[Roadhog]

There are always plenty of 4-wheelers to play games with, kinda entertaining and releases a lot of stress.

[cdreid]

OP this is a STUPID thread and you have the WRONG idea about trucking and truckers. Yes we are tired a lot . Yes we push. The days of truckers doing drugs are gone. Period

5 hour energy will help you in that emergency when you HAVE to be there. So will coffee. But not on a regular basis. Your body can only take so much and you will become immune.
You do other things and you WILL end up getting busted. And it will be bad. I'll give you some actual useful tips.

1. When yoru eyes burn turn the light on over your head and leave it on. Youre not actually tired. This comes from yoru irises becoming fatigue as well as the cones and rods in your eyes. What youre doing is forcing your irises to stop down and keep them from being seared by oncoming lights etc. This works in a BIG way.. and im a team driver who ONLY does nights.

2. Never get bored. Turn on an audiobook. Get texttoSMS software for your phone so you can voice-text people. call people. Put on a movie and >LISTEN< (not watch) it. I used to do this with tv series especially comedies. Get audiobooks. you can buy them or download them free or buy them and download them. Boredom makes you sleepy period.

3. Exercise. Get some dumbells or resistance bands and use them when youre tired. This gets the blood pumping and wakes you up at least for a little bit. Exercise every chance you get. I do pushups at a lot of stops.
You probably wont listen to this.. you'll regret it when you gain 60 pounds and can hardly stand to walk 10 feet.. and are more tired all the time. You'll start to carb load (ever notice what they sell in truck stops) because your body thinks it needs carbs for energy to keep going.. and it will get worse. You'll have circulation problems that make it all worse. etc

4. Drive fast as possible when youre fresh.. slow down later. Drive in your comfort level. when youve been driving 10+ hours dropping 5mph may make a world of difference.

5. Dont look at the lights. Seriously sounds silly but most people stare at oncoming traffic etc.

6. Eat healthy - avoid truck stop/fast food at all costs. get a cooler learn to love grilled chicken, salads, turkey etc.

7. Stop smoking. Ecigs are awesome especially the menthols. patch works too.

8. Split bunk. SCREW dot. I drive team so no longer relevant but youve driven 5 hours today.. took 3 to load.. youre a little tired.. pull over take a 2 hour nap. fix the book. go on. Or whatever. I can only sleep in 5-6 hour increments. When i was solo i combined that with 2 hour naps etc so i wasnt driving tired. Some rule utilitarian idiot is going to whine about this. I WANT MY FAMILY ALIVE and i dont want u killing them driving tired because the DOT insists you drive tired. Find what works for you and do it. Heres a secret: that trooper/dot officer would rather you fudge and never be tired than be perfect by the book and kill someone

lastly dont drive tired. Tell dispatch to f*ck off. If they give you **** remember yorue more important to the company than some idiot they stuck at a terminal. There are 1000 jobs waiting on your phone call. If you need 10's make sure you get them. If youre just too damn tired tell dispatch in writing and ignore their phone calls and if they **** you over leave. That simple.