It's a Team's Life
Sleeping while the truck is moving.
How naïve could we be…. Both of us could sleep while the other person drove our pickup not a big deal. What we neglected to think about was hours of service (HOS) and that once in a truck we could not switch back as forth after short catnaps.
We figured out quickly, as in the first two loads that we had a problem… Neither of us could sleep very well or for what seemed like fifteen minutes straight. How could we get eight hours of sleep and be ready to drive our ten to eleven hour shifts? I was desperate and was thinking along the lines of bankruptcy and how to get rid of the truck. We were just not cut out for this lifestyle….
As luck would have it after a couple loads we landed in a dead area and had the weekend off. We both slept like logs and once we had enough sleep my brain kicked back in and started thinking of ways to sleep better while going down the road. Our first problem was the mattress and the fact we were trying to sleep while bouncing up in the air and on the way back down. Once our bodies hit the mattress we were awake again.
We went to a discount store and purchased a 2†memory foam mattress for the bed. This stopped all bouncing and took care of one of our problems. The next was the noise of trucks, cars, and motorcycles passing right by my head kept me awake. The cure for this was another trip to the store to purchase earplugs. I found that the earplugs that could be molded to my ear worked the best. This took care of another problem, road noise.
We both found that keeping the sleeper dark and as cool as possible helped us sleep. I needed to find ways to shut my brain down and relax so I could dose off. I found that if I sprayed my sheets with lavender sheet spray this would help and as a bonus I enjoyed the scent. I also would pick up a book that was rather dull and read.
I also learned to not stress, my body would get the sleep it needed and I was a lot stronger then I thought I was.
As time has gone on I have found I do not need earplugs and I use the lavender sheet spray because I enjoy the scent not because I am desperate. Some noises or movements of the truck still wake me, but I have found I go right back to sleep.
We learned when we were just starting this there were times when we needed to stop, get our rest and regroup. Nothing that we had done in our past could have prepared us for the shock of learning to sleep on rough roads, loud vehicles, going through scales, having to stop for the other to use the rest room, and the constant movement while in a traffic jam of stopping and starting.
For me I no longer worry about sleep, as I know it will come and I will be able to drive my shift. I look forward to driving and watching the sun come up on a new day.
Bob & Linda Caffee
Leased to: FedEx Custom Critical 

TeamCaffee

Saint Louis MO
Expediters 6 years been out here on the road 11 years
Expediting isn't just trucking, it's a lifestyle; 

Expediting isn't just a lifestyle, it's an adventure;

Expediting isn't just an adventure, it's a job;

Expediting isn't just a job, it's a business.