Today's Lesson: Watch Your Step
Fitness model, actor and reality TV star Greg Plitt was fatally struck by a Metrolink train in Burbank Saturday afternoon. Police say Plitt was filming on the train tracks.Y'see, train yards are generally gravel and hardscrabble, with not just tracks, but large ties ("sleepers") sticking out, along with the anchor spikes, and all matter of other detritus afoot.
People who knew Plitt and fans who wished to honor the fitness guru stopped by the train tracks Sunday to pay their respects. A bouquet of roses was left at the scene.
Plitt, 37, was a top fitness model and actor. He appeared on TV shows and movies, and was on the cover of more than 250 fitness magazines just in the last eight years.
Burbank police say Plitt was filming with two other people on the train tracks, just north of the Burbank Metrolink Station, when he was struck and killed by a Metrolink train.
Witnesses say Plitt was holding a video camera when the accident happened.
"He had on all black. The train went by. I saw him stumble over the tracks. He had a camcorder in his hand," said Metrolink passenger Victor Crowell.
So when you stumble right in front of a moving train, that's it for you.
This is why on real productions (as opposed to someone half-assing it with a couple of buddies "on-the-cheap" with a handicam) there are whole departments of people who make sure that the person with the camera is safe from such things. Now you know what a grip does.
Tragic for Plitt and his family, and no doubt rather inconvenient for the train crew and passengers. But I daresay his DayPlanner has opened up quite a bit, and 200 other would-be fitness cover boys are shedding crocodile tears.
But even if you're rough, tough, and buff, with an Academy ring, a black-and-gold tab, a five years with the Regiment, your chances against a moving Metroliner in your gym shorts and tennis shoes are about the same as if you wore a meat suit to swim with Great White Sharks.
For Mr. Plitt, lesson learned, albeit about 5 seconds too late to deliver any helpful behavioral changes. Some stuff may look easy, and making videos is: right up until you find out the parts where it's not so much the case. Like from the undercarriage of the train.
Oh well.
8 comments:
Natural selection.
Removing morons from the gene pool for thousands of years.
Good to see you posting.
Weaning myself back into the process.
This one wrote itself.
A few years ago my morning commute was seriously delayed because early that morning someone was walking on the tracks with their headphones on, didn't hear the train coming. All sorts of investigations had to be done, and the newspaper reported the next day that "The medical examiner was still determining cause of death." (Can I put $20 on "blunt force trauma"?
Personally I think the only investigation required would be to check the video-camera on the front of the train (and if there isn't one, there should be). Let's see, dumb ass walking on tracks with back to traffic and headphones on? OK, hose her off the locomotive, passengers we're sorry for the delay.
"someone was walking on the tracks with their headphones on"
This is a fairly common suicide method. Absolutely foolproof and painless if done right. Of course it is awfully selfish, as the effect on the train engineer can be devastating, as well as the first responders who have to clean up. My father was VERY affected by his time gathering up fingers and other body parts from a train collision victim.
In this case, tragic for the victims family, and all involved, but MAN O MAN the needless stupidity....
nick
BTW, I've worked on film and tv production too, and there is a right way and wrong way. This was the wrong way, as was the on-location death in the south just a few weeks/months ago, when a worker on a low budget production was hit and killed by a train. Even on legitimate productions, there is always the pressure to save time and cut costs. Money spent on safety is very hard to justify ROI as accidents that DON'T happen are hard to recognize. The film industry isn't the only one that has this problem either.
Not true.
Nah, if you drop down and lie between the tracks you have a chance, unless you're unlucky and the train has a crapload of stuff hanging off it or are really fat.
Some people have done that and lived.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNMCvFb9rQc
Some even for kicks.
I dunno, but as a form of recreation train-surfing seems neater. There's even a guy who surfed a 330 kph German ICE train by hopping onto it and holding on though some sort of underpressure adhesive glove. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoT9vTx3_ms)
@Y.:
Nope.
Take a look at the header pic.
That is a Metrorail locomotive.
There's no space under the cow catcher to lie down in the middle of the tracks.
Even if you're Calista Flockhart-skinny.
Capt. Doofus was pizza the second he bit it.
@Y.:
Nope.
Take a look at the header pic.
That is a Metrorail locomotive.
There's no space under the cow catcher to lie down in the middle of the tracks.
Even if you're Calista Flockhart-skinny.
Capt. Doofus was pizza the second he bit it.
@Y.:
Nope.
Take a look at the header pic.
That is a Metrorail locomotive.
There's no space under the cow catcher to lie down in the middle of the tracks.
Even if you're Calista Flockhart-skinny.
Capt. Doofus was pizza the second he bit it.
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