Distracted Driving and Custom Headache Racks: A True Life Saver

Every trucker has had small hiccups, be it going too fast around a curb, for example, or tailgating a bit because of distracted driving—and while one should never drive distracted, having a custom headache rack on your truck ensures that the consequences of such behaviour will be mitigated, possibly saving your life. In a recent article, we discussed satefy tips for truck drivers ; now let’s look at some of the potential distractions that could be dangerous.

Trucking long hours can make a person sorely tempted to divert their attention from driving to any number of distractions, such as talking on the phone, looking at the deer in the distance, or simply letting one’s mind wander off to something completely unrelated to the road in front of them. For example it has been proven that even the distraction of listening to the radio causes people to pay less attention to the road in front of them, and loud music tempts us to go faster. You approach a curve, and suddenly you realize you’re going too fast. You slam the brakes, but too late. Your load shifts forward—and the only thing that saves you from meeting an unfortunate end is your custom headache rack that blocks the load.

Speeding is the main cause of death for drivers, and speeding usually involves some sort of tuning out to the signals of the world around you. You convince yourself that going this fast is fine, until next thing you know you encounter a problem that forces you to step on the brakes hard. Having a custom headache rack installed in your semi will mitigate the risks of this sort of driving.

Another reason people drive distracted is feeling preoccupied with something other than the road. Many drivers on logging roads, for example, have a huge fear of load shift and this causes their driving to be reactive and jumpy rather than calm and steady. And while too much safety is never a bad thing, jittery nerves impede one’s ability to process information and make calm and calculated decisions. So having a custom headache rack literally gives the driver peace of mind, and frees their attention to focus on what truly matters—the road.

This does not mean that having a custom headache rack is akin to having the permission to drive distracted—it is not. There are many other reasons why you should not drive distracted, such as the safety of others, your reputation as a driver, and not wanting to get into any of the many possible accidents caused by factors other than load shift. However, because we are human and not robots, one’s attention will sometimes wander to something other than the task at hand. And for these moments, a custom headache rack can truly be life saving.

Trebor Manufacturing not only provides you with the best heavy duty semi headache racks on the market, but is also building a wide variety of custom semi-truck accessories.

We are proud to be serving dealers, retailers, manufacturers and distributors in the trucking business, including truck parts dealers, across North America. Please feel free to call us, contact us or request a quote.

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Check out some of Trebor’s most popular semi truck accessories: aluminum tool boxes or semi headache racks.