Catching Out
May 2, 2006 9:03 AM   Subscribe

Long for the lonely whistle and the curving rail? The documentary Catching Out expands on the fascinating world of hobos and freighthoppers as previously pointed out on MeFi. Of course, for those interested, there's the usual wealth of resources. Hell, you can even play the game.
posted by Happy Dave (9 comments total) 3 users marked this as a favorite
 
this is something i have always thought was kinda cool , if not dangerous, uncomfortable, and foolish. did i mention dangerous?

maybe someday i'll have the guts , or lack of sense, to ride the rails, just me and my one eyed, three legged , tailless dog lucky. great post.
posted by nola at 9:38 AM on May 2, 2006


Good timing on posting this. Just last night, I came across this tale of a guy who, in 1976, rode cross-country in freight cars.
posted by Godbert at 10:23 AM on May 2, 2006


this is something i have always thought was kinda cool , if not dangerous, uncomfortable, and foolish. did i mention dangerous?

The danger is what makes it fun.
posted by cmonkey at 10:29 AM on May 2, 2006


http://www.hobo.com/
posted by Postroad at 10:51 AM on May 2, 2006


My friend's got a great story about how he and a friend planned to hop a freight in Western Canada. There was a big build-up, they got organized and lay in wait for the train by night. When it finally came, it loomed up out of the plains and blew by them so huge and fast and loud that they chickened right out.

Of course, they would have done better trying to hop it at a yard, but didn't want to get caught by the bulls. Don'tcha know.
posted by Miko at 10:53 AM on May 2, 2006


Don't forget these guys.
posted by DieHipsterDie at 11:30 AM on May 2, 2006


Back when I hitchiked a lot, I heard some scary stories about train hopping. There used to be a website (put up by railroad companies) with pictures of injuries and dead bodies and decapitations due to botched attempts. Scared me off. Romanticism aside, I say, hitchike if you want to travel for free. More freight moves by truck anyway, right? But if you do it, take a really good sleeping bag. I hear it's cold.
posted by salvia at 12:00 PM on May 2, 2006


Another interesting source is "Hobo" by Eddy Joe Cotton.
posted by Liosliath at 12:18 PM on May 2, 2006


Nifty. Hail the Emperor of the North Pole.
posted by Smedleyman at 1:00 PM on May 2, 2006


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