[ls20]

i needed to be hitched twice when my car broke down.. the first were some teenagers in a beat-up car... honestly i bet i was more afraid of them then they were of me .... nice kids, though. on the return trip an off-duty cop picked me up

 

[bubbagump]

I only pick up hitchikers when i'm alone (no family with me), but i'll do it everytime I can possible.

 

[10068]

Bend is cool. great dunes.

Quote:

Originally Posted by tradja It is for now, until someone gets killed or hurt hitching. Unfortunately, rampant property values have caused Mrs. Tradja and I to look elsewhere to purchase our first home, so after 7 great years in Tahoe, we will be moving to Bend, OR this summer. I haven't seen many hitchhikers there yet -- cool town, nice setting, redneck area. And a neato audio shop that Mrs. Tradja hates already... Where are the kind spots on the East Coast? I grew up in upstate NY, in a succession of grubby dying mill towns, and I don't remember anything particularly nice there. I have stumbled into some pretty special, outta-the-way places in Vermont and Virginia, tho. Back on topic (with music content to boot): I once hitched from a Phish concert in Great Woods, MA to the next concert at Sugarloaf, VT.

 

[stevesurf]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tradja Where are the kind spots on the East Coast?

Before I mark the areas of the east that have been kind to me (where I would not hesitate to hitchhike or ask for help), I should point out that every east-coast head-fier would be included in the "kind" category.
Truro and Provincetown, Cape Cod, MA
Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, MA
Stonington, CT
Rye, NH
Manchester, NH
Cambridge, MA
Westerly, RI
Shelter Island, NY
Amelia Island, FL
Charlotte, NC
Cape May, NJ
New Hope, PA

 

[mbriant]

Everybody used to hitchhike when i was a kid in the late 60's. I picked up a crazy guy while I was delivering pizzas in the winter of '72. He started talking about someone being after him then punched me in the side of the head while I was driving. Fortunately not very hard. Fists flew as my car slowly slid into the curb and I managed to reach over and push him out onto the road through the passenger door. Another time I picked up 3 guys while I was driving home from Montreal on business. Turns out they'd escaped from a local reformatory the night before and had spent the night in a farmers field. One of them was in for repeated car theft. I kept talking to them all the way to Toronto and let them out downtown. No idea what happened to them. Another time I picked up a an old homeless guy while driving to Montreal ( he didn't look all that nasty at first) but as soon as he got into my car and I caught a whiff of him, ( he'd been living in the same clothes for far too long) I told him I was getting off at the next stop and left him there.

I'm a slow learner.

 

[Spankypoo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Feanor I always hear warnings like this, but I havent yet heard anything bad from reliable sources (news or people I know). Are things so different in the states or is this just a public misconception?

A good friend of mine stopped to pick one up in the rain a few months ago in Modesto, CA, and was mugged, beaten, and left with a concussion, a broken nose, and no cell phone or wallet. At least the guy left him his truck.

17 reconstructive surgeries later his nose and breathing are (mostly) back to normal.

 

[MrSlacker]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spankypoo A good friend of mine stopped to pick one up in the rain a few months ago in Modesto, CA, and was mugged, beaten, and left with a concussion, a broken nose, and no cell phone or wallet. At least the guy left him his truck. 17 reconstructive surgeries later his nose and breathing are (mostly) back to normal.

im sorry to hear that. hope he feels better now.

 

[Spareribs]

I have picked up a hitchhiker once who was going to the same concert as I was going.

Personally I’m for hitchhiking. I knew a guy who hitch hiked from Philadelphia to California.

Overall, I think it’s a good thing but I understand the concerns and possible problems.

 

[Spareribs]

If you have strong political views and pick up a hitchhiker who also has strongly political opinions that are the opposite of yours, it could be an awkward ride once you start discussing politics.

 

[wuwhere]

Nope...

 

[Spareribs]

Whether picking up hitchhikers or hookers, be careful out there.

 

[wuwhere]

Whether picking up hitchhikers or hookers, be careful out there.

 

[wuwhere]

Ahhhh...hmmm...let me think...

 

[DaYooper]

Ahhhh...hmmm...let me think...

​

Uhm, No one sits on the center line to hitchhike, especially in a no passing zone.

I spent 3.5 years hitching around the country back in the '70s so I think I've seen most all hitchhiking things there are. That said I still pick up hikers from time to time but there are no where near the numbers as when I did it.

 

[Spareribs]