“SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) – In San Francisco, two teenagers have died in the last two weeks doing what is known as “train surfing” a trend that is popular on social media where teens climb to the roof of moving trains.”
I certainly did my fair share of stupid shit as a kid but, mostly, I was aware enough to not do something where one mistake was deadly (or catastrophic). Although, I did climb pretty high in more than a few trees which I suppose a fall from would have been very bad or deadly. Somehow that seems less dangerous than this though.
10 years? That’s been a thing in NYC for as long as I can remember. I have always seen signs and heard announcements warning riders of the dangers of subway surfing.
Want to see dumb kids? Look for videos of folks in India doing stupid stuff with trains. Lots of electrocutions from the overhead wires. There’s a whole sub reddit.
In 1902, when he was 16, my great great grandfather hopped on the back bumper of a streetcar, as was apparently the custom for careless young men. Another streetcar came along, its brakes failed, and he was smooshed between the streetcars. His leg was so badly injured that it had to be amputated.
I recall lots of panicky warnings from teachers and administrators about the dangers of train surfing back in the 1980’s. And your OP immediately made me think of this song from 1996 which includes two kids dying “dancing with a train.” I’ve always assumed that meant train surfing as well.
There were, of course, also the kids back in the depression who rode the rails looking for work. But I suppose that was necessity, not recreational adrenaline addiction. Still, a great many of them lost their limbs or their lives.
As long as we close our eyes to child abuse and neglect, there will be kids who do not treat their own lives as precious. Why should they, when nobody else does until the threat to their lives is also making somebody late to work?
It’s a subset of the greater, “I’m going to do the craziest most reckless thing possible to get as much social media attention as I can.” Google the topic. You will have a lot of viewing material.
My Dad told tales of being a tween in 1930s Chicago.
In the winter it was considered normal boyhood fun to sneak out into traffic, grab the rear bumper of a big bulky 1930s-era car, & be towed through the snowy streets hunkered down where the driver couldn’t see you. You’re just wearing your normal street shoes sliding along in the slushy mess. Such fun!
Which would work great until you hit a dry patch, a big lump of ice, a pothole, or whatever, your feet stopped but the bumper didn’t, you fell, and the car right behind yours ran over you. One of his pals was crippled that way and of course his “gang” kept doing it anyhow.
Reckless stupid and boys go together like PB & J. And have ever since Og and his brother Grog used to taunt wooly mammoths for fun. Always will too. I certainly filled my own personal reckless stupid square to overflowing.
I never heard him talk about train surfing, but it’d totally be the sort of thing he’d have done.
I’m not surprised it still goes on. I grew up and now live where it doesn’t snow, but I’ve seen kids doing that same basic maneuver wearing rollerblades both back then and recently.
My point was aimed at the OP: nothing about crazy boy stuff is new - it’s all eternal. The details just change depending on where and when you were a boy.
