Trucking: Making the Most of Your Time on the Road
OTR (over the road) trucking can net some serious cash for those who turn and burn the miles. But the long and winding road is, well… long and winding (Don’t get me started on Nebraska). Spending upwards of twelve hours a day inside what amounts to a fishbowl can be quite monotonous. One may even feel that the walls are closing in at times.
There are, however, some great ways to get the best out of all that seat time. It doesn’t always have to be one long shuffling playlist of music. There are plenty of options for you to get your entertainment and education over the road.
The Joy of Long-Format Podcasts
If top-10 radio has you pulling your hair out, reach for a good long-format source of media. There is a plethora of podcasts to fit everyone’s interests no matter who you are. Some are informative. Some are political. Some are purely entertainment. Either way, you can sit back and let your mind engage in good conversation about your favorite, or random topics. It’s like the modern-day equivalent to Art Bell’s Coast the Coast. You never know what you’ll hear.
Audio Books
Trying to brush up on your quantum physics can be hard when you’re driving. Amazingly you can get audible books on that subject and many more. You can even get most of the current, and pasts best sellers list through markets like Audible, iTunes, and Amazon. Most of the time they are narrated by famous actors or the writers themselves. Think of how well “read” you will be at next year’s family get-together.
Learning Another Language
As well as audiobooks, you can get whole language courses to help you lean that one language you’ve always wanted… or brush up in the two semesters of the foreign language you have now forgotten.
Being bilingual has great benefits. From ordering some amazing food in the southwest to traveling abroad and having a better time navigating and communicating. And you get paid to do it while you drive OTR.
Breaker Breaker One Niner for Entertainment
Now chances are your rig is equipped with a citizen’s band (CB) radio. While they aren’t as popular as they use to be, they are still a good source of human interaction. Cb radios can be utilized for a wide variety of things like keeping up on traffic ahead, monitoring weather, looking out for smoky (Highway Patrol for you young’uns) and for general chat.
There are some know best-practices and etiquette when operating a radio, but a quick search on the net will clue you in. Just be sure to follow protocol and chat away.