Meanie, Mine-ie

The sport of LD riding is filled with stories about riders who have overslept, resulting in missed bonuses and disqualifications from rallies for being late to the finish.   I overslept just two years ago during the Dutch Treat ride.  It might have totally destroyed the ride, but my brother Rodney was watching my SPOT track.  When I wasn’t on the road as planned he was astute enough to realize what was going on and made a call to my cell phone.

A sport that requires a minimum of slept requires a maximum alarm.   That’s where the Screaming Meanie comes in.  On low, this countdown timer is loud enough to wake the dead.  On high, it’s loud enough to wake a dreaming LD rider with ear plugs in and helmet on.  Here’s the description from Amazon. 

It's called the Screaming Meanie because it sounds an extremely loud alarm until you turn it off. Created for long-haul truck drivers, the Screaming Meanie is designed to get you out of bed, no matter what. We also find it useful in a noisy situation where an alarm must be heard, or for anyone with hearing loss who is looking for a very loud alarm.

The Meanie is not the most intuitive device ever made.  Prior to using it on a rally, I decided I should use it as my every day alarm in order to learn the operation.  That was 2004 or so and I continue to use it to this day.   I don’t think I’ve been late to work since.