It's like a free souvenir penny machine.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I post a picture and just a few words.
Whenever we go to the park with the railroad tracks, we bring a few pennies, put them on the track, go play, and then come back later to see if a train has run over them.
I remember doing this as a kid on some railroad tracks in Canada, and my kids think it's just as fun as I used to.
I always think it's kind of cool that we still use cargo trains. Sometimes we watch the trains go by and I always think how crazy it is that that many cars can be pulled by a single engine. It's like a ton of semis all on one train.
This post hit me like a cargo train (pun intended)! Just yesterday I was reminiscing about how we did this as kids (45+ years ago) and then this morning I see this post! We would also press our ears to the track to listen for trains. Probably not too safe, but your photo made me remember how smooth and warm the metal felt. How in the world do those pennies stay on the tracks long enough to get smashed ?? I always wondered why the force of the train didn't knock them off first.
I've also been reminiscing lately how we used to sneak sheets of wax paper from my mom's kitchen and use them to wax the slide in the nearby park. Man, did we fly down that thing!
Some of our coins do get knocked off before they're flattened...but at least some of them stay on long enough. That's why we always put multiples on the tracks!
Fun fact: Most train cars hold about three semi-truck trailers worth of material. (My dad works for a mill and has been loading train cars and semi-trucks since I was little.) The trains are still a vital part of the commerce network, even so many decades later. It's crazy how well they've stood the test of time.
I'm surprised it's not even more! Some of the trains we watch seem to go on forever and ever.
She is saying that EACH car holds about what three semis does.
Ohh, oh! I misread it. Duh to me!
A double headed nail flattened becomes a mini sword.
You know, I'd never thought of putting a nail on the tracks. That doesn't cause a problem, ey?
Love trains!! I wish that the U.S. would invest more into passenger trains...love train travel!
My kids request an after picture of the pennies, as well. 🙂
yes, after photo please.
We used to do this too. We hand to mark the location though with rocks at the end of ties or we might lose where we put the pennies and not find them.
The pennies do not affect the train. An experienced train engineer once told me that a freight train hitting a car has about the same impact in the cab as a car hitting a soft drink can. That made a real impression on me and our daughter. Another time a conductor told me the banding on a load of lumber could decapitate a person standing too close if it chose that moment to break. Be careful around train tracks. Enjoy watching them, and riding them if you get the chance, but be careful when doing either. Respect the power of these behemoths.
Oh yes-I have a very healthy fear of trains. I'm super careful with my kids around them!
Its actually considered trespassing( per Homeland Security). I live right by a track( for the metrolink and metrorail and cargo trains) and in the last year, 3 people have committed suicide. When I am waiting at the light, I get so freaked out thinking that someone purposely put themselves in front of the train. I would not even risk it.
Fun fact: It will get harder and harder to do this in Canada now as we no longer have pennies...