History Main / RacingTheTrain

* ''Literature/ClockworkCentury''. In ''Dreadnought'', the Union armoured train Dreadnought finds itself being chased on a parallel track by the lightly-armed but much faster Confederate train Shenandoah which (in TheWestern tradition) tries to head them off at the pass (where the rail lines converge to cross the Rockies). Whoever succeeds can blow up the rail ahead of their opponent, who would be going to fast that the derailing would kill everyone on board.

* An episode of the 80's TV CopShow ''Series/{{Hunter}}'' had the title character jump onto a train traveling from Los Angeles to San Francisco in order to tail a suspect, with his partner [=DeeDee McCall=] having to chase after him by car to provide backup.

* In the Film/HarryPalmer film ''Bullet to Beijing'', the protagonists have to catch up with the eponymous train at its next stop which is 300 miles away. They find a Russian cab driver and promise to pay him a fortune in American dollars if he can get there in time. He makes it, barely.

** Season 13 opened with the trio staging a "Race to the North" with three 1940s-era vehicles. Jeremy as a stoker aboard the modern steam train ''Tornado'', James in a classic Jaguar and Richard on a [[CoolBike Vincent Black Shadow]]. [[spoiler:The train ultimately came a very close second to the car.]]

* Army Ranger turned fitness model Gregg Plitt [[FatalMethodActing met his end while filming]] a Website/YouTube [[TooDumbToLive video of himself racing a train on foot]].
* Used in an anecdote from ''Webcomic/BobAndGeorge'' creator Dave Anez in [[http://www.bobandgeorge.com/archives/001127c this strip's commentary]]. The author's father and grandfather were driving next to train tracks, when the father noticed they were moving faster than the train. He bet the grandfather that they would beat the train to the next town. The grandfather took the bet, and since he was driving, [[WinsByDoingAbsolutelyNothing won by pulling over]].

** Season 13 opened with the trio staging a "Race to the North" with three 1940s-era vehicles. Jeremy as a stoker aboard a reproduction steam train, James in a classic Jaguar and Richard on a [[CoolBike Vincent Black Shadow]]. [[spoiler:The train ultimately came second to the car.]]

** Happens twice in ''VideoGame/NeedForSpeedTheRun''. The first time is during the opening when Jack Rourke does this to escape from the mobsters chasing him. Happens again in the final race against Marcus Blackwell. To avoid being shot at, Jack ends up driving into an underground subway tunnel and has to dodge oncoming and pursuing subway trains until he reaches an opening to get back into the race.

* Used in an anecdote from ''Webcomic/BobAndGeorge'' creator Dave Anez in [[http://www.bobandgeorge.com/archives/001127c this strip's commentary]]. The author's grandfather was driving with the author's father, when the noticed that they were moving faster than a nearby train, and made a bet with the grandfather that they would beat the train to the next town. The grandfather took the bet, and then won by pulling over until the train reached the next town.

* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'''s titular character is famous for his speed, so naturally, he will occasionally have to outrun trains:

* One of ''VideoGame/ForzaHorizon 4'''s Showcase events has you race an Ariel Nomad against the legendary Flying Scotsman. The remixed version, "Nine and Three Quarters", puts you in a tuned [[Film/HarryPotterAndTheChamberOfSecrets Ford Anglia]].
** This would later be replicated in ''Forza Horizon 5'', where the Showcase event in that game pits you against a freight train while you used a Lamborghini Countach.

* The famous ChaseScene in ''Film/TheFrenchConnection''. After the gunman hops on an El train, Doyle hijacks a car and chases it.

Basically, someone shows off how fast they (or their PimpedOutCar) are by running parallel to, or if they're particularly cocky, in front of a train. It goes without saying that this is a terrible, horrible, no-good, ''very bad idea'' in RealLife. Trains are heavier than you, they're most likely faster than you, and they have so much momentum that [[TooFastToStop it can take them miles to come to a full stop]]. Even if the operator sees an obstruction (like some idiot trying to beat the train to the crossing), they cannot prevent the train from hitting the obstacle and ''will'' [[CurbStompBattle completely destroy said obstacle in the process]], while the train suffers little damage, ''[[NoSell if any at all]]''. Needless to say, if an [[TooDumbToLive idiot]] attempts to do this... and winds up [[KarmicDeath dead]], they will get nothing more for their trouble than a [[Website/DarwinAwards Darwin Award]] nomination for their stupidity.

Basically, someone shows off how fast they (or their PimpedOutCar) are by running parallel to, or if they're particularly cocky, in front of a train. It goes without saying that this is a terrible, horrible, no-good, ''very bad idea'' in RealLife. Trains are heavier than you, they're most likely faster than you, and they have so much momentum that [[TooFastToStop it can take them miles to come to a full stop]]. Even if the operator sees an obstruction (like some idiot trying to beat the train to the crossing), they cannot prevent the train from hitting the obstacle and will most likely end up [[CurbStompBattle completely pulverizing it in the process]], while the train suffers little damage, ''[[NoSell if any at all]]''. Needless to say, if an [[TooDumbToLive idiot]] attempts to do this... and winds up [[KarmicDeath dead]], they will get nothing more for their trouble than a [[Website/DarwinAwards Darwin Award]] nomination for their stupidity.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Cars}}'': Lightning [=McQueen=] does it while trying to catch up to what he thinks is Mack.

* In the short subject ''Film/OneClearChance'' it is clearly explained that if you get hit by a train, it's all your fault. Parodied beautifully on ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000''. "Why don't they look?"

** The mission "Wrong Side of the Tracks" in ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoSanAndreas'' involves you and Big Smoke trying to chase a train while on a dirt bike so that he can shoot the rival gang members atop the train.
** A subversion in the prologue of ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoV'' when Michael, Trevor, and Brad were hit by a train at a crossing attempting to flee the police. And in the mission "Derailed" involves Trevor to chase and hijack a train while on a motorcycle. There's a shout out to ''San Andreas'' in order to get 100%, you have land on top of the train on the first jump. The said requirement is called "Better Than CJ".

** Kalimari Desert in ''VideoGame/MarioKart64'' can have you do this, especially given how being forced to wait for the train to pass totally wastes a lot of time. So it means a lot of karts racing towards the level crossing as the train races by, and the odd too slow racer smashing right into it. You can also either literally try and outrun the train round the track (in the Nintendo 64 version) by racing ahead through the tunnel, while in ''VideoGame/MarioKart7'', you can fly straight over it with a gliding ramp or just take a star/invincibility item and just go straight into the train, sending it flying into the air in the process.

* ''VideoGame/EverythingOrNothing'', another Bond example. Here, you have to race a train that carries the kidnapped [[HotScientist Dr. Nadanova]]. You can choose between the [[CoolCar Porsche Cayenne Turbo]] or the [[CoolBike Chimera]].

Since the invention of rail transportation, manufacturers have always strived to make train engines faster and faster. Near the beginning of the 20th century it was already sort of common to see locomotives capable of doing 150 [[superscript:km]]∕[[subscript:h]], and in 2016 it's perfectly normal to ride a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-speed_rail train that does at least 300 ᵏᵐ∕ₕ]] like the Japanese Shinkansen or the French TGV. Now then, suppose you've got a [[SuperSpeed speedster]]... let's call him Steve. There are many ways you can show off a character's powers -- guys with SuperStrength can lift buses, gals with {{Flight}} can jump off tall buildings and not plummet to their deaths, guys with [[WhatKindOfLamePowerIsHeartAnyway Heart]] can... uh... that's not important. But what can good ol' Steve Speedster do? Race the fastest train of his time, that's what!

** In the final race of ''VideoGame/NeedForSpeedTheRun'', Jack Rourke ends up driving into an underground subway tunnel to avoid being shot at by Marcus Blackwell. He has to dodge oncoming and pursuing subway trains until he reaches an opening to get back into the race.

Basically, someone shows off how fast they (or their PimpedOutCar) are by running parallel to, or if they're particularly cocky, in front of a train. It goes without saying that this is a terrible, horrible, no-good, ''very bad idea'' in RealLife. Trains are heavier than you, they're most likely faster than you, and they have so much momentum that [[TooFastToStop it can take them miles to come to a full stop]]. Even if the operator sees an obstruction (like some idiot trying to beat the train to the crossing), he cannot prevent the train from hitting the obstacle and will most likely end up [[CurbStompBattle completely pulverizing it in the process]], while the train suffers little damage, ''[[NoSell if any at all]]''. Needless to say, if an [[TooDumbToLive idiot]] attempts to do this... and winds up [[KarmicDeath dead]], they will get nothing more for their trouble than a [[Website/DarwinAwards Darwin Award]] nomination for their stupidity.