troit

on that next long driving trip you take. A dear friend of the family passed away several years ago due to fatigue from driving and is one of the reason I wanted to pass this article I came across onto you.

http://www.bookofjoe.com/2005/01/drive_alert_mas.html


Drive Alert Master


You know how sometimes people grow on you?

This device grew on me.

I was planning to mock it, but as I read the copy on the website, suddenly I recalled a sad story that appeared in the Charlottesville Daily Progress a few years ago.

It seemed the chief resident in general surgery at the University of Virginia Health Sciences Center, in his determination to be back for 6 a.m. rounds after the holiday break, drove straight through the night from his home in Atlanta, Georgia, where he'd been celebrating with his family and fiancée.

He almost made it.

About two miles from the hospital - after driving hundreds of miles and many hours without sleep - he apparently fell asleep behind the wheel of his car.

He plowed into the back of a truck and was killed instantly.

So that's why I'm gonna buy one of these ($19.95) as soon as I finish this post.

How many of us, driving somewhere, get drowsy, open the windows, turn up the music, sing, drink coffee, and still are in no condition to be on the road?

I've done it far too many times.

I have no right to put others at risk, much less myself, because of my determination to get where I'm going and my denial.

Driving tired is no different from driving drunk.

That's the long and the short of it.

I have contempt and hatred for drunk drivers; why not for myself when I drive when I'm sleepy?

It starts today.

When I'm driving and this thing goes off, I'm stopping and taking a nap.

End of discussion.

Here's what the website says:

20% Of All Automobile Accidents Are Caused By Sleep Deprivation
Avoid them with the Drive Alert

It works like a splash of cold water in the middle of the night.

At the first sign of drowsiness the Drive Alert will jolt your senses with a LOUD beep.

Just how important is it to have this simple safety device?

We've all done it, often times unknowingly.

You get behind the wheel after taking seemingly harmless cold medication or head home after a long day at work.

Up to this point you've probably been among the lucky ones who make it home without incident.

But it only takes one time to fall asleep at the wheel and become a tragic statistic.

You're behind the wheel late at night after a long day.

Your eyes begin to grow heavy as oncoming headlights lull you into a state of drowsiness.

And then without warning you fall asleep at the wheel.

Luckily this scenario doesn't have to end in tragedy as so often happens.

That's because the Drive Alert will help keep you awake until you arrive safely at your destination.

Drive Alert's ergonomic design is comfortable, easy to use and operates with low battery consumption.

It's also popular with truck drivers who spend many long hours on our nation's highways.

Just turn it on, adjust the wake-up angle switch and place it behind your ear.

When you begin to doze off and your head slumps forward the Drive Alert will emit a LOUD, powerful BEEPING sound to wake you up.

Using the Drive Alert could save the lives of you and your loved ones.

And it may be the best safety device your car never had.

Includes one 1.5 Volt DC x (LR44) battery.

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I've yet to dephile myself...

Catmandu

In this sleep-deprived country we live in, this is a good thing. I still remember the day I drove 12 hours alone from Chicago to central Tennessee to visit my parents. Somewhere in southern Indiana on I-65, I feel asleep at the wheel. I woke up to the feel of the car bumping along the grass in the center divider. If this had happened 100yds father on, I would have smacked into an overpass. I hope this thing doesn't go off every time you nod your head.

maleficent

What if your head goes backwards or left or right....

I know these gadgets have been around for a few years, just have never seen one in action... Anything that keeps a person alert on the road is a good thing, especially those folks driving those big ole trucks all thru the night... trying to beat a deadline...

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Mephisto2

Unfortunately there are lots of sleep related deaths on Australian roads also. I guess it goes with living in a large country with long, often very straight and boring, roads.

They have a continuing TV campaign here on these fatal "micro-sleeps"; those one or two seconds when you doze off at the wheel.

Stop. Revive. Survive.


Mr Mephisto

Averett

I wonder if this really works. And like maleficent said, will it work if your head jerks somewhere other than forward?

4 years ago I was in a car accident when my boyfriend at the time fell asleep at the wheel. We were only going about 45mph, but the car was totaled. I spent 5 days in the hospital and I broke my left ankle and left arm. Months in casts, weeks in therapy. Because he closed his eyes for just a few seconds.

I get tired when I drive the 6 hours home from my boyfriends place. There have been times when I've stopped at nearly every rest stop along the way. Just to get out of the car, stretch, and get a bit of fresh air. Much better than falling asleep on the highway.

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Absence is to love what wind is to fire. It extinguishes the small, it enkindles the great.

Cynthetiq

I will always pull over the moment I'm finding myself groggy.. even a nap on the roadside or parking lot is safer.

I'm not going to trust my life on such gadgetry than something as simple as just pulling over to go to sleep.

__________________
I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.

Hardknock

I'll put my vote with not trusting your life to some dinky device that you'll probably be able to buy at Wal-Mart. Just have enough sense to pul off to the side of the road.

Besides, is you have your SO with you, there are plenty of things that you can do to wake up!

Sage

man, as jumpy as i am, i'd probably wake up at the beep but swerve off the road from going "OH GOD!!!"

scariest thing i ever did was drive from Charlotte NC to Lenoir NC at 4 in the morning- in someone else's car, with them asleep next to me, and with a contact high (just a little one). there were stretches of the higway i don't remember, but i don't know if that meant i fell asleep or just phased out.

i say, don't try to do a 12 hour drive straight through starting out tired already. take lots of breaks, stretch, get blood flowing, take a nap if you need to. it's worth it to get there in one piece!

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FngKestrel

I've actually had a friend be harassed by CHP after he pulled over to the side of the road to take a nap because he was tired. The officer stated that the side of the road was for emergencies only. I'm thinking, so, you want him to fall asleep and kill someone so that an emergency happens as opposed taking some preventative measures?

Cynthetiq

as have I..

but later I have found that it's far more dangerous to be parked on the side of the highway than pulled off the highway onto a rest area or parking lot.

__________________
I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.

FngKestrel

Yeah, I can understand that in the hierarchy of things, being at a rest area or parking lot is the best way to go, but if you're cognizant of the fact that you're passing out, I think you gotta take what you can get.

JStrider

im going to school in texas and my family lives in california... i usually do the drive in one go... stopping for gas only...

leave early in the AM drive 17 hours arrive late evening soon after dark...
the first couple times i did it i had to stop and sleep a bit... the last few times its been non stop... and now ive got a buddy to take turns with... makes it easier...

if i did long trips like that more often i think i would prolly invest in something like that... but long as i keep my trips mostly during my regular waking hours its not bad...

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-=JStrider=-

~Clatto Verata Nicto

TexanAvenger

I don't know if it goes off when you move left, right, or backward, but I'm willing to shell out 19.95 for one to check. If it helps, it'll be worth every penny and more.