SURFING SOWETO SCRIPT
Over images of train surfing .
They call it train-surfing or the "Spiderman". Its highly illegal.. not to mention Life threatening, Yet daily Soweto teenagers dice with death as they seek the ultimate adrenalin rush.
During the recent security guard strike three boys were electrocuted while surfing. Many more have been injured. Despite this, train surfing has become a popular dare.
So who are these young rebels-without-a-cause? And why do they risk life and limb for this dangerous sport?
SAFM CLIP over visuals of bitch nigga on top of a train
BITCH NIGGA
I have also wanted to be a stuntman. I thought I can do this. So in 2000 there was a train strike, then I though let me do this. And then I got on top of the train and you know mos there was a lot of girls around
In recent years trains in Soweto have increasingly been left unguarded vulnerable to violence and vandalism. So many more boys have taken to surfing with nothing but the limits of their courage to stop them.
Sequence of him and Lefa and the Sisqo in the train
Lefa: He is looking good
Other friend: Yeah he is going to work
Sisqo: I dont surf anymore
Prince: Liar, you know you are going to surf
Prince: You know the strike is on come lets go surf
BITCH NIGGA
Then all these little boys - who are too forward for their age - saw me and then they followed me and climbed on top of the train. They copied me.
They dont know what they are doing. They just go on top of the train without the knowledge.
Lefa doing the standing in front of the train stunt
LEFA
I am scared of death. I am scared because its the end of it. I have seen my friends dying in front of me. And that is why when sometimes when I am about to go train surfing, I change my mind. Because I am thinking that I could die at any time. But then sometimes evil possesses me and I just do it.
Slovas (2 sec and 23 frames after where Lefa goes off picture) song Skebengu Fade it in
LEFA
I am the only boy in the house. My sisters are educated they completed their matrics I dont want to do this you understand. I want to be successful and have a life and why am I busy train surfing?
I want to live a nice life. I sometimes see the guys from my neighbourhood all dressed up and I also want to be like that - or maybe an old man with a nice car - I want to reach that stage.
BITCH NIGGA
When I am sitting down I dont feel so good, I feel stupid. I am so used to surfing - I cant not do it.
I start with a warm up. Thats when I run next to the train and then just before we get to the end of the platform I jump inside the train. Then I get on top and do the viva la rasa. Like I said I love entertaining even though I know my form of entertainment is wrong.
Freeze frame PRINCE AKA BITCH NIGGA
Bitch nigga running along train then jumping in
Prince got the name Bitch Nigga from songs by American rap stars 50 cents and Tupac.
BITCH NIGGA
So one day we are listening to the songs and the next thing I hear is bitch niggaz bitch niggaz, I loved the name and by the way then I was hot property and famous with the girls.
BITCH NIGGA
In the train no one knew me and I had to show myself to the people. So I decided to always dress in black. Like the matrix: black boots, black leather coat The matrix was very hot at that time.
It ended up being like a spectacle where everyone would wait for me to see what I would do next All the school kids would bunk school just to see me surfing. They knew Id be coming without fail.
BITCH NIGGA
I also looked extra ordinary because I had piercing all over my face. The girls went crazy every time I would appear they would think : that guy!!! .. and that was what really excited me
Lefa and Bitch nigga walking through the streets
BITCH NIGGA
Hey Sweety, You look like Tamia. Shake that ass.
BITCH NIGGA
I used to be a terror in this part of town, I would go in that door. Then exit that side and I would have like 4 to 6 cellphones with me.
BITCH NIGGA
Lefa is my student. I taught him how to surf. Lefa likes taking risks just like me. I saw him surf once and then I thought this guy is a master at this. Because he didnt fall like all the other guys. So I said to Lefa you know what I give you a gold medal. Then I gave Innocent a silver medal and of course I get the platinum.
LEFA Freeze frame - train wipe
LEFA
I met Bitch Nigger, Sisqo, Mmrider and Bin Laden, they were already surfing. So as I saw them do it I thought let me join them and learn how to staff ride. I was still living in Orange farm. And when my family gave me money for a taxi I would take the train
So every Friday I would bunk school and meet them in town. We would drink a lot of booze, the first time I actually went on top of the train was a Thursday. It was train number 28,
Lefa first met Mzembe on that same train. They were caught up in the middle of a robbery
LEFA
Then two big guys came and robbed us and I didnt show them my money though, so the robbed Mzembe and his buddies. After they were gone, I showed him my money and we bought booze and introduced ourselves. I told them that I am Lefa from Naledi and Mzembe told us his name and that he is from Mzimhlophe. Then Juju and Thabo introduced themselves. We hung out and drank a lot that day. And then we boarded the train and Mzembe kept going on top of it and surfing. And then when we got to town I told them that I am going to school. By then he was still attending school at Coronation
MZEMBE SURFING Freeze frame
Like many of the train surfers, Mzembe grew up in a house with no father. His father killed himself with a hand grenade .
Friend: My dad is crap, I dont know where he lives. I know him but I hardly see him. Dads are just shit.
Mzembe: Dads are shit vele.
Friend: At least our moms buy us clothes. I prefer my mom and its a good thing because I dont get along with my dad.
Friend: Maybe your dad was a drunk ne?
Mzembe: no apparently he didnt even drink a sip He was MK!
Friend: We must drink a couple of beers before we go take a bath
Mzembe: Sure
Friend: you must ask your mom for money
Mzembe: Yes lets go inside so we can at least drink four before ..
Friend: Sure
Mzembes mother raises him along with her two other children. Her sister died last year so she now also raises her sisters two children
Mzembe: Can I get money to go to town?
Mum: What are you going to do I town?
Mzembe: watch Movies.
Mum: How much are the movies?
Mzembe: R10
Mm: You are lying because I know that you are going straight to the liquior store.
Mzmebe: No, we are going to watch movies.
Straight after that it was off to the Juke Box.
Mzembe playing pool
MZEMBE
I love booze, I drink everyday
I always surf when I am drunk
LEFA
Mzembe would drink and then his friends will then pressure him to surf and he does it because of the liquor
MZEMBE MOM
He drinks a lot and I took him to SANCA for the booze. He is sometimes so drunk that I think they might have spiked his booze. I dont understand him anymore.
Innocent train skating boys surfing Freeze frame STYLES
Train number 23 is one of the most popular targets. Every morning it is packed to capacity as it winds its way from Dube and Khwezi to New Canada. This gives the surfers who ride it the cover they seek. Overstretched security guards are much too busy keeping order to worry about their daredevil antics.
LEFA
No one taught me how to duck cables. I came up with the style, it was one evening and I was really drunk from vodka So I was on top of the train surfing and then I thought okay let me jump and duck the cable and kept going.
Train surfing is highly dangerous. 3000 Volts of electricity run through the overhead cables. The slightest contact with them and its tickets .
Footage of Bitch nigga looking for Lefa under the train
There are many different ways to Surf a train
Footage of riding under the train .
LEFA
Riding under the train I learned from bitch nigger. It was just the two of us riding in the train. It was 2003, he took me and showed me how to go under the train and which metal rods I grab and hold on to, so that I can get through to the opposite side of the coach.
LEFA
Its rough under the train, the steel metal thingies is all over the place. And it gets confusing because you dont know which one to hold on to and which one to let go off.
I get scared under the train because my head goes very close to the wheel and if I loose my grip and fall Im going to be crushed by the wheel.
We asked Bitch Nigga what he would do if Lefa died?
BITCH NIGGA
There is nothing I can do because a dead man is a dead man, I cant change his situation. Maybe Ill go to his funeral maybe not but I wont loose sleep over it.
Each surfer has his own favourite style
LEFA
The one style I love is when I am facing the opposite direction that the train is moving in, ducking cables without looking at them.
This style has become known as Begos. You ride the train backwards so you cant see whats ahead. The rider better know exactly when the cables and bridges are coming up otherwise its wipe-out
LEFA
I know where they are because I calculated how many meters each cable is so its easy for me to know when to duck.
Bitch Niggas favourite style is Viva la Rasa. He copied this move from Eddie Correra the late wrestler
BITCH NIGGA
See the cable, it has to be passing here right by my face
AYANDA and LEFA
00 28 20 I wont lie, a young boy from the township would never pull it off. They would get hurt. I do it everyday. I dont do it once a week and I do it almost daily. I also do it too much. I sometimes take the train on my own and think which style can I come up with now. 00 28 44 Its in our blood. Its like sleeping and waking up.
CABLE FREEZE FRAME
In the world of train surfers Lefa is famous for his ability to touch the silver cables. They call him Gatjeni meaning Captain
AYANDA AND LEFA
That cable - the black one - it burns them and sometimes it burns them so bad that they go to Baragwanath Hospital. The silver one I can touch. They call me gatjeni they think I use muti
Impressing girls is a big part of why these boys surf
Lefa and girls drinking at home.
LEFA
I dont have a girlfriend in the train. But what I do is to make sure that by the end of the day one of the girls will come to me and say Lefa you are the man.
They go into the station through gate
For the boys, the daily routine is usually a combination of drinking and surfing
LEFA
I take the 9373 in the second coach where the guys smoke weed, drink beers and play dice. Then I get off at Khwezi station and wait for the 05 which I sit 3rd coach from the back. Then we surf the train with my friends Bitch Nigga, Mzembe, innocent, Jovis and them.
Then after that we discuss how we are going to bunk school and whether we are having a house party later or drinks in town. And then we take a train to randfontein and then we surf and then we get off and drink sum more and then eventually we walk to Joubert where we will just be buying booze along the way in liquor stores.
Lefa and Bitch outside Juke box.
BN: there are a lot of chicks down there, lets go and get them.
Lefa: No I have to go to
BM: Its so nice at the juke box, girls, smokes, beers lets go.
Lefa: I have to go to the toilet.
BN: they are not going to let you in at the jukebox in your uniform
Lefa: Im not wearing a school uniform
BN: they are going to see your tie.
Hanging out at pool club
Back in the salon BN opens his brief case:
Surfing isnt the only thing he does Bitch Nigga is also studying .
Salon Sequence
BITCH NIGGA MOM
He would cry and say mama please at least let me go and study hair because he didnt want to stay home and be bored. And then I told him that I will make a plan for you to be able go and study at the Beauty Palace. Which is where I paid the fees and he started studying. Still to date he studies there.
In Soweto there are currently two types of train surfers. The Cheeseboys and the Mvonqas. Cheeseboys surf for the thrill of it they are the soul surfers of this sport. The Mvonqas surf in order to rob people.
BITCH NIGGA
We were rough, we would steal girls school bags, karrimors they are about R250 at the shops. We would take their phones and the thing was that if the security saw us and tried to chase us we would go on top of the train. And they wont get me there
BITCH NIGGA MOM
Bitch nigga once got arrested for stealing a bag - I dont remember the story about the bag and then a cellphone. I was unable to help.
BITCH NIGGA
I thought I should draw it as a reminder for me so that I dont have to go back. SO I drew this picture so that I can remind myself even when I am out that this place is bad nigger
After his arrest Bitch Nigga decided to wash away his criminal past
BITCH NIGGA
04 16 59, This is my care wash. When I am not busy at school on weekends I come here with the guys to keep busy and then wash cars. My dream is to open a salon here in this container.
Lefa and Nhlanhla meeting after school and crossing the street.
Lefa is only 15 years old. He lives with his sister. When he isnt out surfing hes with his girlfriend.
LEFA
My girlfriend is Nhlanhla from Protea. Its one person I have been with for almost two years now. She loves me a lot. She is the one person who is always saying I must stop. I mustnt try and please friends and other girls. She tells me honestly that if I loose my feet then she is not interested. Because what is she going to do with a man who has no legs.
She is the love of my life
NLANHHLA
01 51 28 Lefa didnt come to me. He was the type of person who would buy me things like popcorn, toast during lunch. It grew and I started hanging out with him.
shots of Nhlanhla and Lefa walking through Lenasia.
I think he always dreams about trains. Or maybe he is with another girl.
NLANHHLA
02 03 59 I do love lefa
02 21 02 I know I love him because even though he beats me I still love him. I mean my friends always tell me to leave him but I can.
LEFA
00 22 07 Staff riding can kill you. I always imagine what I would do if my girlfriend told me that she is leaving me because I dont have legs anymore.
AYANDA
I want to stop. We all want to stop but once you get hooked you cant stop and you can only stop if you die or find a job. I mean going back to the township and chilling sucks. And you need something to take you out, rehabilitate you.
NLANHHLA
02 05 15Lefa told me that his father was abusive and hitting his mom all the time and I think he is adopting his fathers character. And he is proud of his father. I always ask him how you can be proud of someone who doesnt clothe you or live with you or give you food.
Lefa and Nhlanhla walking in the street.
More than a year ago Lefa had his closest call. He was doing viva la Rasa on top of the train... Facing backwards. He turned - but it was too late. The cable hit him. He fell on the gravel.
LEFA
I couldnt walk and I was pissing into a pipe that goes to a plastic container I thought I would never walk. I was dizzy I thought I would never be able to walk again. And this ear is malfunctioning because sometimes I hear with it and sometimes it gets blocked. I was scared. Wake up Saturday Im in a drip, and I asked myself what is going on.
NLANHHLA
02 15 38 My heart was sore, because I was praying that dear lord please dont take him away he is the only one I have. I was in emotional pain. I saw him lying there and his ear was bad and I thought he might have brain damage.
Lefa didnt have brain damage but he was severely injured. His recovery was slow and painful. He stopped surfing. For a while he even stopped taking the train at all until he got worried about who would protect Nhlanhla if he wasnt there.
LEFA
My friends used to use the train, my friends used the train as transport and I know it gets hectic. So I was scared my girlfriend was going to be harassed by all these goons in the train so I had to take the train.
Mom at catering job chopping parsley
Lefas mom knew nothing about her sons surfing till she heard neighbours in the street gossiping. She was surprised that they called her Spidermans mom. It was only later that she realised what this meant. At the time she was raising Lefa alone. The stress of having to deal with a delinquent son was unbearable
LEFA MOM
Lefas dad had money. He had two minibuses, he had two cars and yet he couldnt afford to raise his own son. Whats worse is when he left and went to go live with another woman, a young girl.
Train passing at high speed
LEFA
This thing is metal. And only and metal can only bend metal. We are human and if we get run over we will die. I think we must stop this thing
LEFA MOM INT
the funny thing is when you speak to him he looks like he is listen and he will never do it again. And he even listens when I tell him to go to God and pray. He will come with me to church.
LEFA
I want to make my mother happy. Because my sisters always make my mother happy. That is what I would like to do. Make her happy and be able to bring something at home for her that is positive. I dont want her to die one day and think Lefa never did anything good to me or for me. He was a criminal, and I am not a criminal. I would like her to walk in the streets with confidence and think that Lefa did me right and he is a son I am proud of. So I am going back to school, clean up my act. Since well you guys have come along and brought me some light and showed me which wrong steps I am taking in my life. All I want to ask of her is forgiveness that is all I can say.
LEFA MOM INT
I forgive you. As long as I know that you mean it because I love you my son. And I would like you to change and I hope the journalists here today will motivate you to be a better person. I think I will also be a better person and have a normal life. When I work I will fear no more and when I sleep at night I will have no fear. I will be free and get back to my original weight, as this is not what I look like physically. I love my son because he is my only one. I sometimes see other people kids on TV and their mothers throwing parties for the as they have graduated and they are in their academic gowns. I can do that for my other kids
Lefa going to school on the train: HHP song see
The day we attended school with Lefa we were surprised to see he didnt take any books along with him. It seems the principal was too
0 20 30 Principal: You are lying because every time I see you you are in the passages, or in the grade 12 class and I dont know what you are doing there because you are not a grade 12 student.
0 20 40 Lefa: sometimes its a free period sir
It seems much of the day is free periods at this school.
Day at school. Teacher walks in and wants to find out if there has been a teacher.
Teacher: what are you supposed to be studying?
Lefa: Accounting. And the class is empty some people didnt come to school.
Teacher: I am going to see if there are any test papers for you.
Lefa: Thank you sir,
Girl: Sir we are very busy here.
With nothing to keep Lefa at school, its back to Joubert Park
Guys playing pin ball hanging out . End sequence on Game OVER on pin ball machine
Train Surfers risk everything as Bitch Nigga and Sisco know only too well. They were out surfing one day the train pulled in to New Canada Station
Prince .
all of a sudden some young boy from nowhere climbed on top. He was wearing a gray trouser and black sweater. His school uniform so anyway he went on top and sisqo and myself were watching him. He then was facing us and the train was going the opposite direction. We were just watching him and I could see he was going to be hit by the cables. He was close to me and I was supposed to tell him that ey dude watch it. But I watched him and I just froze from shock as the cable killed him. I watched as it hit him and he fell down. And there was blood all over
MZEMBE
We were drinking at Nhlanzane and then my friend came and he told me that Lwazi is dead, he had fallen off at Khwezi. We walked back and found him lying there and there were lots of police.
The cops asked if we know him and we said yes. And then they said we must go and tell his parents. I went to his house and told his mom and she threw me out because she thought I was lying.
Funeral at Lwazi house
His parents hated me and said I taught him. He was surfing a while and they would hear rumours but I think they didnt believe the rumours until he died.
Guys in the bus going to the funeral
In true surfer-tradition, his friends decided to celebrate his young life by surfing the busses to his funeral
Bus surfing sequence . Casket going down
MZEMBE SINGING
Life is tough
People are shooting each other
They kneel down and pray let them kill each other.
Lwazis death was a turning point for many of the train surfers.
LEFA
I was shocked when I heard about his death. 00 26 10 That is when I realized that this year about four guys have been electrocuted and this is an omen basically warning us to stop. Others are hurt, others are in hospital.
I am going to stop from now onwards. I am throwing in the towel and washing my hands off these hideous activities. I am stopping and I want to focus on my well-being and myself. If I will be a doctor or DRIVE A FANCY CAR.
Credits.
Over images of train surfing .
They call it train-surfing or the "Spiderman". Its highly illegal.. not to mention Life threatening, Yet daily Soweto teenagers dice with death as they seek the ultimate adrenalin rush.
During the recent security guard strike three boys were electrocuted while surfing. Many more have been injured. Despite this, train surfing has become a popular dare.
So who are these young rebels-without-a-cause? And why do they risk life and limb for this dangerous sport?
SAFM CLIP over visuals of bitch nigga on top of a train
BITCH NIGGA
I have also wanted to be a stuntman. I thought I can do this. So in 2000 there was a train strike, then I though let me do this. And then I got on top of the train and you know mos there was a lot of girls around
In recent years trains in Soweto have increasingly been left unguarded vulnerable to violence and vandalism. So many more boys have taken to surfing with nothing but the limits of their courage to stop them.
Sequence of him and Lefa and the Sisqo in the train
Lefa: He is looking good
Other friend: Yeah he is going to work
Sisqo: I dont surf anymore
Prince: Liar, you know you are going to surf
Prince: You know the strike is on come lets go surf
BITCH NIGGA
Then all these little boys - who are too forward for their age - saw me and then they followed me and climbed on top of the train. They copied me.
They dont know what they are doing. They just go on top of the train without the knowledge.
Lefa doing the standing in front of the train stunt
LEFA
I am scared of death. I am scared because its the end of it. I have seen my friends dying in front of me. And that is why when sometimes when I am about to go train surfing, I change my mind. Because I am thinking that I could die at any time. But then sometimes evil possesses me and I just do it.
Slovas (2 sec and 23 frames after where Lefa goes off picture) song Skebengu Fade it in
LEFA
I am the only boy in the house. My sisters are educated they completed their matrics I dont want to do this you understand. I want to be successful and have a life and why am I busy train surfing?
I want to live a nice life. I sometimes see the guys from my neighbourhood all dressed up and I also want to be like that - or maybe an old man with a nice car - I want to reach that stage.
BITCH NIGGA
When I am sitting down I dont feel so good, I feel stupid. I am so used to surfing - I cant not do it.
I start with a warm up. Thats when I run next to the train and then just before we get to the end of the platform I jump inside the train. Then I get on top and do the viva la rasa. Like I said I love entertaining even though I know my form of entertainment is wrong.
Freeze frame PRINCE AKA BITCH NIGGA
Bitch nigga running along train then jumping in
Prince got the name Bitch Nigga from songs by American rap stars 50 cents and Tupac.
BITCH NIGGA
So one day we are listening to the songs and the next thing I hear is bitch niggaz bitch niggaz, I loved the name and by the way then I was hot property and famous with the girls.
BITCH NIGGA
In the train no one knew me and I had to show myself to the people. So I decided to always dress in black. Like the matrix: black boots, black leather coat The matrix was very hot at that time.
It ended up being like a spectacle where everyone would wait for me to see what I would do next All the school kids would bunk school just to see me surfing. They knew Id be coming without fail.
BITCH NIGGA
I also looked extra ordinary because I had piercing all over my face. The girls went crazy every time I would appear they would think : that guy!!! .. and that was what really excited me
Lefa and Bitch nigga walking through the streets
BITCH NIGGA
Hey Sweety, You look like Tamia. Shake that ass.
BITCH NIGGA
I used to be a terror in this part of town, I would go in that door. Then exit that side and I would have like 4 to 6 cellphones with me.
BITCH NIGGA
Lefa is my student. I taught him how to surf. Lefa likes taking risks just like me. I saw him surf once and then I thought this guy is a master at this. Because he didnt fall like all the other guys. So I said to Lefa you know what I give you a gold medal. Then I gave Innocent a silver medal and of course I get the platinum.
LEFA Freeze frame - train wipe
LEFA
I met Bitch Nigger, Sisqo, Mmrider and Bin Laden, they were already surfing. So as I saw them do it I thought let me join them and learn how to staff ride. I was still living in Orange farm. And when my family gave me money for a taxi I would take the train
So every Friday I would bunk school and meet them in town. We would drink a lot of booze, the first time I actually went on top of the train was a Thursday. It was train number 28,
Lefa first met Mzembe on that same train. They were caught up in the middle of a robbery
LEFA
Then two big guys came and robbed us and I didnt show them my money though, so the robbed Mzembe and his buddies. After they were gone, I showed him my money and we bought booze and introduced ourselves. I told them that I am Lefa from Naledi and Mzembe told us his name and that he is from Mzimhlophe. Then Juju and Thabo introduced themselves. We hung out and drank a lot that day. And then we boarded the train and Mzembe kept going on top of it and surfing. And then when we got to town I told them that I am going to school. By then he was still attending school at Coronation
MZEMBE SURFING Freeze frame
Like many of the train surfers, Mzembe grew up in a house with no father. His father killed himself with a hand grenade .
Friend: My dad is crap, I dont know where he lives. I know him but I hardly see him. Dads are just shit.
Mzembe: Dads are shit vele.
Friend: At least our moms buy us clothes. I prefer my mom and its a good thing because I dont get along with my dad.
Friend: Maybe your dad was a drunk ne?
Mzembe: no apparently he didnt even drink a sip He was MK!
Friend: We must drink a couple of beers before we go take a bath
Mzembe: Sure
Friend: you must ask your mom for money
Mzembe: Yes lets go inside so we can at least drink four before ..
Friend: Sure
Mzembes mother raises him along with her two other children. Her sister died last year so she now also raises her sisters two children
Mzembe: Can I get money to go to town?
Mum: What are you going to do I town?
Mzembe: watch Movies.
Mum: How much are the movies?
Mzembe: R10
Mm: You are lying because I know that you are going straight to the liquior store.
Mzmebe: No, we are going to watch movies.
Straight after that it was off to the Juke Box.
Mzembe playing pool
MZEMBE
I love booze, I drink everyday
I always surf when I am drunk
LEFA
Mzembe would drink and then his friends will then pressure him to surf and he does it because of the liquor
MZEMBE MOM
He drinks a lot and I took him to SANCA for the booze. He is sometimes so drunk that I think they might have spiked his booze. I dont understand him anymore.
Innocent train skating boys surfing Freeze frame STYLES
Train number 23 is one of the most popular targets. Every morning it is packed to capacity as it winds its way from Dube and Khwezi to New Canada. This gives the surfers who ride it the cover they seek. Overstretched security guards are much too busy keeping order to worry about their daredevil antics.
LEFA
No one taught me how to duck cables. I came up with the style, it was one evening and I was really drunk from vodka So I was on top of the train surfing and then I thought okay let me jump and duck the cable and kept going.
Train surfing is highly dangerous. 3000 Volts of electricity run through the overhead cables. The slightest contact with them and its tickets .
Footage of Bitch nigga looking for Lefa under the train
There are many different ways to Surf a train
Footage of riding under the train .
LEFA
Riding under the train I learned from bitch nigger. It was just the two of us riding in the train. It was 2003, he took me and showed me how to go under the train and which metal rods I grab and hold on to, so that I can get through to the opposite side of the coach.
LEFA
Its rough under the train, the steel metal thingies is all over the place. And it gets confusing because you dont know which one to hold on to and which one to let go off.
I get scared under the train because my head goes very close to the wheel and if I loose my grip and fall Im going to be crushed by the wheel.
We asked Bitch Nigga what he would do if Lefa died?
BITCH NIGGA
There is nothing I can do because a dead man is a dead man, I cant change his situation. Maybe Ill go to his funeral maybe not but I wont loose sleep over it.
Each surfer has his own favourite style
LEFA
The one style I love is when I am facing the opposite direction that the train is moving in, ducking cables without looking at them.
This style has become known as Begos. You ride the train backwards so you cant see whats ahead. The rider better know exactly when the cables and bridges are coming up otherwise its wipe-out
LEFA
I know where they are because I calculated how many meters each cable is so its easy for me to know when to duck.
Bitch Niggas favourite style is Viva la Rasa. He copied this move from Eddie Correra the late wrestler
BITCH NIGGA
See the cable, it has to be passing here right by my face
AYANDA and LEFA
00 28 20 I wont lie, a young boy from the township would never pull it off. They would get hurt. I do it everyday. I dont do it once a week and I do it almost daily. I also do it too much. I sometimes take the train on my own and think which style can I come up with now. 00 28 44 Its in our blood. Its like sleeping and waking up.
CABLE FREEZE FRAME
In the world of train surfers Lefa is famous for his ability to touch the silver cables. They call him Gatjeni meaning Captain
AYANDA AND LEFA
That cable - the black one - it burns them and sometimes it burns them so bad that they go to Baragwanath Hospital. The silver one I can touch. They call me gatjeni they think I use muti
Impressing girls is a big part of why these boys surf
Lefa and girls drinking at home.
LEFA
I dont have a girlfriend in the train. But what I do is to make sure that by the end of the day one of the girls will come to me and say Lefa you are the man.
They go into the station through gate
For the boys, the daily routine is usually a combination of drinking and surfing
LEFA
I take the 9373 in the second coach where the guys smoke weed, drink beers and play dice. Then I get off at Khwezi station and wait for the 05 which I sit 3rd coach from the back. Then we surf the train with my friends Bitch Nigga, Mzembe, innocent, Jovis and them.
Then after that we discuss how we are going to bunk school and whether we are having a house party later or drinks in town. And then we take a train to randfontein and then we surf and then we get off and drink sum more and then eventually we walk to Joubert where we will just be buying booze along the way in liquor stores.
Lefa and Bitch outside Juke box.
BN: there are a lot of chicks down there, lets go and get them.
Lefa: No I have to go to
BM: Its so nice at the juke box, girls, smokes, beers lets go.
Lefa: I have to go to the toilet.
BN: they are not going to let you in at the jukebox in your uniform
Lefa: Im not wearing a school uniform
BN: they are going to see your tie.
Hanging out at pool club
Back in the salon BN opens his brief case:
Surfing isnt the only thing he does Bitch Nigga is also studying .
Salon Sequence
BITCH NIGGA MOM
He would cry and say mama please at least let me go and study hair because he didnt want to stay home and be bored. And then I told him that I will make a plan for you to be able go and study at the Beauty Palace. Which is where I paid the fees and he started studying. Still to date he studies there.
In Soweto there are currently two types of train surfers. The Cheeseboys and the Mvonqas. Cheeseboys surf for the thrill of it they are the soul surfers of this sport. The Mvonqas surf in order to rob people.
BITCH NIGGA
We were rough, we would steal girls school bags, karrimors they are about R250 at the shops. We would take their phones and the thing was that if the security saw us and tried to chase us we would go on top of the train. And they wont get me there
BITCH NIGGA MOM
Bitch nigga once got arrested for stealing a bag - I dont remember the story about the bag and then a cellphone. I was unable to help.
BITCH NIGGA
I thought I should draw it as a reminder for me so that I dont have to go back. SO I drew this picture so that I can remind myself even when I am out that this place is bad nigger
After his arrest Bitch Nigga decided to wash away his criminal past
BITCH NIGGA
04 16 59, This is my care wash. When I am not busy at school on weekends I come here with the guys to keep busy and then wash cars. My dream is to open a salon here in this container.
Lefa and Nhlanhla meeting after school and crossing the street.
Lefa is only 15 years old. He lives with his sister. When he isnt out surfing hes with his girlfriend.
LEFA
My girlfriend is Nhlanhla from Protea. Its one person I have been with for almost two years now. She loves me a lot. She is the one person who is always saying I must stop. I mustnt try and please friends and other girls. She tells me honestly that if I loose my feet then she is not interested. Because what is she going to do with a man who has no legs.
She is the love of my life
NLANHHLA
01 51 28 Lefa didnt come to me. He was the type of person who would buy me things like popcorn, toast during lunch. It grew and I started hanging out with him.
shots of Nhlanhla and Lefa walking through Lenasia.
I think he always dreams about trains. Or maybe he is with another girl.
NLANHHLA
02 03 59 I do love lefa
02 21 02 I know I love him because even though he beats me I still love him. I mean my friends always tell me to leave him but I can.
LEFA
00 22 07 Staff riding can kill you. I always imagine what I would do if my girlfriend told me that she is leaving me because I dont have legs anymore.
AYANDA
I want to stop. We all want to stop but once you get hooked you cant stop and you can only stop if you die or find a job. I mean going back to the township and chilling sucks. And you need something to take you out, rehabilitate you.
NLANHHLA
02 05 15Lefa told me that his father was abusive and hitting his mom all the time and I think he is adopting his fathers character. And he is proud of his father. I always ask him how you can be proud of someone who doesnt clothe you or live with you or give you food.
Lefa and Nhlanhla walking in the street.
More than a year ago Lefa had his closest call. He was doing viva la Rasa on top of the train... Facing backwards. He turned - but it was too late. The cable hit him. He fell on the gravel.
LEFA
I couldnt walk and I was pissing into a pipe that goes to a plastic container I thought I would never walk. I was dizzy I thought I would never be able to walk again. And this ear is malfunctioning because sometimes I hear with it and sometimes it gets blocked. I was scared. Wake up Saturday Im in a drip, and I asked myself what is going on.
NLANHHLA
02 15 38 My heart was sore, because I was praying that dear lord please dont take him away he is the only one I have. I was in emotional pain. I saw him lying there and his ear was bad and I thought he might have brain damage.
Lefa didnt have brain damage but he was severely injured. His recovery was slow and painful. He stopped surfing. For a while he even stopped taking the train at all until he got worried about who would protect Nhlanhla if he wasnt there.
LEFA
My friends used to use the train, my friends used the train as transport and I know it gets hectic. So I was scared my girlfriend was going to be harassed by all these goons in the train so I had to take the train.
Mom at catering job chopping parsley
Lefas mom knew nothing about her sons surfing till she heard neighbours in the street gossiping. She was surprised that they called her Spidermans mom. It was only later that she realised what this meant. At the time she was raising Lefa alone. The stress of having to deal with a delinquent son was unbearable
LEFA MOM
Lefas dad had money. He had two minibuses, he had two cars and yet he couldnt afford to raise his own son. Whats worse is when he left and went to go live with another woman, a young girl.
Train passing at high speed
LEFA
This thing is metal. And only and metal can only bend metal. We are human and if we get run over we will die. I think we must stop this thing
LEFA MOM INT
the funny thing is when you speak to him he looks like he is listen and he will never do it again. And he even listens when I tell him to go to God and pray. He will come with me to church.
LEFA
I want to make my mother happy. Because my sisters always make my mother happy. That is what I would like to do. Make her happy and be able to bring something at home for her that is positive. I dont want her to die one day and think Lefa never did anything good to me or for me. He was a criminal, and I am not a criminal. I would like her to walk in the streets with confidence and think that Lefa did me right and he is a son I am proud of. So I am going back to school, clean up my act. Since well you guys have come along and brought me some light and showed me which wrong steps I am taking in my life. All I want to ask of her is forgiveness that is all I can say.
LEFA MOM INT
I forgive you. As long as I know that you mean it because I love you my son. And I would like you to change and I hope the journalists here today will motivate you to be a better person. I think I will also be a better person and have a normal life. When I work I will fear no more and when I sleep at night I will have no fear. I will be free and get back to my original weight, as this is not what I look like physically. I love my son because he is my only one. I sometimes see other people kids on TV and their mothers throwing parties for the as they have graduated and they are in their academic gowns. I can do that for my other kids
Lefa going to school on the train: HHP song see
The day we attended school with Lefa we were surprised to see he didnt take any books along with him. It seems the principal was too
0 20 30 Principal: You are lying because every time I see you you are in the passages, or in the grade 12 class and I dont know what you are doing there because you are not a grade 12 student.
0 20 40 Lefa: sometimes its a free period sir
It seems much of the day is free periods at this school.
Day at school. Teacher walks in and wants to find out if there has been a teacher.
Teacher: what are you supposed to be studying?
Lefa: Accounting. And the class is empty some people didnt come to school.
Teacher: I am going to see if there are any test papers for you.
Lefa: Thank you sir,
Girl: Sir we are very busy here.
With nothing to keep Lefa at school, its back to Joubert Park
Guys playing pin ball hanging out . End sequence on Game OVER on pin ball machine
Train Surfers risk everything as Bitch Nigga and Sisco know only too well. They were out surfing one day the train pulled in to New Canada Station
Prince .
all of a sudden some young boy from nowhere climbed on top. He was wearing a gray trouser and black sweater. His school uniform so anyway he went on top and sisqo and myself were watching him. He then was facing us and the train was going the opposite direction. We were just watching him and I could see he was going to be hit by the cables. He was close to me and I was supposed to tell him that ey dude watch it. But I watched him and I just froze from shock as the cable killed him. I watched as it hit him and he fell down. And there was blood all over
MZEMBE
We were drinking at Nhlanzane and then my friend came and he told me that Lwazi is dead, he had fallen off at Khwezi. We walked back and found him lying there and there were lots of police.
The cops asked if we know him and we said yes. And then they said we must go and tell his parents. I went to his house and told his mom and she threw me out because she thought I was lying.
Funeral at Lwazi house
His parents hated me and said I taught him. He was surfing a while and they would hear rumours but I think they didnt believe the rumours until he died.
Guys in the bus going to the funeral
In true surfer-tradition, his friends decided to celebrate his young life by surfing the busses to his funeral
Bus surfing sequence . Casket going down
MZEMBE SINGING
Life is tough
People are shooting each other
They kneel down and pray let them kill each other.
Lwazis death was a turning point for many of the train surfers.
LEFA
I was shocked when I heard about his death. 00 26 10 That is when I realized that this year about four guys have been electrocuted and this is an omen basically warning us to stop. Others are hurt, others are in hospital.
I am going to stop from now onwards. I am throwing in the towel and washing my hands off these hideous activities. I am stopping and I want to focus on my well-being and myself. If I will be a doctor or DRIVE A FANCY CAR.
Credits.