Okay... so I've been averaging about 100K a year at work. In that time, I've picked up a few tips and tricks I'll share with ya'll.


1. KEEP AWAKE:

It's all about keeping your mind in action. It's easy to do when you're fresh, but after awhile, you can become lulled by the road. This is especially easy when you're tired due to any number of factors. Here's a few things I tend to do when I notice my mind is starting to doze...

A: I do my monthly budget in my head... if I've already done that, I'll try to calculate the distance and time from my current location to the next town. Math can be your friend on the road... I'm not going to say I'm a math whiz, but I will say it keeps the ol' noodle working...

B: Try to think about something you want to achieve, or something you feel would be fun. Making yourself happier on the road makes you more awake.

C: Don't try to listen to books-on-tape on the road unless you find the book VERY interesting. You want your mind awake and if the person reading the book is somewhat monotone, you're going to get tired.

D: If you start getting sleepy and you still have a ways to go, open a window. Some people get sleepy when they get cold, others get drowsy when they get hot. Use your best judgement and alter the temperature! Don't freeze yourself or you'll fatigue your muscles...

2. RADIO ADVICE:


Static-filled country is preferable to clear Nickelback. Still, static-filled anything else is preferable to country! (just kidding... I actually like some country music).

Still, Blue Oyster Cult's "Don't Fear the Reaper" should be cranked to the highest decibel level you can handle, regardless of sound quality...

3. Headphones as ear plugs?

I bought a set of headphones that plug directly into your ear with a little foam pad. These things work remarkably well, and have saved me a bunch of battery life as I don't have to turn them up very far to hear my MP3 player.

From my last medical exam, they're telling me my hearing is degrading heavily on one side due to the wind-noise the screams through my van (they've replaced the door seals three times, I guess GMC's seals just kind of suck)... so I've taken to plugging these in, even if I'm not listening to music. Sometimes, silence is indeed golden!

4. Stopping?

I've done a lot of straight-through driving. I've driven through conditions I probably was a complete and total dumb-ass to go through. Still, I've hit that magic number where I've pulled off and just let my arms stop shaking from exhaustion. Get out and walk around, take a jog if you need to. The body was never meant to sit and concentrate for that long, so once you hit the point where it looks like the road is floating up at you, you're seeing things that aren't there darting out and you feel like someone has worked you over... take a quick break.

If you fall asleep in your car, try to make sure you're in a safe place. If it's snowing, make sure if you leave the car running you're not going to have the tail pipe get snowed over and kill yourself by accident...

5. Know thy conditions:

Tune into the radio if you're seeing something nasty on the horizon. It can tell you if the way up ahead is going to be an option or not. They closed just about every highway in Montana last week due to hard-core blowing snow and they're blasting a ridge tomorrow that is going to close a major pass for a few hours. Knowing these kinds of things can save you a great deal of stress as if you need to pull over, you might still be able to find a hotel instead of "roughing it" in the car...

6. Know thy vehicle:

Does everything check out? If you're heading into snow country, do you have snow tires? Do you have a coat and a survival kit if you get stuck? Do you know where you're going? Did you flush your radiator before trying to cross the desert? Every climate has it's own little survival tricks... talk to a mechanic before heading out. Did you put away a few extra bucks for emergencies?

7. Slay Boredom!

Avoid this article... No, WAIT! I mean, keep yourself occupied. Change your music out, sing with the radio (unless you're going to get death threats from passengers), talk to yourself, and anything else you can do to not let yourself get bored.

8. Get gas!

Stopping for gas should be dual purpose...

A: Refuel the vehicle

B: Refuel the driver! Gas stations allow you to do shop for all sorts of caffeine and sugar-laden goodness. Make sure you buy a bottle of water to compensate for the caffeine... realize that it will make you have to "stop" more often, but if you're tired, it's either hit the rest stops or stop for the night.

Also: Make sure you keep food on hand in the car. There are a lot of places in the world where gasoline and snacks aren't always a block or two away. I've rolled through Death Valley on fumes, I've had to make emergency stops at stations in towns I never planned to have to find, and I've stayed the night in towns with no services after dark (this means if you're hungry, too freakin' bad). Plan ahead and you'll be a happier person... never expect service ahead if you don't know the area.

9. See the light at the end of the tunnel:

It's easy to get cranky and miserable driving long distance. Still, by thinking about how many miles you've gone versus what you have left (if you're making good time) can help you think about it more positively... don't let it stress you, but every mile is one less you have to drive...


10. Play a game:

I've had friends who play games that require two people (like the burned-out headlight spotting game, or the I'm seeing something that begins with...), but if you have a passenger, I usually end up playing an alphabetical game, usually starting with song titles, or artists.

It would kind of work like this. Starting with song artists:

You: Animals
Passenger 1: Bad Company
Passenger 2: Chopin
Passenger 3: DJ Redlight
You: ELO (which you've horribly dated yourself if you know this one).

Adjust to how many passengers you have.

If you happen to be by yourself, you can play this one, but it can get old quick with no other input. Still, try to keep your mind focused on finding things on the highway. You can go "A"... "Asphault", B "This is BULLS***, why aren't I there yet!", C... "CAN'T THIS POS GO ANY FASTER!"... of course, you'd have to be tired, pissy, and me... (This game is best played without passenger!)


Basically, the trick to long distance driving is to keep your body in decent enough shape to be able to be proactive in spotting threats and be reactive if that fails. Concentration can be built through practice, but all in all, you need to keep yourself mentally alert. Do whatever you can to keep your mind of the road, even if part of it is planning your next build, figuring out what to bring on your next vacation, or where the hell that odor is coming from.

The Truckers I know Lift weights to stay awake.

A few quick curls with each arm while driving.

Don't bash it, it gets your blood flowing, but not as much as an illegal deeed.

Some tunage on the radio, a cup of coffee at my side, some sunflower seeds, a pack of smokes, and a rest break whenever the car is thirsty. I could drive from NY to LA like that and enjoy each and every mile. I love to drive and find that I can occupy myself enough with watching the scenery or quoting the poem Beowulf long after any passengers have gone beyond the breaking point. Being a trucker was an occupation that was near the top of my list when I retired from the military, it is still an option that Das Frau and I discuss for when the kids are gone.

We drive 1800 miles each way twice a year in between 22-30 hours depending on the conditions, it's all gas and go and you better be back from the bathroom by the time my gas tank is full or you'll be stuck in places like Elko or Green River.
We drive so are dogs don't have to fly but I find it best staying hungry and eating clean foods keeps me alert/.
Last trip in November I only ate chicken breasts that we baked and water. Of course plenty of diet cokes and coffee but I find as soon as you leave California the coffee EVERYWHERE is REALLY weak compared to what we are used to so it doesn't do much good.
One trip we stopped only at Wendy's and OMFG did I feel like crap by the time I pulled into Omaha.

P.S. BA when am I going to read a "Giving up the smokes " thread!?!?!?!?!?!

Quote: Originally Posted by NoSlak P.S. BA when am I going to read a "Giving up the smokes " thread!?!?!?!?!?!

Real soon bro, real soon.

Speed keeps me awake. 85-90mph, yeah I know it's stupid but I know where I can do it and when. I rarely ever drive drowsy but when I start to feeling that way I just carve up some backroads and I'm good for a couple hours.

Speed makes the brain have to focus on the road instead of trodding along at the same mindless dull speed everyone else is going. It also makes you pay attention to whats going on, who is doing what and of course, to watch for police.

Now I'm not saying 85 or 90 through a city street or a crowded highway, there's a time and a place for everything and there aren't too many of both for that kind of stuff at 2am. It depends on the route too.

Quote: Originally Posted by j-dogg Speed keeps me awake. 85-90mph, yeah I know it's stupid but I know where I can do it and when. I rarely ever drive drowsy but when I start to feeling that way I just carve up some backroads and I'm good for a couple hours. Speed makes the brain have to focus on the road instead of trodding along at the same mindless dull speed everyone else is going. It also makes you pay attention to whats going on, who is doing what and of course, to watch for police. Now I'm not saying 85 or 90 through a city street or a crowded highway, there's a time and a place for everything and there aren't too many of both for that kind of stuff at 2am. It depends on the route too.

Dogg, I used to be able to do that... After you get so many miles behind you, it just feels like someone took a tire iron to your body. Hell, I just got back from a 300 mile run and I feel fine... no big deal. Hell, I got back at 7:00PM, did my homework for three hours and now I'm going out in a few minutes to go do my grocery shopping and take movie rental back. 500 is more interesting... 800 to 900 is where you start to hit tired and hurting, anything over 1,000 is iron-man time. It doesn't help I'm always operating from exhaustion (I wake up tired and ready to go to bed, I push myself through my day... too much work. I always come back from vacation feeling like I've dropped ten years off my shoulders but it only takes a week to push me back into the shape I'm in now), but all in all, even a healthy person can feel the effects after enough time and milage. I used to take most trips at about 100 miles an hour. I made it 135 miles in under an hour (got into a race with a BMW) and I had fun there... but after six encounters with the law (two tickets, two expired tags, and two warnings and others that didn't yield a ticket, but gave me long thoughts of losing my license), I usually keep it to 5 to 10 within the limit.

Don't get me wrong... a visit by "the man" gives you a wonderous amount of nervous energy the first few times... then it's "Yeah, thanks officer... bang up job on spotting my expired tags there... nice to know my tax dollars are protecting me from myself and the dangers of expired license plates! Considering I really don't have plans to stay in the state that much longer, I thought I might just replace the plates after I move, but I now realize I'm a criminal who deserves to be punished! Oh wait, I think I might do a couple miles over the speed limit! Help, I may actually arrive early to my destination!!! This must not be!" (I would never say this to a cop as I don't see a point besides pissing them off, but I sure as hell can think it!)

Just throwing this out there, but wearing headphones or ear plugs while driving is illegal (atleast in Ohio) and not very safe.

Quote: Originally Posted by Spectrum Just throwing this out there, but wearing headphones or ear plugs while driving is illegal (atleast in Ohio) and not very safe.

It's usually recommended on motorcycles to prevent hearing loss. Also, how many people crank their stereo to where they can't hear anything anyway?

I will admit though... most of my mileage is highway. In town, I listen to the radio, as I don't need to bother with headphones and everything. Of course, if I had a CD player in my van, it would help, but it's a company vehicle with a factory radio (that doesn't work overly well).

When I drove my last 5 hour trip, all highway, I picked up snacks (peanut M&M's+sprite). Ate my dinner before the start, and off I went. 260Miles in just under 5 hours.

Caffeine free too, and the hours I was driving was 7-12 at night. I think headphones are illegal in PA too, but the earbuds are harder for most cops to see, and bluetooth headsets are used for phones all the time, as well as wired ones.