Have you ever fallen asleep at the wheel and what do you do to prevent it ?

I remember an occasion where I came from a party after midnight. When almost near my house I went through a mountain pass. I came upon a road block and became wide awake when I saw it. I could not remember anything about the previous 10 kilometers or so that I traveled, only up to a certain point way back.

I once traveled by motorcycle on a very long and monotonous road, with no bend anywhere for more than a hundred kilometers. I became very sleepy. I sang songs and when that became boring I shouted out the road signs as I passed them. That help for a while. Then I did some tricks like jumping on the seat. The adrenaline rush helped. after a while even that didn't help any more. I saw a pick-up way ahead of me. When I woke up it was right in front of me. I hit it, but didn't fall. We all stopped, found no damage, made friends, drank coffee and continued, wide awake.

I have never fallen asleep while driving, but I had close encounters with sleep attacks. Best "cure" for it is Red Bull or coffee, but there isn't nothing better than a quick nap. When you feel tired just drive to the next stop and rest for a while, it won't take more than 15-20 minutes and it can save life of you and other people on the road. Happy mylotting and take care!