Carrying on the diy punk culture of music, art, and fashion that first emerged in the 1970s, contemporary gutter punks like zeke have also rekindled the trainhopping tradition of north america. Trains go 90 miles an hour here, say, an amtrak train hauling freight goes about 10 or 20 miles per hour. You are made of soft, breakable stuff, while railroad equipment is made of very hard, very heavy stuff. Hopping freight trains in america by duffy littlejohn goodreads. The most comprehensive instruction on freighthopping by far. Perseverance of north american train hopping travels a look at. Duffy littlejohn has a very clear and concise writing style, and the book makes for an easy readwhether reading from front to back or just periodically paging through. One of the only and the most complete howto on hopping freight trains i have one other but cannot find it on goodreads. Aug 24, 2014 but now with faster trains, more containerized freight and an increasingly secure rail network after the sept. How do american and european freight trains differ. Sep 08, 2016 carrying on the diy punk culture of music, art, and fashion that first emerged in the 1970s, contemporary gutter punks like zeke have also rekindled the train hopping tradition of north america. In the united states, this became a common means of transportation following the american civil war as the railroads began pushing westward, especially among migrant workers who became known as hobos. Even after that, i still made a few mistakes that just have to be learned personally on the rails. Hopping freight trains in america 1993 edition open library.
Freighthopping is the act of surreptitiously boarding and riding a railroad freight car or trainhopping when referring to an unspecified kind of train. He should have concentrated a lot more on the very real dangers and hazards of trainhoppingnot the trains or the rails themselves, but the sketchy ass thugs, convicts, drug addicts and criminals out riding trains, as well as the dangerousasfuck people who live in the areas around where most train yards are, and where most trains terminate. But now with faster trains, more containerized freight and an increasingly secure rail network after the sept. Acs mission is to travel america documenting american railroading in the 21st century while educating those who want to know about the importance the railroads play in our daily lives including, but not limited to, the movement of goods, services and more.
While i totally agree that hopping a train in todays society is absolutely horrifying and very dangerous, i do think there was a time in our country when decent people who were down on their luck were forced to hop the train. Watch riding the rails american experience official site pbs. Hopping freight trains in america is it actually that. How intermodal reinvented freight rail association of. Some wore the coal stained coveralls and caps of the railway engineers and brakemen, others were in navy uniform.
Mar 08, 2016 hopping freight trains with the dirty kids by rena silverman mar. Originally from the state of maine in the usa, ani continues to travel with one eye on the platform. Train hopping 101 freight train hopping brian cray. Hopping freight trains in america littlejohn, duffy on. Hopping freight trains in america by duffy littlejohn.
The freight train riders of america ftra is a supposed group of americans who move about by freight hopping catching out in railroad cars, particularly in the northwestern united states and southwestern canada, and has never been linked to crimes and train derailments. Rail freight transport is the use of railroads and trains to transport cargo as opposed to human passengers a freight train, cargo train, or goods train is a group of freight cars us or goods wagons international union of railways hauled by one or more locomotives on a railway, transporting cargo all or some of the way between the shipper and the intended destination as part of the. Firstly, some background information on the art of freight train hopping. Train hoppers adventure ends in arrest north bank fred. Download pdf trainsofamerica free online new books in. Freight trains rumbled past, men shouted and gestured inscrutably to one another. This will be your starting point to track a freight train s schedule. The most comprehensive instruction on freight hopping by far.
Train hopping 101 covers freight train hopping safety, tips, tricks and information on freight train hopping around america. Hobo living freight train hopping in america freighthopping. At this time there was an estimated quarter of a million youths travelling illegally on freight trains throughout america. He said hopping freight trains sells mainly to males between the ages of 15 and 25. I personally have only hopped a few freights, and everything ive learned, i learned from hobo the poster from zoklet he taught me quite a lot though and i figured the information. Drivers of other trains and passengers will see you in low sided wagons. Join our community of doityourself nomads and learn how to explore the world by any means necessary. Ridding on freight trains is dangerous, even railway crews only operate around trains when they are under restricted speed and they all require high viability vests plus dispatch has to know where they are for safety reasons. Popular epub, hopping freight trains in america author duffy littlejohn this is very good and becomes the main topic to read, the readers are very takjup and always take inspiration from the contents of the book hopping freight trains in america, essay by duffy littlejohn is now on our. Jul 31, 2010 hopping freight trains in america by duffy littlejohn, 1993, sand river press edition, in english.
Sometime after sending his last text message on march 10, 20, 19yearold firsttime train hopper john paul alpert was murdered. These big yards are going to be the easiest places to gather information and catchout. He has friends who have hopped freight trains in europe. Hopping freight trains with the dirty kids by rena silverman mar. Train hopping, freight hopping, tramping, hoboing, and catching out. This book provides a thorough breakdown of what a person needs to do to hop a freight train and minimize the risk of harm in the process. A web site freight train riders of america is based on american f.
The freight train riders of america ftra is a supposed group of americans who move about by freight hopping catching out in railroad cars, particularly in the northwestern united states and southwestern canada, and have sometimes been linked to crimes and train derailments. There are freight yards in almost every city in america. While some of books in the bibliography are currently out of print, it is still a useful resource for people interesting in learning more background history about freight hopping. Squat the planet is the worlds largest social network for misfit travelers. Trains go 90 miles an hour here, say, an amtrak train hauling freight goes about 10 or. Fifty years ago or more freight trains often traveled as slowly as 15 to 25 mph, depending on where they were. No railway personal are allowed on or near freight cars once a. A young traveler from russia named illya bondarev trainhopping across the usa on freight trains. Hopping freight trains in america by duffy littlejohn, 1993, sand river press edition, in english. The freight train riders of america ftra is a supposed group of americans who move about by freight hopping catching out in railroad cars, particularly in the northwestern united states and southwestern canada, and. Littlejohn has also written a collection of nonfiction short stories about freightcar riding and publishes the memoirs of a depressionera train rider. Its also different to generalise about european trains because each country has a slightly different approach to running their railways. Locate the name of the freight train company on numerous cars.
Without sounding like captain obvious here, lets be clear, train hopping could get you killed or dismembered. Finally i met a guy in the trainyard that had been hopping freight for 56 years. Train hopping guide utilizing freight trains as a means of travel march 12, 2011 the stash no comments first id like to give credit where credit is due. Trainsofamerica download trainsofamerica ebook pdf or read online books in pdf, epub, and mobi format. But their slow freight trains go as fast as our fastest passenger trains. Newschool riders follow in tracks of the american hobo al. Catchingout is about hopping freight trains in canada and usa. They all carry freight so from that point of view, not a lot. Not only is this 354 page book the best introduction to catching out in print, its also great hilarious reading with many entertaining stories see excerpt below. However, there are fewer marshalling yards where they make up and break down trains. Here you can ask the yard crew which trains are leaving where when. Hopping freight trains with the dirty kids the new york times. Click download or read online button to trainsofamerica book pdf for free now. He estimates about half of those buyers, attracted to the romance of the rails, might actually jump a freight.
Train hopping also called train surfing, train hitching or, in parts of the united states, catching out is a riding on the outside of a train or another rail transport. Amand is truly a modern day hobo, hopping freight trains, stealing rides on passenger trains, and hitchhiking all over this earth. Freight trains are slow on the mainline and pull over to let passenger trains past sometimes looped in a station, imagine being in a hopper and being spotted by people at a station. Download pdf the american freight train ebook full get. Air force veteran, a long haul trucker, a transportation enthusiast and a lifelong lover of trains. Mar 14, 2003 littlejohn has also written a collection of nonfiction short stories about freight car riding and publishes the memoirs of a depressionera train rider. Write down the time that the freight train passes by a track. No railway personal are allowed on or near freight cars once a train leaves restricted speeds. He showed me how yards work, how to identify different units, the usefulness of rail maps, tonnage maps, etc. Most trainhopping secrets are things that must be learned on the rails. Association of american railroads americas freight railroads operate the safest, most efficient, costeffective, and environmentally sound freight transportation system in the world and the association of american railroads aar is committed to keeping it that way. Freight train hopping america full documentary 2018 duration. Dusty was heading south through central america, hopping freight trains for transportation and ended up here because thats just where the rails.
Freighttrain drifters and gutter punks have found the. Photohistory examines the use of trains as freight haulers over the course of one and a half centuries. The freight train riders of america ftra is a supposed group of americans who move about by freight hopping catching out in railroad cars, particularly in. How to track freight trains todays railroading in america. The portion of the book where dally tells jonny and pony boy to hop the 3. Its so funny that miss stacy says this to gilbert as if 1 anyone could ever talk anne out of doing something once shes made up her mind, least of all gilbert who she is willing to argue with if he so much as breathes in the same room as her 2 gilbert is annes number one supporter and. Copy and paste the following code to link back to this work ctrl acmd a will select all, or use the tweet or tumblr links to share the work on your twitter or tumblr account.
Ive only ever ridden trains post 911 so i cant comment how its changed, but if you know what youre doing and do your research, train hopping can be easier than buying amtrak tickets on your smart phone. Figure out which direction the train is going via suns position in the sky, pocket compass or car satellite system. Freighthopping is the act of surreptitiously boarding and riding a railroad freight car in the united states, this became a common means of transportation. This is especially so if one is doing this while intoxicated, overtired or in bad physical shape. Rolling nowhere riding the rails with americas hoboes pdf. It is otherwise every easy to get seriously injured. One year later, detectives in roseville, california issued arrest warrants for three fellow train hoppers, who had beaten alpert to death and dumped his body in the nearby dry creek, where it was discovered by.
Periodically updated but when i got my copy five years ago even the latest one is several years out of date. Crouched behind a stack of barrels at the edge of the yard, steve dropped his pack on the ground and rubbed the back of his neck. Jun, 2017 a young traveler from russia named illya bondarev trainhopping across the usa on freight trains. Jan 03, 2016 the portion of the book where dally tells jonny and pony boy to hop the 3. Train hopping guide utilizing freight trains as a means of. Mar 12, 2011 train hopping guide utilizing freight trains as a means of travel march 12, 2011 the stash no comments first id like to give credit where credit is due.