Belgian Travels Illegally on Freight Trains: 'I'm Not Doing It for the Thrill'

October 24 2022

With 121,000 subscribers and 4 million views, Gifgas is one of the most well-known train surfers on the continent. It's been three years since he hung onto an NMBS train for kilometers and filmed it for the first time. Various Belgian newspapers picked up the news back then. The NMBS filed a complaint, but Gifgas - real name known to the editorial team - has not been arrested by the police yet.

The YouTuber values his privacy: in his videos, his voice is distorted, and he consistently wears a mask. Nevertheless, an ordinary twenty-something guy walks into the café where we've arranged to meet. He's wearing a hoodie, sneakers, and has a far-from-intimidating appearance.

Gifgas has left train surfing behind. "It attracts too much attention," he says. But he still engages in and films freight hopping. The phenomenon originated in America: after the American Civil War, migrant workers - known as hobos - used freight trains to travel. "It still happens in the US, just less frequently," he says. The genre also lives on YouTube: videos of freight hoppers are regularly posted there.

First Time The fascination with trains began in his childhood, explains Gifgas. "Our house overlooked a marshalling yard." Around the age of 15, he saw a video for the first time of someone freight hopping in the US. "Those videos sparked my interest. Initially, I wanted to travel to the US to try it, but soon I wondered: couldn't that be done in Europe too?"

Gifgas started observing stationary freight trains and saw his opportunity. Along with a friend, he hopped onto a train in Belgium. "We wanted to travel to Italy, but the train was going in the wrong direction. We jumped off the train at the port of Antwerp. Dockworkers saw us, but we didn't care. Despite the setback, I realized: freight hopping can also be done in Europe."

Gifgas got hooked. Since then, he's been leading a double life. "Almost no one knows that I do it. Not even my parents. They would always worry."

Danger Gifgas' YouTube channel features 26 videos, the majority of which involve freight trains. The most spectacular segment in his videos is when Gifgas is confronted by the police at the Italian-Austrian border (see video at the top). A helicopter is even deployed in an attempt to arrest him, but Gifgas manages to escape. "Some people think I do it for those moments. That's not true: I hate that. Although, in a way, it does feel good to end up in a warm bed instead of a freezing cell."

Most of his fans live in the US and Australia. "It's nice that people watch my videos. It's recognition for the effort I put in," he explains. "On the other hand, I don't want anyone to imitate me. It remains dangerous."

Moreover, freight hopping is illegal in our country and in most other European Union member states. "That's why I try not to provide too much information about departure points in my videos. I'm not aware of viewers trying it themselves, although there are probably a few. In the comments on YouTube, I notice that I mainly inspire them to travel. They thank me for doing the train journeys on their behalf."

Escapism Although people often don't understand why he does it, Gifgas says, "Unlike train surfing, I don't do freight hopping for the thrill; I do it for a sense of escapism. It gives me a feeling of satisfaction. It makes me realize that not everything is taken for granted. When you spend days waiting for the next train at a marshalling yard, it helps you put things into perspective and downplay minor problems."

"Freight hopping is an authentic way of traveling," he adds. Why doesn't he just hitchhike to his destinations? "I do that too, you know. I'm mostly guided by my moral compass. If I'm not harming other people, does it really matter? Besides, it's ecological. Those trains are running anyway."

Source: https://www.standaard.be/cnt/dmf20221024\_95020561