Police thought it was a grudge. A man gets hit by a train and, 15 years later, spends his time making obscene gestures at train crews as they go by. Leland Laird, who's been in a wheelchair since that train hit him, says his bird-flipping has got nothing to do with any grudge. He's just tired of hearing the train's wailing horns, and flipping off the crew is his way of expressing that displeasure. He may be rethinking his protest methods now that he's been hit by a second train.

Laird's appearances by the Appleton, Wisconsin, train tracks were so frequent that the crew and engineers considered him a staple in their travels. On one recent stop at his post, though, Laird wheeled himself a tad too close to the tracks and the engine clipped his wheelchair, damaging Laird's chair and laying him out on the ground. He was treated for minor abrasions, and given a ticket for his antics.

» Scott Saxon