Sleep and Long Chases

[Steven Williams]

I use the golden arches as time for a coffee break. The coffee keeps me going but a second driver is the answer. I have gotten to the hallucination stage once, where I started seeing shapes rather than the road in front me and never again will I drive like that. I only drove like that as I was lured by a high risk in the wrong direction, I was flying out of Dallas the next day.

 

[scott r currens]

I do the same thing as Mike taking power naps on farm roads just off the interstate. I can't stand lights when I am trying to sleep so I avoid places with lights and traffic. Thirty minutes and I am good for another 2-hours. I also find that eating keeps me wide awake while I am driving at night. Unfortunately it keeps me fat too.

The scariest night-time driving I have ever done was after I worked a 10pm-3am shift at UPS in OKC. My normal drive back to my apartment in Norman was 30-minutes. At some point during the drive home on the night in question, I realized that I didn’t know where I was at. I was on I-35 south but nothing along the road was familiar. That was until I saw the exit sign for Pauls Valley. I had somehow driven 40-mile past Norman in an unconscious state. How on earth I did that and am alive to tell about it is a mystery to me. After that incident I am much more careful about those late night drives. On a side note, the fear of death had me wide awake on the drive back to Norman from Pauls Valley.

Blue LEDs can trick you into staying awake:
http://technology.newscientist.com/...leds-to-reset-tired-truckers-body-clocks.html

"Drivers could take 30-minute "light showers" in truck stops fitted with similar lights, or the lights could be fitted into truck cabs."

OK I get the 30-minute "light shower" idea but having lights in the vehicle sounds like a horrible idea. From my experience, having lights on in the vehicle makes my eyes work much harder to stay focused on the road. When I finally get my laptop closed and turn off all the lights in my vehicle I can see into the dark much better. I even tape a piece of paper over my high-beam dash light because that bugs me. Blue light in particular reduces your eyes ability to adjust to and to see in the dark. So blue light might keep you awake but good luck seeing that deer.

 

[Tim Samaras]

Guys:

To me, sleep deprivation is the biggest hazard we have out there as chasers.

Good thread.

My trick is to eat sunflower seeds. Works amazingly well.

As I age....I get less tolerant of driving all night, and most of the time..I just don't do it. I would rather go to bed early, and get up early.

Then again...another sure fix is having your chase partner with a case of horrible gas...then its the windows rolled down, and that muggy air blasting you...

Tim

 

[Dennis Sherrod]

Guys:

Then again...another sure fix is having your chase partner with a case of horrible gas...then its the windows rolled down, and that muggy air blasting you...

Tim

Thanks Tim for that engaging thought and idea. I think I will opt for the motel or roadside somewhere for rest as my main option compared to yours.

 

[Shane Adams]

I did 21 straight hours on June 13, 2001. My partner that day had to be at work at 8am the next morning, so I agreed to drive the entire chase so he could sleep on the way back. That's probably my "greatest" Iron man performance behind the wheel on a chase.

My late night trick is truck stop crude oil coffee. Not so much the caffeine as just getting past the taste of it that keeps me awake. Other long-time favorites include singing random lyrics from the hip, in showtune style. That usually works for a few miles anyway. I also play air drums on the steering wheel, although when that starts I know I'm to the point where I'm gonna have trouble keeping my eyes open regardless. In extreme cases, I'll even slap myself in the face a few times. Sounds "crazy' but it works...pain is quite the alarm clock.

 

[Tony Laubach]

I've had my share of crazy chases... May 15, 2003, my first HIGH RISK chase where I was up for 22.5 hours straight, most of that driving. I was by myself on that day and remember the excitement of chasing down my first tornado in years kept me going most of the way home. The 4 hours of sleep that bookended that chase was surrounded by a closing shift the night before, and a 12 hour opening shift the morning after.

Did another lengthy chase back on June 1 with Roger Hill and his company where I ran around for almost 23 hours straight... I think I cheated a brief nap in there somewhere, though.

Even this year, I've caught midnight flights and slept two hours on the plane before roaming the southeast this year. Did that twice where I caught a flight after working the entire day and going straight to the airport from work and going straight back to work from the airport.

I don't want to use the saying "as I age", but the thoughts of those 20+ hour marathon drives aren't on my top list of things to do. Back in my early years where work wasn't as flexible and money for hotels wasn't there, it was the best way to get out and back. Now, I just assume shave off a few hours the night before if I have a long way to go to get where I need to be.

Keeping myself awake mixes bad music, stopping every so often at gas station, Gatorade, and cell phone. I find I use most of my monthly minutes catching up with Ohio buds as I drive across the Plains. That's the best way for me to stay awake and pass the time... just talk to someone. Sometimes that's even myself! And man do I have some good conversations with myself!

I've found I'm a bit more concerned anymore with losing my reaction time in the event someone or something jumps in the road in front of me. I get quick reality checks when I see tumbleweed fly in front of the vehicle and I end up hitting it, knowing if it were a deer or another car, I would've done the same cause I was too tired to move. It obviously startles and gets my attention, but its that split second I lose that will get me. I just don't like doing it anymore. The bragging rights were fun for a while, but I'll wimp out for the snooze more times than not anymore.

Partners help not only for passing time (and passing gas), but splitting the driving. I think Tim, Verne, Jon V, and myself did this back in April where we marathoned back through a ground blizzard in eastern Colorado only to get home around 4am. Two vehicles with multiple folks made the drive a bit more bearable, although I don't recall ever sleeping. Again, the excitement of the day's events combined with driving in interstate ruts helped shave the tired issue.

 

[Bill Tabor]

I've tried that face slapping approach. It's an option. Doesn't usually keep me awake too long though.

 

[JF Massicotte]

Once told my partner to slap me in the face. And I can tell you that hurts much more but I didn't find it to be more effective.


On Feb 5t when coming back from Memphis to Montreal in Canada we found out that I-40 East of Nashville is one of the worst highway for a drive at night. Finally decided we would sleep at Knoxville and boy the last miles appeared to be so long.


In 2003 I had a crash while in such a state. I was singing a song to eep me awake. It worked it kept me awake... But I couln't sing AND drive so I hit a protection wall near a bridge. I was lucky, a few feet before it was straight into the side of the bridge, a few feet later it was rollover in the tall grass.

Some minor damage to the car, I could get home without even having to stop.

On a side note, the fear of death had me wide awake on the drive back to Norman from Pauls Valley.

Yup, exactly how I felt after the accident.

 

[Dave Gallaher]

I-40 East of Nashville is one of the worst highway for a drive at night.

It is bad, but unless they've fixed it, I-40 west of Little Rock is some of the worst interstate I've ever driven. The uneven pavement slabs keep a boogie woogie rhythm slamming the vehicle. Much as I love boogie woogie, I prefer it from a piano.

I made the drive from Amarillo to Huntsville, AL in one 21-hour stretch after my last chase there in 2001. Other than west Arkansas (and getting stopped by the drug cops outside Amarillo) it was fairly effortless even at my advanced age. I was in a rental car, which may have helped.

Eating Fritos one at a time is my stay-awake nourishment, along with coffee with honey in it used to chase a Goody's powder.

 

[jeremy wilson]

I drive a semi-truck for a living and there are very strict laws set in place by DOT that are put in place so we truck drivers get enough sleep so we aren't plowing into cars from lack of sleep. We often get checked at state scales to see if we are following these rules.

After we have driven for eleven hours we gotta shut down for ten. Through "experimental" circumpstances I have exceeded these eleven hours and regreted it every time(on chases also many times before I became a truck driver).

I just got back from West Virginia tonight and am beat to hell,so to make a long rant short, driving more than eleven hours in a 20 hour period is stupid!
I know, I have driven more than most of you will in a lifetime, and driving excessive hours without sleep is the same or worse than driving drunk! Do some research and look at traffic fatalities related to sleepy drivers.

I'm not trying to be a butthole but its something that needs to be said. If you know your to sleepy to be driving, pull over and get some rest.

And if your seeing things from lack of sleep and still driving, You need to be punched.

 

[davecarlsen]

Wow, I'm frankly a little shocked that some of the posters here have driven in such sleepy states.

I was on a chase in 2004 where I got up at 9 or 10 AM, was on the road by noon, and finished chasing by 10 PM. It was about 5 hours back to home, so I thought, what the heck, I'll grab an extra large coffee and be home by 3 AM. Well, one hour on the road (in heavy rain and constant lightning--talk about difficult on your eyes!) and I was beat. Coffee did nothing. I pulled into the next town, parked in front of a house and laid my head down. I was out within about 10 seconds and woke up 5 hours later (!!!) really refreshed. I drove back home, all safe.

I would recommend that if you get to the state where you have to slap yourself or blast loud music or such things, it may be time for a nap. Pull over or get a room for the night.

{/soap box}

 

[Ryan Shepard]

For those of you who couldnt see the video heres another one.. I've seen some weird stuff while tired. I once hallucinated a tree in the middle of the road, and also a shark trying to attack me at my driver side window lol.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnYu9X6b0XE

 

[Joel Wright]

I'm sure many of you have seen this one. Here's a vid of a guy falling asleep and crashing...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JY_2ZiyfLhg

 

[Adam Lucio]

Eating Fritos one at a time is my stay-awake nourishment, along with coffee with honey in it used to chase a Goody's powder.

Yes, along with my sour gummy worms and Mt Dew I always have a bag of chili cheese fritos on hand...BTW if you or someone knows a cure for chili cheese frito breath let me know, no amount of gum or drink it seems can cure it right away.

I agree that I-40 is a horrible E-way for driving on. On my way back from Memphis on 2-5 I did the 30min power nap....drive for 2hrs routine, that does indeed work well. I eventually stopped at a hotel because my ETA back home was 530am, and I start work at 7...I knew I wouldnt survive the day at work so I just called off and got a nice nights rest at the hotel.

My longest stay-awake-a-thon was for 6-6-07...left Chicago around 10pm, did all the driving and didnt sleep till we stopped in Sioux City the next night around 11pm.

Adrenaline works well when the storms are going too.

 

[John Bowles]

I do the same thing as Mike taking power naps on farm roads just off the interstate. I can't stand lights when I am trying to sleep so I avoid places with lights and traffic. Thirty minutes and I am good for another 2-hours. I also find that eating keeps me wide awake while I am driving at night. Unfortunately it keeps me fat too.

The scariest night-time driving I have ever done was after I worked a 10pm-3am shift at UPS in OKC. My normal drive back to my apartment in Norman was 30-minutes. At some point during the drive home on the night in question, I realized that I didn’t know where I was at. I was on I-35 south but nothing along the road was familiar. That was until I saw the exit sign for Pauls Valley. I had somehow driven 40-mile past Norman in an unconscious state. How on earth I did that and am alive to tell about it is a mystery to me. After that incident I am much more careful about those late night drives. On a side note, the fear of death had me wide awake on the drive back to Norman from Pauls Valley.

You probably weren't unconscious.

You can slip into sort of an automatic driving mode after a while. It seems to be easiest on familiar roads, but can happen on long stretches of highway and such too. You're aware and driving, but other parts of your brain seem to go to sleep or are busy concentrating on other things - a daydream of sorts. Its very easy to drive right past your destination when this happens, and you'll usually have no memory of the drive when you snap out of it.

Its called highway hypnosis. Was a real problem on the early interstates. They were based on the autobahn, but while it was designed to be pretty, our roads were designed for utility. The autobahn has lots of long curves where early American roads would have gone straight.

The problem they found is long straight roads greatly increase the chances of slipping into this state, so they try often try to avoid building roads that are too straight now.

Sleep deprivation can also make it more likely to happen.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highway_hypnosis

You can still drive while like this, and you will respond to events around you, but you are less aware, and thus more likely to have an accident.

Trying to concentrate on driving rather than other things can help prevent it.