Hitch-hiking can be dangerous, so use caution.

If any of the following are detectable inside the car; electronic prison ankle tag, bloody knife, muffled screams from the boot, nooses, hand cuffs, poppers, or the driver is wearing a leather waistcoat and nothing else, DO NOT accept the ride.

The summer before I got my driving license I stayed in a town half an hour inland from Santa Cruz, CA and had to hitch-hike to the beach every day.

Among other folk, I got picked up by a mormon preacher, a bikini model, my old art teacher’s daughter and an acid burn out Grateful Dead roadie.

I surfed all summer and (/but) didn’t get buggered!

“Standard in-car travel manners apply. Never adjust the stereo from the passenger seat unless asked to and never smell your finger after itching your balls… unless asked to”

1. Hide

If travelling with your better half, get her (him) thumbing curbside while you lurk in the undergrowth. If no one stops for them on a busy road within fifteen minutes, well you may want to look into that…

If you’ve got endless bundles of luggage, try to keep all that hidden too until after they’ve pulled over. Getting them to stop is half the battle.

2. Get your signal right

The thumb up is universally accepted method, but it doesn’t work everywhere.

In South Africa for example, they point down at the road with the index finger. Seriously though, don’t hitch in South Africa.

In parts of West Africa, South America, Iran, Iraq, and Sardinia, a thumb up is rude, literally meaning ‘up your asshole’.