Anybody get motion sick at HPDE?

[Damage Inc]

I've done 4 HPDE and never able to finish the day, end up leaving early. Any tips on how to not get sick? It really sucks. I dont think I'm going to bother doing any events this year due to this.

[dcgolfdr]

Dramamine, not sure on the spelling. Get the non drowsy. I got sick at the M school but I think that was because of all the cones that you have to avoid and visually screwed me up.

[aisthetes]

I don't ever experience motion sickness when racing/driving, but I have when riding as a passenger on track. One tip is to keep your eyes focused on where you want to go, not where the car is headed. Taking your eyes off the turn exit and looking straight ahead (or down!) can cause an imbalance between what your mind perceives as the direction of motion versus what your body feels. Looking through the turn is an essential racing technique anyway to drop lap times, so you win both ways. I know people that can't fly or read in cars that have had good experience with accupressure bracelets, so you can try those as well for a non-drug fix.

[swamp2]

Ginger has been proven to be a natural anti motion sickness preventer. Check it out on Mythbusters. I used it successfully (sold in an OTC pill/packet form) in Australia for the rides out to snorkel the Great Barrer Reef. I get it as a passenger, but not on the track (more like canyon driving). I also can get it really bad on a rough open ocean fishing. That is terrible... So I know your misery. Good luck.

[930Man]

I have never been but i have gotten bunch of students sick that is for sure!

[von_zoom]

I might suggest that you ask your Doctor. You could suffer from vertigo, have an enter ear problem, or some dietary issue raising its ugly head when you are moving. I know several guys at the track periodically complain of it, but overcome it somehow. Good luck.
vz

[garek]

In my experience, that happens when I get dehydrated. It's really easy to get dehydrated at track events, so make sure you're drinking lots of water. Otherwise, ginger is a good natural solution, without the side effects of drugs.

[Grail05]

Dramamine, dont take too many... just take one dont want to fall asleep while your driving...

[Muffnbluff]

Same thing happened to me in my 135 at TWS. I just got out of the car and walked around and got hydrated and it kinda settled down in-between sessions. Also forced myself to eat lunch even after a particularly butthole puckering session that left me a bit queasy.

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by 930Man

I have never been but i have gotten bunch of students sick that is for sure!

Me too. I tell them to look way ahead, to where we're going to go and that'll involve looking out the side windows in a U-turn and the still lose it. When I ride with them, it's usually clear that they have no idea where they're going.

Dave

[montreal red]

i never got motion sickness when i drive but i've sat in quite a few instructor's cars before and some of them have made me feel very sick. not all of them make me feel that way though. so clearly there is a wide range of driving skills between instructors.

[Echo M3]

It happened to me (driving and feeling nauseous) for the first time last summer.

I think it was a combination of the heat (Sunny day + Fox red = bad combination), the relatively long sessions (30 mins per track session), exhaustion, and the fact that I've always been susceptible to getting motion sickness. I just got off the pace and took it easy towards the end of the last session.

How soon does it happen, immediately or after awhile? Do you eat or drink anything before hitting the track?

There aren't too many solutions: I'd be wary of dramamine, even the 'non-drowsy' variety. Regarding ginger, I wouldn't consider "Myth Busters" an established scientific reference. Medical trials so far have been inconclusive about ginger's effect. There is stronger stuff than dramamine out there, but you'll need to see a doc for that, and they usually have significant side effects.

To the OP, in my opinion (disclaimer: NOT to be taken as professional medical advice), you're just experiencing motion sickness. if you're at all concerned, then see a doctor. A sensation of dizziness ("everything is spinning around me") could be a sign of vertigo, but feeling faint or light-headed could suggest something else. If there is something wrong, problems would most likely manifest during normal daily activities (walking, sitting on the couch, normal exercise, etc.).

[linsm3]

Being a therapist I can give you one reason some people have more motion sensitivity it can b related to weak core muscles.... also is a vestibular sign so keep eyes where you are going for sure

[jml]

Oh man, funny/tragic story. Had a guy throw up in his helmet in my car....out of the blue. He said he was fine and then he was not. Wish his visor was down

[swamp2]

Originally Posted by pman10

Regarding ginger, I wouldn't consider "Myth Busters" an established scientific reference. Medical trials so far have been inconclusive about ginger's effect.

There are conclusive scientific tests for gingers efficacy as well. This one did not have a large sample size but showed a definite effect. http://ajpgi.physiology.org/content/284/3/G481.full . The discussion section also refers to other works showing "success" as well.

[Team FMS]

Originally Posted by MojorisinM3

I've done 4 HPDE and never able to finish the day, end up leaving early. Any tips on how to not get sick? It really sucks. I dont think I'm going to bother doing any events this year due to this.

My recommendation:
Go to as many local autox's as possible and either drive or sit shotgun with someone you trust and just get seat time in... the stakes are MUCH higher on a real track, and it's quite possible that not only are you not comfortable with vehicle dynamics at speed, you have a sub-conscious fear of the unknown relative to a given vehicles perceived performance limits -

A dedicated time of introspective consultation will yield your answer to this question:
In my daily life, am i a fairly conservative and well-calculated individual?
If yes, then it's very likely that you will have a much more difficult time developing a 'stomach' for going fast.

A person CAN learn to 'stomach' making tough (risk vs. reward) decisions (like deciding to go 10/10ths on track or other) but it'll take practice to separate/learn 'mind over matter' - i've learned over many years of working with drivers on track (both autox and big tracks), that it is very important for me to quickly understand a drivers 'nature' as it more than invariably plays in to their decision clarity and gives me a hint at what 'on-track aptitude' i am dealing with. Real time decision-making propensity is what i want to learn as quickly as possible - cause my life is at stake when in the right seat, ya know!

Anyway, it's very likely that your personal answer to the question above is not, NO - because if it were, the 'switch' that connects the brain to the stomach which often causes a persons "oh hell, i'm gonna barf" moment wouldn't be so On/Off. Your switch would be more akin to a reostat set to mood lighting... a little light would still be present (your over-riding conscious helping with your risk vs. reward scenario) but you would know how to control the amount of 'light' you choose to shed on a given risk-based situation... consequently, your stomach could take it -

Any well-seasoned, real-time, risk-based, decision maker, doesn't just wake up one day with the innate ability to harness/control/connect a minds intellect with the bodies emotional/physiological responses to a given stressful situation - it takes practice - and from a developmental perspective, an active approach is key to putting the mind and body through 'tough' situations, whereby in time, responses from both the body and mind will harmoniously marry, and results are redendered exactly (more/less) as expected/anticipated/calculated/etc.

Overlook this perspective if you will, but for those that think all 'sick stomach' feelings on track/autox are derived from 'motion sickness', you are not correct... there is much more 'head' play going on than you think!!!

[chris328i]

Most people that I have seen get sick, do so as passengers not drivers.

[GT3 Tim]

Originally Posted by 930Man

I have never been but i have gotten bunch of students sick that is for sure!

LOL. I was about to say the same thing.

However, I did get a bit queezy once when I had a herky-jerky student in a older vette. lol

[JC919]

My dad used to run PCA events when I was a little kid (in his late 30s early forties) and gave it up for years until taking a ride with me a few years ago. He can't stand it anymore and complains of stomach problems after a few hard laps.