I first noticed ribbon rail several years back when they were replacing old track on a line between going into Lafayette, IN. I was watching a system similar to that video, and they were just driving along letting it droop off the back of the train like that. That's when I realized just how flexible that stuff is.
Also, about 20 years ago, they came through on the lines near our house and removed all of the plates between the sections of rails and welded them all together. That was a neat project to watch. The noises, grinding, sparks, and lights from the welding, all at night, was pretty cool.
But, alas, no more clickety-clack sounds from trains with continuous track.
The last train that had that sound here was the South Shore interurban that goes to Chicago. On damp, cool nights, you'd hear the train horn in the distance, then see the light coming down the track, then hear the clickety-clack of the wheels going over the joints, and you'd see the electric arc flashes as the pantograph bounced on the cantenary wires. Pretty cool, as the train was usually going 70mph. Big blue-green flashes, more visible as it was passing and going away than when it was coming towards you.
Here's a video of something similar on another part of the world...