Naptime

[TJ959]

I used to keep a wet wash cloth in my cooler or hang it out the window in winter. Man that'll wake you up. Had the darn thing freeze to my window one night. I also don't eat much in the way of sweets so M&Ms one at a time will keep me awake real good. If that doesn't work I'm just too tired so I need a short nap.

 

[ATeam]

I think my problem is a
>boredom type situation rather than a physical thing.

Think back on your life to a moment of maximum personal satisfaction. In that moment, you'll find clues to the direction you should take, and perhaps a new way to engage the expediting business.

 

[Tennesseahawk]

Ateam... reminds me of the story of how a POW kept his sanity in a N.Korean prison camp. Locked in a small cell, he started building a house in his mind. Thought about nailing every nail. When he was interrupted, he started over. He was there five years. When he got out, he wrote a book. You guessed it... how to build a house.

 

[bryan]

HI
Take a power nap, get up, eat a bowl of cereal and drink a pint of ice cold milk as fast as I can.Get brain freeze, up for hours. Call dispatch that will piss u off so bad you'll never be able to sleep again. lol I've found they never call or QC me when I'm awake and rolling at 03:00 but by god just let me be booked out for sleep.Just can't get back to sleep after that.

 

[elton10]

i read somewhere that "crunchy" food and mint smell and tastes aided in keeping awake. I crunc mint life savers or sometimes the small carrot sticks.. less sugar

 

[Fr8 Shaker]

ROCK & ROLL and CRANK it up !!!
Remember if it's too loud your too old...lol

Also I remember a time when I posted on here saying I drive fast and don't like slow drivers in the left lane... And you posted back saying i was aggressive, thats when I said I do that to gain time on my run so that I can grab a meal, take a shower or a (NAP). which by the way if you do have time to stop and take a shower, that's a good way to also get refreshed.

Git-R-Done
and
Say NO to cheap freight.

 

[elton10]

Take the nap and coffee..it takes 30 mins for the caffeine to get into your system. Drink two cups and take the 20 min nap then get up...4 or so more hours should be no prob

A-Team: the hours you feel sleepy are the peak hours for falling asleep at the wheel(or very close to them) according the the National Sleep Foundation. Look through the articles archives. Theres a good item on driver alertness

 

[elton10]

ooops sorry that last item was to terryandrene not A team

 

[theoldprof]

Wow!!! Over 25 replies. Thanks everybody. As I said earlier I think my problem is probably due to boredom. A few nights ago the old eyeball lids started to droop. Keep in mind this post also ties in with the business plan. Don't get killed, don't get hurt, etc. When I started getting drownsy, I would read the instruments out loud. Not just glance, but read the oil pressure, volts, temp out loud. I then started the Gettysburg address out loud. Then I started singing. (horrible). Not knowing too many songs, I started singing our national anthem. Well, being of the old school, when I heard the national anthem, I started to stand. That is where I wrapped myself up in the seat belt, smashed my head into the roof of the van cab, damned near lost control of the van. THAT will sure wake a person up.

Thanks again. :+ :+

 

[guest]

More thoughts:

I believe I read somewhere that men are more prone than women to the phenomenon of "target fixation", which means that men are more apt to focus on one thing in their field of vision and it slows their reaction time to other things within their field of vision. With this in mind, the fellas should be especially cautious about the reflectors and mile markers hypnotizing you. Also, any time you see a tracer it is a VERY GOOD idea to stop for a short nap; even 5 to 10 minutes can do wonders.

Audio books are a wonderful resource for drivers. Believe it or not, Cracker Barrel has a great audio book rental program. Basically, $3.50 for a week rental and you can return it to any Cracker Barrel. The audio book I am listening to right now is 10 hours, so that's about 35 cents per hour, which is a great deal.

As I mentioned above, Red Bull is a good tool to stay awake.

This one is probably just for the men, but if you take your shirt off and drive topless this has a strangely invigorating effect. Some states require you to wear a shirt while driving (I'm serious), so check your local requirements. Before anyone says this is a stupid idea, I encourage you to try it first. There are times (usually late at night) when you will try about anything to stay on the road safely and as dumb as this one sounds it works.

I have found over many years that the slapping-yourself-in-the-face trick really does not work at all. The wet washcloth works, but only for very short periods.

I am always surprised at how much more alert I feel after even 10 or 20 minutes of sleep in a rest area.

 

[theoldprof]

I think I have found a solution. Not the only solution, but a very good one. Refer to reply #28. Not sure how reply 28 got lost in the shuffle.

Thanks. :+ :+