A Dangerous Childhood : Coins On The Railway Line Up at the top of the village there was a footbridge over the railway line, and although fenced off, access to the line itself was not difficult for the more adventurous child. I can't remember who's idea this was, but someone came back from Blackpool with a tuppence they had put through one of those presses that stretch and flatten the coin and print the Blackpool Tower on it. We thought that the 3.14 from Ilkley would have pretty much the same effect as a coin press, so up we went with pockets filled with coins, we popped one on the track, hid behind the supporting arch of the bridge and waited for a train. The train came and went, and lo and behold our coin was thinner, it was also curvy and shiny to boot. In time for the next train we had laid out a row of coins on the track, one for each of the half dozen or so lads who were participating in this latest madcap scheme. the next train went past and we were all rewarded with a thin, curvy, shiny coin. Obviously our activity wasn't dangerous enough, oh no. A new idea was touted, and rapidly accepted, a brave volunteer went forth and placed a stack of two pence pieces on the track, we waited. A train came, it hit the stack of coins, they didn't go all thin and curvy and shiny, no, they spewed off the track like little copper bullets, ricocheting off the bridge and embedding themselves at some velocity into the grass banking behind us. At this point some sense of self preservation kicked in, also the train driver had seen us and would no doubt halt at the signal box to report us, we did the sensible thing and ran away. Looking back on this as an adult I can't believe quite how stupid we were, I don't know if a train could be derailed by something so small as a stack of coins, but I do think they would have punctured young flesh quite neatly if we hadn't have got behind the bridge in time. This was to be the first and last time we tried this, although our adventures with the railways were not quite over, I mean, we had a big torch, and the tunnel wasn't that long, was it ? Another dose of this madness here.