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'''Hitchhiking a truck''' is the classical form of [[hitchhiking]]. Many people think that hitchhikers only hitchhike on trucks. That is far from the truth, but still, many hitchhikers get a big part of their rides from trucks. So it's good to know some things about this.
Trucks are big, so it takes more time and space to start driving, and to stop. On many good places for hitchhiking it's really hard for trucks to stop so you might want to spend less energy on them. Still, sometimes you will be pleasantly surprised.
# A truck which has it's curtains closed is obviously not immediately leaving and might even be asleep or stay in that parking lot for a while, only approach if the driver might be outside
# in some countries there are days when trucks aren't allowed to drive. For example in [[France ]] and [[Germany]] they can't drive on sundays [[Sunday]]s till 22:00 and in summer even some saturdaysSaturdays. The only trucks who can are the one with a fridge, because they transport fresh products. You can recognise them because of a running engine while parked (to keep the fridge cold) and because of a differently constructed trailer. A normal trailer is covered on the sides with a plastic canvas, while a fridge has solid, hard sides, which obviously are meant to isolate the carriage. # in the evening most truckers go to sleep, so after 20h your chances of hitching a truck dramatically decrease. Once again the exceptions are the fridges, who carry fresh products and have to reach their destination as fast as possible. Unfortunately this also means they sometimes have two drivers. Then again, this might mean their insurances aren't cut by the crisis (??). Also, if you hitch a truck throughout the night you might have a comfortable place to sleep - while still progressing your journey.# most truckers hardly speak any other languages, so talking to them in their own language will certainly increase their sympathy for you. I always play this a bit. I check the plate for the country and if I speak the language, I will first ask if they speak french French or englishEnglish, they mostly don't and seem a bit annoyed by it. This gives you the opportunity to do the effort of switching to their language. Pretending you just speak a bit of course increases the value of your effort and mostly automatically evokes a smile of sympathy on their face.
# as some countries are difficult to hitch, probably their drivers might be equally difficult. Maybe something to take into account. Anyhow, my experience is that Eastern European drivers don't even let you ask and always say no. Then again, cliches always have their exceptions and it's not as if I made a scientific research on it.
It seems that the majority of truckers smokes inside the truck.
[[Category:Practical info]]