Thumbs High Santa Cruz Post #3

Addressing Issues of Hitchhiking Safety for Men and Women in Santa Cruz.

When I talk to women about hitchhiking, there are generally two responses: the first is that they love hitchhiking but are extremely cautious, and the second is that they would never hitchhike due to their gender. Men are generally physically stronger than women and this makes the idea of hitchhiking simply unacceptable. Safety is the biggest issue in hitchhiking and there are numerous cases of women getting into cars with drivers who are dangerous, sexually abuse their passengers, or inflict other types of physical harm. This alone is enough to deter women from hitchhiking, but also some men.

I would like to reiterate that this blog pertains to hitchhiking to and from the UCSC campus and not in other cities. From my experiences in Santa Cruz, here are some tips for safe hitchhiking in Santa Cruz for both men and women.




ESSENTIAL TIPS TO UCSC STUDENTS FOR SAFE HITCHHIKING




1. VEHICLE IDENTIFICATION: When your standing at your post with your thumb proudly in the air, you must think critically about the types of cars that move towards you.




a) NEW CARS: If you see a brand new looking car, you probably wont be getting picked up because what student has a new car? But if they do pick you, be wary that they might not be a student and are not familiar with picking up hitchhikers. My rule is to simply not count on new cars picking you up.




b) CARS WITH A LOT OF DAMAGE: When hitchhiking, being judgmental is essential. If someone's car is really beat up or damaged, I don't think i would feel too inclined getting in that car. What could it possibly mean about the drivers judgement? Maybe they are an unsafe driver, maybe they have a reckless personality? I usually don't want to find out. I will usually throw my thumb down to avoid attention to myself. If they pull over anyway, I simply say that I'll just wait for the bus or I changed my mind about going to campus. Its no loss to you or the driver.




c) BIG TRUCKS AND SUVs: Something about a truck or SUV really deters me from getting into the car. This might seem intuitive or not, but I again make harsh judgement calls about personalities based off of the types of cars people drive. I have gone inside trucks and SUVs but when it was clearly a student driver, or when there were other students in the car.




2. DRIVERS: Making judgement calls on who is your driver is, is probably one of the most important aspects of safe hitching.




a) STUDENTS: are probably your safest best. Right off the bat, ask the driver if they are a student before you tell them where you want to go. Look for signs on the car, like a UCSC sticker, fraternity/sorority sticker, or club affiliations. Does the driver have a backpack in the front seat? T




b) ADULTS: Here is the tricky part. If an adult picks you up hitchhiking, immediately ask them where they are going and why. For example "Are you going by the bookstore for any reason?" They might then answer, with "No but I can take you there". This is usually a good sign because most drivers who pick up hitchhikers will probably go out of their way to take you somewhere specific.




3. WHAT TO BRING WITH YOU: If you feel really uncomfortable with hitchhiking, but want to do it, by all means arm yourself.




a) PEPPER SPRAY: Pepper spray or mace is becoming more and more readily available. Many women at UCSC carry pepper spray and its a good thing. UCSC and the city of Santa Cruz at night can have a lot of dark corners. Arming yourself with pepper spray has become socially acceptable in the last few years.




b) POCKET KNIFE: Why not? Nobody wants to have to use it, but I always carry a multi-tool in my backpack. Its equipped with a knife and other sharp objects. The most use my knife gets is for cheese and fruit :)




4. OTHER PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES




a) TEXT SOMEONE YOUR GOING IN A CAR: If you text your friend of loved one that your hitchhiking from one place to another you can give yourself a head start on safety. If you make it a common practice to text someone then they will know if something is wrong if you don't text back upon arrival. Its definitely an option, although I have never done it.




b) KEEP CONVERSATION: Nothing is worse than having a completely silent hitchhiking ride. If you however don't find anything to talk about, make sure they know exactly where to drop you off. There is not a stranger feeling than having a driver miss your drop off spot and thinking that the unthinkable is happening.



c) MAKE CONNECTIONS: If your feeling uncomfortable with a student or adult driver, ask them if they know certain people. Its not uncommon for me to find friends through 1-2 degrees of separation. It happens almost every time.




d) USE YOUR GUT: If none of these tips registers in your mind when your getting in a car, all you have left is your intuition, which is always your best asset.




5. TIMING: this should be fairly obvious but sometimes getting a ride up or down from campus at late hours saves you a lot of waiting time.




a) NIGHTTIME RIDING: This should be straightforward. Don't always do it unless you have no choice. All of the same rules apply, just exercise extra caution. You can greatly increase your safety by hitching with at least 1 or more people with you. A sketchy driver (not implying that there are a ton of them out there) will most likely want to pick up a solo driver.

Until next time, THUMBS HIGH SANTA CRUZ