Hitch Hikers

What do most of you do when you see a hitchhiker thumbing it. Do you stop and pick them up or do you let them sit or should I say walk?

If someone has run out of gas or needs help I will stop and help them. But to just pick one up I tend not to.



murph

Halter top and short cut-offs, where ya goin honey? Other than that, no chance will I pick up a hitch hiker.

In other words, I'll never pick up a hitch hiker.

Let them sit. 25 years ago, I had a cousin who stopped to pick some one up. It was a setup; they beat the crud out of him. He spent two months in the hospital for broken bones and ruptured organs.

Hardly see anyone hitchhiking around here(foothills east of Sacramento).

I have helped folks that obviously needed help. Even that is questionable(ie cousin in hospital). Most people have cell phones these days though, and can call for their own help.

Trust no one.

i used to but now days not sure. you used to be able to tell what kind of person someone was by looks, not now. i do remember picking this guy up just as i got on the I75 headed for atlanta. i was about 20 or so he had long hair beard but looked clean so i stoped on the ramp and picked him up. we talked for a few miles and he asked if i wanted to smoke some weed. i said hell yes. we got so stoned i carried him to the south side of atlanta. i was going to get off on north side. i went about 50 miles out of my way, but he left me with a couple of fat ones so we were both happy. had to ride around atlanta for 2 hours before i showed up at my sisters house, still high, but she would have freaked had i shown up as high as i was when i let the dude out.

These days you never know who to trust.
I'd never stop for a hitch hiker in the sense of one who'd be looking for a ride to anywhere, now if it were a woman with child/children, that's another matter.

About 20 years ago I was out in the middle of nowhere (pre cell phone days), and had car trouble. I was about 7 miles from town and just got out and started walking with my purse wrapped around my neck and tucked inside my coat. It was a cold day in November just before noon.
I kept my eyes to the ground and walked in a determined fashion hoping some creep wouldn't stop.
Some young gal slowed down and asked me if that was my car sitting alongside the road, and offered to take me into town-which I was most thankful for.

hitch hikers, not likely.
stranded motorists - on occasion, if I have room.

Back in the day I would have been more inclined to do it. Maybe it's just a matter of perception but, generally, I think as a society there is a greater propensity for violence these days than there were when I was younger. Now, like others have said, you don't know who to trust and I mean from both sides of the equation too.

I hitch hiked around some when I was young and have seen that side as well as providing rides. My most discerning moment was when I was 17 and was hitching rides to get home to Tampa from up near Ocala. One fella tried to hit on me. I declined the offer (rather insistantly) and asked him to stop and let me out. He did without issue and I remember thinking about how it could have played out if I had to defend myself. I carried a knife with me when I hitched for just such a reason. Generally though, I never really had any trouble nor gave any.

I really come to think that's it about most things. People seem to have this knack for screwing things up. As idealistic as it may be the world would be a whole lot better place if folks just got along. You give a fella a ride because you're goin that way, you share a little conversation as you go, they get where there going and your trip was a little shorter because of the company, maybe they even give you a buck for some gas. Aint it amazing how we can royally mess up something so simple?

My wife and I have had conversation lately about how I seem to have become more cynical, that I was never like this before. Damn shame I say....

thcri said:

What do most of you do when you see a hitchhiker thumbing it. Do you stop and pick them up or do you let them sit or should I say walk?

If someone has run out of gas or needs help I will stop and help them. But to just pick one up I tend not to.

murph

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I have picked up a few hitch hikers. And once hitch hiked from Norfolk VA. to Ohio (8 hour drive) when my ship got in earlier than expected. I was looking for adventure. Boy, I got more than I bargained for. Picked up my car and took it back to Norfolk. It was different in those days. I have not even considered picking up a hitch hiker in 25+ years. Someone brok down on the side of the road is different. I would not consider that a hitch hiker.
There were a whole lot more hitch hikers in the 70's than there are nowdays. Probably because you could get a ride in the 70's ...

waybomb said:

Halter top and short cut-offs, where ya goin honey? Other than that, no chance will I pick up a hitch hiker.

In other words, I'll never pick up a hitch hiker.

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Be careful Fred. When / if you see that sexy gal in a halter and you pull over her buddies would most likely be close by ready to take whatever you've got.

I can't even win 1 stinkin dollar playing the lottery. How in the hell would a hot chick show up on my radar?

I haven't seen a hitchhiker in at least 15 years.

I recall a couple of young ladies that had hitchhiked into town a few years ago, and proceeded to infest the male patrons at many of our finest drinking establishments with a legendary case of raging crotch critters.

Many a painful,( in some cases blistering) homemade concoction was poured onto gentiles in an effort to keep some unsuspecting wives from finding out about the new nature preserve in their husbands shorts.

And NO, I wasn't one of the unfortunate.