An angry, wheelchair-bound Wisconsin man who enjoys flipping off freight trains may have to cut back on his hobby — one of the trains hit him.
Leland Laird, 54, was at his customary position, middle finger proudly aloft, next to the train tracks in Appleton at about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday evening, reports the Appleton Post-Crescent.
That’s when a Canadian National (search) engine’s gas tank clipped Laird’s wheelchair, sending him tumbling to the ground.
Laird, who suffered only mild cuts and abrasions, told police he was paralyzed by a train that hit his car in 1989 — but that wasn’t the reason he liked shooting them the bird.
“He was upset by the horns,” Appleton Police Lt. Pat Matuszewski told the newspaper. “He lives right near the intersection. That’s his way of addressing the loud horns blowing.”
Engineers and conductors are apparently used to seeing Laird’s finger flag flying high and consider him a “regular.”
The Canadian National train stopped after hitting Laird’s chair while police responded. Laird was given a ticket for being a pedestrian in violation of traffic signals.
Cops suggested that Laird make his grievances known in a more polite manner.
“We’ll put him in touch with the right people to make sure his concerns are heard,” Matuszewski told the newspaper.
Hey let’s not call him wacky…Wait he did what! Another probable cadidate for darwisnism. I guess as long as he’s not trespassing or hurting anyone he has a right to do what he pleases. To bad he wasn’t taking pictures instead of flipping the bird, he might have been able to sell them and make a profit.
Maybe if he listened the first time he wouldn’t be in a wheel chair. We had a big discussion over on the Trains Magazine forum a while back about train horns, and how many cities and towns are more worried about noise than safety.
Trains need to warn people to get out of the way, because they can’t stop. Just yesterday I heard a Union Pacific train use the horn in the unmistakable multiple short emergency warning pattern.
Personally, I have no sympathy for people who don’t like train horns. The railroad was there long before any house was near it. If they don’t like it, they should move.
Being from Wisconsin and living less than 8 miles away from the idiot in the wheel chair, I think we the proud people of Wisconsin just found our next would be politician, since he has cornered the market on stupidity by getting hit by a train twice in his lifetime, I think he is amply qualified in this state to run for congress!
Hell If I were a CN engineer…I wouldv’e kept on going.
The engineer asks the conductor,what did we hit?
…and the conductor replys…A BUG!
Ill bet the cops were realy laughing all the way back to the station.
BNSFrailfan.
It’s too bad that the train didn’t permanently put him out of commission! Considering that he is a casuality of a railroad crossing accident, who should be aware more than anybody about what can happen when people don’t notice a train, he ought to understand just how important horns are. I don’t know about the “making his grievances known in a more polite manner” part. If he doesn’t like the horns-move somewhere else! The last thing CN wants is to have to hear a complaint about train horns from this nut.
I wonder if this nutball has been trying to get hit. Scootching his wheelchair closer and closer everytime. Then blame it on the railroad and such.
Maybe he thought that if the crossing was seen as even more unsafe it would stop the traffic – but it will probably have the opposite effect of the railroads sounding their horns longer and louder when they see “obstructions” on or near the track.
Three or four months ago I saw a pic of a NS engineer flying the bird for a railfan who managed to snap a pic of it. I don’t have a link for it but maybe someone who has some extra time can search for it. If nobody comes up with a link for it I will email “Lee” and see if he does, he might be the one who took the pic but don’t quote me on that.
some guys never learn…he’s also one of those guys that when you warn them about a tidal wave coming show up at the beach to see what one really looks like…darwin award candidate alright…too bad the fuel tank didn’t break his finger
If this joker paid attention, he’s have been flipping the bird at the offices of whatever Federal agency it was that issued a regulation requiring horns to be sounded at every grade crossing. While appropriate and timely horn use is necessary, stupid regulations are not.
But then, I thought the feds relented a few years ago when the measure proved very unpopular…