Damn kids today think they know what skitchin' is simply cause they can jump up on a bumper and get some kicks. Let me tell you there ain't nothin' new fangled about skitchin'. Back in '32, skitchin' was the only way I could get to school cause it was the Great Depression back then, and nobody ever did have enough for bus fare. We had to wait until winter time when there was a good coat of snow and ice on the road, then run up behind the bus and grab the bumper....We would bend our knees and push our feet forward and strike a pose like we was on water skis, and use the slush, snow and ice to lubricate the road so our feet would slide over. The snow and slush and ice and gravel would fly up all around our legs like rag water, and if you hit a dry spot....BOOM! right on your kisser! In the summer time, we had to swipe a pair of steel wheeled roller skates that were just terrible....those dang things never rolled right, they could never go as fast as the bus, and if you hit a tiny stone.....BOOM! Right on you kisser!
But there is one thing I got to hand it to the kids these days...they can get one of those high tech skateboards and grab on the bus bumper and ride around town all day in the summer time....Now let me tell you that is a 'Cadillac' way to skitch! A good solid skateboard like these kids have today would have made things a whole lot easier for us back in the day I tell ya.....
Now some people complain about the kids skateboarding here and there, but I tell ya, in my day the only trouble with skitchin was when you hit a dry spot, fell into the road, damn near got run over, were all wet from the ice and snow, and had to wait for the next bus.....the only thing they yelled at you for back then was showing up late to school! Well if they was so concerned about my well bein' they still never gave me a dime to take the bus to school the next day.....nooo....never that concerned!
Course we did not enjoy skitchin'.....it was something we had to do.....I don't know about these kids who do it just for kicks...that don't make no sense to me....but of course, we never had a nice skateboard like they got today.....lots of old folks complain about the kids enjoying themselves on their skateboards. They don't know how hard it was to pioneer the art of skitchin' and dang napit if they don't seem to enjoy themselves while doing it....we sure as heck never enjoyed it....so the way I figure it...maybe those kids learned something from their elders after all.
I still say these young kids don't really know what skitchin' is and don't have the guts to go 'Old School like we did....but my hat is off to them for using their head and gettin' the job done right!
It gives me a warm feeling inside to thing that all my skitchin' days were not in vain. I figure my generation pioneered something and it makes my heart glad to see the younger kids being able to learn from our experience, improve upon it, and have a better life than we had. Lord knows we sure could have used a fine skateboard instead dragging our feet on the road while being pulled by the bus and street cars.
If your a young person, a good skateboard is an essential piece of hobo technology.
Skitchin' Today by Railroad Bill
Yes I still skitch today! Things are tough all over, and in these hard times, someone like myself on a fixed income can't afford no bus ticket....especially since the recent crash on wall street whipped the heck out of my pork belly investments.....(I could not make a profit, so I took delivery of the contract and I'll the bacon my own self! but that does not leave me with any money for things like bus fare).
One of the best investments a hobo can make is a solid heavy duty lift magnet. My favorite magnet has a 200 pound pull, and you can break the hold by bending it on the side with a stick or a pry bar like a lever. When the bus comes, I just walk around to the back, slap on my magnets, step up on the bumper so my feet don't drag on the ground, and I have 2 nice handles to grab on to.....Let me tell you its much easier than trying to navigate the road under your feet...especially when you don't know whats coming because your holding on to the city bus.
I first learned about those industrial magnets from Woody Guthrie....That's right, I knew the man....I hoboed with him all over....He was a sign painter when he came to California and he could never figure out one thing for himself. So one day I said "Woody, thank you for the magnets....now let me tell you what....you take this guitar of mine because i never was any good at it....and go down to those fields and play the guitar and I will bet you eights to aces you will soon become a legend everywhere around these parts." He said no, no and he didn't believe me....but I said "Woody, you got something to say....its in you and its got to come out."
I still have that magnet Woody gave me....I still use it and it works just fine....of course I am too old to slap it on a freight car, an Amtrak, or a Greyhound and go cross country like I used to....but it still helps get around town nice and dandy.
