Situational Awareness

We heard yesterday that CHP and CalTrans are trying to come up with some kind of plan to keep that from happening again.
They're taking a lot of flak from a lot of different people, both in government and the private sector.
They should have shut 5 down long before they did. They were lucky this time but luck was all it was. People could have died in that mess.
We had two trucks scheduled to go up 5 that morning. I looked at the fire maps on CalFire's site, figured the wind direction and sent them over 299 and up 101 to Reedsport instead.
I also talked to CalTrans and CHP and they were both dragging their feet about closing 5. Each one wanted the other to take responsibility and it turned into a complete mess before wiser heads prevailed.

 

Yeah I heard that too. I don't envy anybody who has to make that call. From Shasta Lake to Weed, the big trees are just a few feet from the road shoulder along most of that stretch. You get a hot day and a steady breeze and it's a disaster waiting to happen. With the amount of traffic moving through there it could have been much worse. I live on the 101 in Sonoma County and wish I could take it all the way to Oregon, but they have that 65 ft limit at I believe Leggett and my sleeper with a 53 can't legally run through there, otherwise I would use it when things like this happen. I got stuck for 8 hours in Redding last year when two hay trucks burned on the bridge over Shasta Lake. It was a mess, but not as bad as this time.

 

Head on a swivel at all times.
One in a thousand people walking past you at the fuel pump may be a loon bird. Don't let yourself be caught unprepared.

When one guy approaches... ALWAYS immediately check your six.. classic pincer move with distraction.

When coming off an elevator have something for self defense in your hands.. room key, car key, TacPen, ink pen. Look before you exit.

When walking around a corner of a hallway or building.. swing wide.
If you hug the wall, you're an easy target.

Put the dang phone down while you're walking.
Eyes on a phone screen let's them approach and you never see them til it's too late.

EYE CONTACT. STAND ERECT WITH CONFIDENCE. Boogeyman likes easy targets. Not one that will fight back or is prepared. They'll choose another vic.

If all else fails and bad news still has you in its sights.. Fight like a demon possessed mother bear protecting her cubs. It may save your life.

 

Hold on! I'm Coming!

 

There was some research about pilots doing things to preserve focus time. Read an article about it back when I was a locomotive engineer. Couldn't tell you where I saw it after 20-odd years, but I adopted some of it. The hours of that work are long and irregular. I was looking for anything that would make me more efficient and safe.

IIRC the pilots interviewed saw attention as an amount to be spent, or like water in a tank and trying to preserve it. One habit that I do in the car that I don't do in a truck is pull up to lights quickly and stop. There, now I don't have to focus on anything but a traffic light instead of spending attention watching it and traffic slow down slowly and not getting a little break. On a long trip it makes a difference in fatigue, for me.

Those Prius drivers watching that little pat-on-the-back fuel savings gauge that they apparently have in there drive me nuts with their glacial stops. I see them lookign over at something in there. Attention is more valuable than fuel on a long trip, IMO.

However, that is not a good approach to driving a heavy CMV, so now I'm doing much the same thing. My current move --and I'm new, so if there's a better way I'm interested-- is staying way back so the light might change or situation open up by the time I get there. Low attention is less draining than high attention. I do that in the most not-in-the-way lane.

I also try to never get invested into rushing. I am efficient, and always looking for better ways, but when I let myself get sucked into rushing I'm using up lots of attention for no good end, not worth it.

I did an experiment where I sometimes hurried to work as fast as I could using every dirty trick (I was an urban messenger at one time) and other times just relaxed and drove as if I didn't care how long it took. The latter is far faster, I think because it's smoother, and it also uses up less attention.

One thing I also do is carefully select times to do potentially distracting things so I'm only using attention on one thing at a time. Anything that isn't driving might not need to be done at all if the road is busy, forget it for now. It gets like an itch to be scratched if I'm not mindful.

If I need to reach for something on the other seat I wait until I'm alone on the road so there aren't other potential attention sinks going on at the same time. Multitasking uses more attention at one time, especially with other driver factors being unpredictable.

When I see someone reaching or messing with something besides driving while passing or in heavy traffic it aggravates me, it's inefficient with attention and dangerous. I'd say unprofessional but I observe CMV drivers doing that all day.

In general being alone on the road as much as possible uses less attention. I despise people who drive beside me on an otherwise empty highway; get some friends or a shrink.

Also, sensory input uses attention. Using earplugs on long trips gives me longer range with less fatigue in a 4-wheeler were I go far longer that HOS would allow. Sunglasses if they help, which sometimes they don't. Floppy hat to keep sun off if needed. Moving and stretching to avoid aches.

 

nobody wants to hurt a lunatic!

 

That's all really good stuff. I would add one thing and I'm curious if it's just me or other people have this too. When I get pissed off it makes me tired. I've always thought it was some chemical imbalance thing. Seriously, if I have a smooth day I'll be much less tired if it's a long day than if I have a really frustrating time with a shipper, traffic jam or something like that. Even an argument with the wife or kids. That doesn't happen much but it does happen. Makes me tired.

 

Stress consumes tremendous energy.

 

anger drains the soul. anger is also a gift that gets passed around like hot potato all day because people don't want to carry their own. let them keep it. otherwise you end up taking it home and giving it to your wife, or you kid, or your dog, or someone who ultimately doesn't deserve it.

 

That's why you hear people say the added stress isnt worth the money most of the time