| Posted by Tanner on June 28, 2008 | |
People can be so stupid and impatient. It annoys me just watching idiots like that!
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How slow was that train running? Looks like they had plenty of time to clear the tracks without risking their lives.
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Occasionally in the human race, the law of natural selection still applies. Or, in order for common sense to remain common, only 51% of us have to have it.
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I bet the woman on the scooter was going faster than the train... awesome street running shot though!
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Doesn't look like they're risking their lives. The train can't be going that fast on street running.
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"Risking their lives?" Give me a break.
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Its all very well thinking you've got time to cross but what happens if you trip and fall over - you become another statistic! Impatience is one of our biggest failings.
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The train is going maybe 10 mph. Trains can take many minutes to clear here. Yopu can see it is a short train because of the telephoto, they can't. I lived in Oakland 25 years and never heard of anyone getting hit. This is a 20 plus times a day thing and is quite normal. It is a happy coexistance in a thriving commercial area. So we certainly are not talking about idiots.
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Does anyone know what the maximum MPH for a train would be on that stretch? I can't imagine it would be around 5-10 mph (which is a jogging/recreational bike riding pace). I think those guys have more of a chance getting hurt by a late delivery courier on a track bicycle, a car, or getting hit by the unlicensed woman in the scooter chair. Even if someone trips and falls in the path of the train, I'm pretty sure somebody would have time to help and drag them out of the way; however I'm quite sure that the train could likely stop before getting struck would be an issue. Sorry, I'm not falling for the hype here.
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| Posted by on June 29, 2008 | |
So if I gather from the comments above, these guys actually aren't idiots at all. In fact, they're pretty smart, right? I mean, I see a train and the first thing I think of is: Hey, let's walk out in front of it! So, Steven, I'm sorry but these guys are obviously all MIT grads on the way to finding a cure for cancer or lower gas prices. I can't believe you didn't give them a standing ovation out there.
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The most stupid is a man behind the other two that could pass the running train(maybe)... Actually Great Moment Steven
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I forgot to say: Welcome to the big city, y'all.
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The train was doing about 20-25 MPH at the time, and the engineer set the air (the GP15 doesn't have dynamics) and when he went by he let out all his slack to scare the pedestrians. The engineer was shaking his head looking at me with that "dumb idiots" look. The one in the white hat barely made it, the lady in the scooter was yelling at him not to go.
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This is really an excellent capture of one of my favorite locations! Well composed, and I believe those are cranes in the background? I don't think anyone is risking their lives here, perhaps the last guy.
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I'm with Mr. Renella. Too many hand-wringing, band-wagon jumping, drama queens when it comes to these (now common) telephoto, "idiots-in-mortal-peril" pics. I'd have been more ticked because they were blocking a semi-decent shot of street operations.
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I agree with you on the straggler, but calling the two guys running in front idiots is out of line. At the rate of speed that this train was most likely traveling, those guys were two blocks away, parked in a Starbuck's enjoying a Mocha Latte by the time the train hit the crossing.
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I agree with what Nigel Curtis said. I heard a story how in pretty much this same situation a pedestrian crossed and slipped and fell on the tracks...
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If the train is 150 feet away moving at 25MPH, it will take 4 seconds to reach their location. If it's 200 feet away at 15MPH, it will take 9 seconds. Good idea to run in front? No. Likelihood of you tripping and the engineer not being able to stop in time with a train that short? Pretty low. As Mr. Bernard notes, nobody's been killed in recent memory. I'd be more worried about people darting out behind a train and getting hit by one going the other direction.
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| Posted by JNB on June 30, 2008 | |
The guys have the time for pass, but the old man with a blue school bag must wait 2 minutes or run fast.
Great shot.
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| Posted by Gordie on July 2, 2008 | |
Can we PLEASE nominate these 2 for the moron of the year award!!!!
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| Posted by on July 16, 2008 | |
Being a conductor, I see this stuff all the time. People are always running in front of my train while in the station and approaching crossings. My favorite is when they run UNDER my trains in a station because they where on the wrong side. Then they can't figure out why they can't get on my trains.
Just the other night too I watched a car BLAST through the gates at a grade crossing about 5 seconds before we got to it while doing 60mph. I'll never figure people out. You captured a good photo of the stupidity us railroaders have to deal with on a daily basis.
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