Hitch hiking from Barcelona to Valencia

It took almost 12 hours to hitch a mere 3 hours south.
The people we got rides from were amazing people who rescued us from depressed roadside gas stations, but they just weren't going very far away.
Through this experience we learned that it is not only difficult to hitch in Spain, but that the 'friendliness' of this activity has become less popular as the economy has gotten worse. I suppose people think it is an opportunity to be robbed or taken advantage of.
No le da papaya, I suppose.