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A Vermont moms Facebook post reignited a fierce debate over how many 'chuggas' come before 'choo choo'

a crowd of children smile next to a life-size version of thomas the tank engine train
People can't decide how many "chuggas" you say before "choo choo." JIJI PRESS/AFP via Getty Images

  • One is definitely too few chuggas.
  • Eight seems like an exhausting number of chuggas.
  • How many "chuggas" do you say before "choo choo" when imitating a train? The internet can't decide.
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I insisted it was obviously two "chuggas."

But that sent the Insider Slack into a frenzy.

This Facebook post from a Vermont moms group reignited a long-running internet debate over how many "chuggas" come before "choo choo" when imitating a train.

Answers on the thread ranged from two to eight, with even numbers being far more common than odd ones.

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Some reasoned fewer than four chuggas was too few to get the train up to speed. And really milking those chugs would, in theory, keep a kid entertained for longer.  

Others argued that eight chuggas was simply too exhausting — maniacal even. 

An Insider editor's nearly-2-year-old, whose fabulous nickname is "news baby," settled the debate: given the option between a prolonged chug and a shorter ride, she responded in the affirmative to just two chuggas.

How many chuggas does it take to get to the choo choo? The world may never know.

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