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What do you do to stay awake on the drive home?

#121
nobodysfool said:
I have XM radio, so I hit the talk radio channels. I also drive a bit slower at night, because I REALLY don't want to hit a deer, if I'm out in the country (which I usually am, after a gig). I hit a deer once, and even though it was just a fawn, it seriously damaged the front of my ride. The sudden stop is not good for the deer, the driver or the equipment....
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My dad once told me about gigs and vehicle accidents "Mic Stands become torpedoes" and that scares me enough to slow down as well.

I'm pretty thankful that I haven't been out on the road like that in several years but I had a 60 mile radius that I would only drive home by myself, otherwise we were carpooling or the much smarter thing and had rooms for the night, and just got the club to comp it or we took it off the top of better paying gigs, we also had a band account with prob $1000 in it for reasons like getting a hotel in the event of a long drive. I'd rather have 4-6 hours of sleep before a 2+ hour drive than none whatsoever.

I'm also that guy that can stay wide awake for all but the last 10-15 miles of the trip, I'll slap myself, splash water on my face, eat, sing "Jessie's Girl" obnoxiously, singing the naa naa naa's the whole bit! lol!

I have even stopped just outside the city limits, not even 3 miles from my house and closed my eyes for 10-15 mins.

Falling asleep at the wheel is not my idea of the way I want to die so I'll try not to make that one of those accident's waiting to happen in my life... Besides, an out of town gig is like a mini vacation for me, we take every chance we get to stay in that town or cities close by when this is the case.

I'd rather break even and have fun on most out of towner gigs like that
 
#124
Same thing I did when driving across the country when I was in the military. Slightly crack the window ( fresh, moving air, even in winter, is a key ) I put music that irritates me slightly ( polka-ish sounding always does the trick for me. I like one or two songs, 16 hours of that will grind my gears :) ) I also kept a drink around at all times. My preference was warm drinks ( ok , coffee .. I'm addicted alright? :D ) this makes for bladder discomfort ( which works too, until you stop to take care of it ) When you do stop, stretch. I like to bring sunflower seeds to snack on. I like unsalted shelled best , but for distance driving I go with salted in the shell.

That's it. Worked like a charm crossing the country three times, coast to coast with only 1 overnight stay in Ok City the first time. After that I didn't do the superman dealio,. I made 2 overnight stops 'cuz that first time was plain dumb. ( but I was 20 .. so ... )
 
#126
I'm a professional at staying awake while driving- I worked in organ donation working 30 hour straight shifts having to drive long stretches in a van with my team (who would sleep BTW) and also worked nights as a paramedic driving an ambulance. I took prescription medication designed for shift workers and narcoleptics, but they last 12-13 hours. Energy drinks work but only for a short time... so that's where my vote goes. If you drink it an hour or two before you leave the club, instead of while you're driving home you'll already be alert AND be able to fall asleep when you get home. Music can help keep you focused.
 
#127
It's physically impossible for me to fall asleep without taking my medication, so I don't really have to do anything special for that. Music with strong rhythmic elements helps keep my mind focused on something, which helps keep me alert while driving.
 

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