Coolest ride/kickdown ever

[Matt aka Sparks]

So it was a day started off bad, I woke up to a pounding noise and a cop and a few workers staring at me curled up in my bag riding an IM to Chicago. The town was Mt. Morris, IL. I got up shoved my shit in my bag and started rolling a cigg, making casual conversation with the ones the so rudely awoke me, just acting like I had done nothing wrong. They day starts getting way better immediately. The workers kicked me down a pair of gloves, and bull shitted with me about how much they hated trains and how much I loved them and the cop was as friendly as can be. As it turns out he used to catch fish to give to hobos as a kid. Anyway the cop wrights me a ticket but files it as a traffic violation and as soon as the workers left gave me directions on how to sneak around the yard and catch back out. I decided not to push my luck and just hitch the rest of the way as I was only 140 miles or so away. My first ride wasn't anything special, only 7 miles down the road to the next town where I was able to grab some hot grub. The next ride though was awesome as fuck. The dude was only able to take me 30 miles but he stopped by his house to make me a couple sandwiches, when we got inside he commented on the smell of his house saying "it was the cats... and the bud drying in the other room." Unfortunately it was all too wet for him to kick any of that down though he did give me a handful of Vicodin. The really cool part was he commented on my alice pack, saying he had a bunch of them up stairs and I could have one if I wanted. Mine was pretty beat up so I accepted an followed him up stairs. This guys had tens of thousands of dollars worth of military surplus gear both current U.S. issue and WWII/WWI era stuff. As well as some foreign military gear. He ended up kicking me down the new alice, a desert storm sleeping bag rated to -50 with a water proof cover and compression sack that makes it all the size of a basket ball, a new belt, half gallon rubber canteen that clipped to belt, ammo belt pouch, some misc straps, water purification tablets, and a few other pouches. He would have gave me more but I didn't want to carry it all. All in all a pretty fucking sweet ride. Then icing on the cake, as soon as he dropped me off the first person I seen smoking I bummed a cigg off of smoke me out. Then some old guy gave me five bucks outta nowhere. Not a bad day at all.

 

[mittens]

fuck dude, that sounds like a pretty good day. i figgured i was doing good when i got picked up by a hunter and he gave me a cold cheeze burger and a beer.

 

[FawnDroke]

That's a good catch man.

When I was thumbing through South Cali last my guy and myself got this ride who dropped us off right beside these punk kids that were going to a show in Santa Barbara. They gave us the address to a place called the BIKO house (they would have taken us with them but their van was full of gear) So we stood by the highway and tried to catch a ride and make it there by the time the show started. We weren't having any luck at all and we were there for a good three or four hours. Just about when we thought that there was no hope in getting a ride, a car pulled to the side and let us in. It was this guy from Mexico (he had Mexico plates and everything) and his two dogs. He drove us to this weird gypsy compound to feed his horses and then drove us right up to the BIKO house after giving us some organic walnuts and figs. While we were at this show we met some kids that let us stay at their house for the night (The Pink Mail Box) The next day we caught a ride with them to Ojai and saw another show. Then we got another ride to Ventura with some kids and stayed at one of the girl's parent's houses and in the morning her friend drove us to Venice Beach, which was our destination. It was the best thumbing trip I've had.

 

[TheNewKid]

I got a hitch in the back of a Uhal yesterday. Shit was bad ass. Well, that and riding on the top of a truck for 50 miles holding on to a ladder.

 

[Justin]

this summer i kept getting the easiest and best kickdowns of my life while attempting to hitch down the california coast. First it was a bible thumber guy that bought us a hotel room and gave me and my friend like fifty dollars or something..which we spent on booze and smokes. and then this really awesome girl from Santa maria convinced her mom to drive us like three hours south and then gave us 80 dollars afterwards. One day i hope to be that awesome ride somebody gets out of bumfuck nowhere, with a half gallon and a pack of smokes for every and anybody that wants it

 

[dharma bum]

i was kicked down (two days ago) an old Dana Designs Terreastroplane backpack, i think it's like 5-6,000 ci, to me that used to belong to a murderer. apparently, some dude from macon, ga, shot and killed both his parents a while back. he was sent to proson and escaped. from what i know, he was squatting behind some car dealership in the woods for about 4 yrs. either he left on his own or he was escorted out, but either way, a buddy of mine found his camp. all kinds of stollen shit. a rolex, nice GPS, etc. on the pack there was still an identification tag that read (and mind you that this had been sitting outside for a looooong time, so parts are missing..), i'll write it out as it reads:

"........steal from the......
.......less.
....'ve nothing better....
.....than find you and ...
....n you. out."

seriously, that's what it says. the backpack is falling apart with certain straps worn off and such. pretty cool kickdown, though.

it's still a great pack... WAY too big, but free anyways.

 

[bob freaky]

Man.. What if that guy finds you and ....n you. out!

 

[dharma bum]

they caught him a while back... i think.

 

[gingerbreadman]

ok i get a 300 mi ride to pencicola FL by this gut that owns his own "incence" company. he was just starting out so it isn't in stores yet but you can find the stuff on x3hi.com, thats his site. anyways after the interductions he swervs a little bit and said "sorry man im high as fuck", that was when i knew it was gunna be a good ride. he smoked joint after joint, blunt after blunt, the whole way. bought us some subway, and then when he droped us off he gave us a shit load of free samples.

 

[R315]

Once going through New Mexico, these two mexican guys picked me up. They gave me some pumpkin pie and a bag of shrooms. That was pretty good.

 

[hshh]

i got picked up by a guy in a lambo

 

[Monkeywrench]

Best ride: In White Haven, PA, my road dog and I had been all day long with no luck. If you're not familiar with White Haven, PA.. it's basically one huge gas station with an Arby's. After 12 hours of either baking in the sun, or being rained on by clouds from out-of-butt-fuck-nowhere, a pickup truck with a bigass horse trailer attached to it pulls up. The driver hardly says a word other than "get in" and "where ya headed? you sure?". We climb up into the trailer with horses on either side of us and ride through the Allegheny mountains for about 115 miles. Beautiful ride. Even at night.

Best kickdown: Sex, a shower, and $75. Thank you, San Fransisco.

 

[bryanpaul]

this girl gave me and girlfreind 2 diamond engagement rings ....she had just left this dude and when she dropped us off she was like "man fuck him" and gave 'em to us ...said they were worth about 500 $$....we sat on 'em for a while then found ourselves broke and getting ready to experience the joys of detoxin off booze....got 30 dollars fom some strip mall "we buy gold" type place

 

[xRastaxRuggzx]

the best ride i got was to ohio when I was heading to winston salem from Raleigh in NC. The lady was heading to a foghat show in her hometown. the best kickdowns, (besides weed in CA, fuck ive got more weed than rides on onramps.) are probably 100 kicks a couple times, once when i just found a cart worth of oranges from the grocery dumpster in my hometown. lady sees me pushin the cart and gives me twenty bucks then stops again like two minutes later in traffic with 80 more dollars. Definate southern hospitality.

 

[andthesaloon]

Some woman gave us a skunk last year in Jacksonville.

 

[LeatherTrampGypsy]

I hitched a ride from these Germans driving an empty Uhal. They closed the back door, it was completly dark. Couldnt see your hand in front of you. Couldnt find my dogs leesh so he was sliding back & forth in the back, felt so bad. It was a good laugh.

 

[spoonreceptacle]

I'd worry about them opening the door and takin me out back deliverance stylez, creepy uhal man.

Best kickdown: I just got kicked off the mall. She said she'd give me 10 bucks to play a song for her, i did, i played another with a broken string, got another 20$, she took me to a bar, bought me ribs and pints, she was impressed by free pool. She took drove me to our camp. picked up my buddy and his dog, bought beer, a bag of weed, and brought us to her parents condo, they were selling and no one was staying there. We had showers, fed the dog, drank alot, ordered pizza, drank more. The next day i woke up next to her, we got more pizza, a ride to the highway with lots of cash and all her change and a bag of herb n food. i consider it all one kickdown. good night.

 

[spoonreceptacle]

oh ya best ride: A 3 day tour of newfoundland with a photographer. First day i met him on the ferrie we drove around all day, i camped, he was in a hotel, next day after a few rides by coincidence he picks me up again and i got a 3 day tour around newfoundland for free he wanted a co-pilot, i wanted to see the sights and was alone and very broke. I guess it's kinda one ride.

 

[crustythadd23]

This started of terrible then finally turned out great
One day me, 2 friends & a dog were trying to hitch out of vegas back to LA. first started off at the tropicana on ramp till got dark, no luck, walked south to the TA, asked people for ride, still no luck, ended up finding a spot to sleep, next morning hit the on ramp for about 2 hours till police told us to get off, so we hit the TA again, no luck still, dark falls, we hit the freeway started walkin to the next on ramp south, last one till miles & miles, crashed out on some dirt field behind a bunch of big rocks, woke up next morning extra early, lookin around at this spot thinkin well probably have no luck at all now. but ten minutes being there this guy with a caravan stops, tels us to get it, finally a ride! takes all the way, buys us breakfast & once we hit our destination he buys us lunch & gives us 80 bucks.

Vegas sucks!

 

[dahllia]

pretty badass gear dude i need somthing like that haha ineed better gear!!

me and my road dog got picked up by Monica Munez (a famous dancer now that was in the movie Foot Loose) she loved us. she bought us a fancy hotel for the night, plane tickets to memphis TN (so we wouldnt miss my road ddog's kids bday) $100 a dog carrier for the plane and paid for the dog and dinner and breakfast. it was pretty awesome.