As a rider, we all love the thrill and adventure that comes when we ride challenging routes. There is no doubt that some of the routes are so thrilling and breathtaking that you will feel the dopamine pumping in your veins as your ride along the narrow and harp turns feasting your eyes on the view. However, to reach these views sometimes you will have roads that are boring and boring roads mean some lonely time to think about life and everything that is changing around you. Although most people enjoy some lonely time this can become a hazard if you start to feel sleepy.

Why Is Sleep Driving Becoming A Growing Hazard For Drivers?

According to the sleep foundation, drivers and riders who do not complete their 8 hours of sleep are 33% more likely to fall asleep when they ride or drive. This means that they are also 33% more likely to get into accidents if they feel distracted or sleep-deprived. The rate of sleep-based accidents is much more than that of alcohol-based accidents. This shows that people are more aware of the issues that can take place because of alcohol consumption but they are not aware that getting sleeping on the way can be an accident hazard as well. According to a recent study by the National Safety Council, each year more than 100,000 accidents take place due to sleepy drivers. Among these accidents, more than 71,000 people get injured and 1,550 people die in these accidents. These stats are very alarming and the issue is only growing as more people are taking motorcycles for longer routes.
With the help of this article, we will mainly look at some of the best tips that are helpful for keeping you awake when you are on a long motorcycle trip. These tips are generally used by drivers who take longer routes or in some conditions these tips are followed by soldiers so they can stay awake during night duties.

Tried and Tested Tips to Stay Awake and Alert during Long Motorcycle Trips

As an expert, most people will tell you to organize your trip in a way that you have time to stop and sleep for at least a few hours before you continue your journey. However, in some cases, stopping is not an option. This may be due to wildlife or unfamiliar places that are not safe for camping, so here are some of the most used methods that can help you stay awake and alert during long motorcycle trips:

Listen To Something

Listening to music while riding your motorcycle is very common. However, when it comes to feeling drowsy, most people find music very soothing so they feel even sleepier when they listen to music. Experts believe that rather than listening to slow and soothing numbers you can listen to something that you find interesting and that can keep your mind engaged and keep your thinking. One of the most common things is a podcast.

Do Something That Can Connect Your To Emotions

One of the most commonly used methods is to find something that can keep you emotionally busy. The basic idea is that you can find something that can make you laugh or cry because both these emotions will fully occupy your mind so you will not feel sleepy at all. Most people listen to stand-up comedy sessions as well so they can stay awake while riding.

Drink Something

Drinking energy drinks has so far been the most widely used method of staying active. Most people who have long and training night shifts use energy drinks to stay active. Moreover, coffee and other caffeine-based beverages have also been very helpful. However, you can only drink coffee to a certain extent because if you drink more coffee you might end up feeling jittery and uncomfortable as well. Moreover, if you are riding your motorcycle during the day, keep drinking a lot of water because this will help you stay hydrated and alert.

Stop and Walk

While riding your motorcycle if you feel very sleepy, you can just park your motorcycle at the edge of the road and get off. Now try to walk for ten minutes and on your return try to walk straight in a line for at least a few minutes. This is usually done for testing alcoholic drivers but it works perfectly fine for getting rid of sleep as well.

Wear a Rubber Band

According to psychology, sleep comes from the sense of tiredness and feeling comfortable. If you are feeling sleepy, this means you are tired and you are fully comfortable in your position. A simple method that is used by most people is wearing a rubber band. Rubber band therapy is a good way of inflicting pain which will make you feel uncomfortable and eventually this will help you feel less sleepy. However, wearing a rubber band for a long time might block the blood causing pain and also numbness so you can only wear it for a small time, and then you have to get rid of it.

Bottom Line

To sum it all up, if you are on a long journey and you feel sleepy you cannot just ignore it. This will all come down to the way you plan your trip and the things you are carrying with you and the route you have selected. There are some routes that will allow you to simple roadside camping places where you can simply park your motorcycle safely and get into your sleeping bag and sleep anytime. On the contrary, there are a few places that are not safe, you will not find pit stops to eat and refresh so these routes are far more dangerous. Moreover, there are some places with wildlife hazards so you cannot just park your motorcycle anywhere and go to sleep. While planning your trip, try to plan your pit stops for at least a few hours of a nap so you can continue your trip without feeling sleepy. Also, you can keep yourself engaged and distracted with things that you like.