I have a car.* I haven't met one strange person on the road ever, (except for one guy who gave me a lift when I was 17.)






*I drop them off at the end of the journey...before someone says something!

danniemcq

it took me over three hours to get a lift one day. and i was in a suit had a huge bunch of flowers and a big box of chocolates and it was 3 in the afternoon. bastards. still hitch-hike though it sometimes has to be done esp up where i am from originally with the lack of buses and all

Wez

Yeh, after personal experiences, I'm defo gonna pick up hitchers when I get a car! Most of them are sound, decent blokes just stuck for a lift, although I'd obviously think twice about anyone looking dodgey..

Also, I reckon, if you drive a pickup, you've GOT to pick up hitchers, it's like an un-written rule!

Heyes

Simple answer, nope.... just wouldnt risk it, dunno whos car your getting into.

greenkittie

It's been an ambition of mine to pick up random hitch hikers for fun. Unfortunatly never actually came across one so haven't had the chance yet.
It may be dangerous, but im a risk taker. For me, life is about taking risks, it might end it short but its more likely to just enrich it.

:|

I've done it a few times on my summer holidays down the country, its quite common down there so it just seems normal, the nearest village(and off licence) is quite a walk away.

mainly with people but i have done it once or twice on my own, most of the people who stop are people you already know anyway....although my own mother did drive past me one day...

funk-you

Lump wrote:

UNtil they claim you raped them!

This happened to my uncle a few years back. He picked her up and after a couple on mins she said she wanted money or she'd say that he raped her. He drove to the nearest garda station and pulled her inside. it took a few days but it got sorted in the end.

I had a fairly weird experience once. Myself and a few mates were down in Kerry and thumbed a lift after a night out. We got into a fiesta van, one in the front and two in the back. Yer man was pissed as a fart and speeding along. I looked down in the back and saw a rifle and a hand gun and immediately started sh!tting myself.

The bloke turns round calm as you like and says "whip the bullets out of them and give them to us would ye? you mind the gun and i'll mind the bullets, sound fair to ye lads?"

Some of the stuff he came out with was nuts. I'd never do it again.

-Funk

cournioni

Did it when I was small and didn't have a bike with me or a mobile (as that wasn't the in thing at the time). It was good enough craic, but some of the drivers were lunatics. I wouldn't do it again, because I have a car so no point really. But I do pick up people that are looking for a lift, especially if it is a hot chick...

[edit]After reading the above post... What I've said doesn't seem like a good idea.[/edit]

Bard

I've done it before but only on the Hearse Road on the way to Donabate, where I used to live, and usually it'd be someone I at least vaguely know (small village... at the time), who'd pick me up.

I'd rarely need to hitch-hike these days, having the car and all...

Stromecek

I've hitched through almost most of Europe, including Kosovo where I got a lift from the UN which was handy, but I really do think its a great way to travel, to meet the local people with their wildly different views on life tis class, of course there's been a few hairy moments like the time in Bosnia where just before the border the guy driving suddenly takes a left turn up a narrow country lane approaching a definate dark forest then suddenly the car stops I'm thinkin oooohh donkey bollox, the guy turns and looks at me and then suddenly asks if I wanna line of a mix of coke and heroin assuring me that the addition of heroin is a "much better effect" and that he had to get rid of it before crossing the border! the rest of the way then was both the car and chat at 100mph. Thankfully I made it to the next town and off I went,
Point is though I've never thought it of dangerous and have had many an adventure and got to know many people, couldn't recommend it enough

godtabh

I was in NY during the black out in 2003. Was meant to fly to Toronto to see friends but my flight got cancelled. Meet some people on the flight and start chatting. Orignal plan was to try and rent a car. Didnt work.

Ended up getting a lift of them and drove something like 600-800 miles. There was 4 of us and I felt safe. Could've been the fact that I hadnt slept in 2 days but I'm not sure if I would've normal do something like that.

Great way to see the country

fabcat

I always done it with a group of my cousins when we were in Donegal as kids, can't believe I done it now, 'cos we were on a main road where alot of the cars would be people travelling through the country and not neccesarily from the small village we were trying to get too. The strangest thing is my Mother never had a problem with this, she woul;dn't let me out of the house on my own when we were in Glasgow, but as soon as we hit the soil in Donegal, she let us roam the place freely, brought this up to her recently (I'm now 25) and she said Donegal is a nice safe place and nothign would ever happen there :rolleyes: innocence is a virtue

Lurk

no way, I'd never hitch...i'd be murdered for boring the shlte out of the driver.

Me: "What type of car is this? What size engine is it? I don't really like Chinese food, do you like Chinese food? Can't wait to start Christmas shopping. What are you gonna buy your relatives? You're quite a slow driver. My god, is that a cow?....."

NeMiSiS

Jesus.. I'm after having a ****ing flashback.. I was gonna say yeh.. hitching is grand.. and I've picked up a few.. and they have been cool, and grateful. But then I remebered I was heading to my mates house for a party.. on my own.. dunno would have been round 10 or so, no bus due.. so I started thumbing.. all well and good, guy stops to give me a lift.. in his 30's.. The usual howaya blah blah blah.. anyway..

We get near my mates house and I say 'This will be fine here, thank's very much' He didn't awknowedge me.. so I say the same again louder.. now I know at this stage he's heard me.. cause he turns to me.. and just stares at me.. so I say 'OK stop the car please, I would like to get out' same thing he is ignoring.. So I start shouting.. 'stop the ****ing car !', the rest is a bit of a blurry mess in my head, but I started fighting with him in the car and pulling up the handbrake while I held the wheel, and then fighting him off, the car coming to a stop, and me jumping out.. Then I started booting the side of the car, and turned to get a rock to smash the windows out of the car.. he put the foot down then and belted off.

The house party was good craic though..

TK