World Racing Media

Hey Guys,
My last trip to Florida in December turned into a nightmare- Seems the Florida DOT has a hard on for Race teams using toterhomes...
I was heading East on I10 when I got pulled at the Scales- The officer spent the best part of 6 hours trying to find a reason to give me a hard time, Our truck is DOT registered and we run logbooks etc and I have a class A CDL. After a complete inspection the officer decided that my truck was "Oversize" . According to him the Toterhome is counted as a straight truck because of the wheelbase and our trailer was supposed to be limited to 26 feet. He wrote me a ticket for oversize ($1000) and then I had to leave the truck and go and find signs/flashing amber lights and flags before I could leave the weighstation.

Apparantly Florida DOT is having a crackdown on racers because they know that many are driving Toters on car licenses. The officer showed me the bulletin from the head office.
We appealed the ticket and are waiting for the Florida DOT to explain why the officer wrote us up (As far as we can tell from the Regs we were legal)
I'll let y'all know the result...
If you are running and are not completely DOT legal you might want to get it sorted before going into Florida. FYI any vehicle exceeding 26,000 pounds requires a CDL , DOT# etc. Our Renegade and trailer weighs 58,000 empty!

Cheers

G2K

Seeing as I drive all day, every day here in Florida, I have some suggestions. It is a good idea to get your rig checked out prior to hitting the state line. We've been having alot of DOT officers out on the turnpike, I-10, I-95, and I-75. To anyone comming to the NHRA Moroso event, just keep an eye out, there has been multiple speed traps and dot caravans on I-95. I can tell anyone comming south on I-95, to watch out around Brevard county, they have sheriff's out on the highway doing speed traps all down the north and southbound.

93supercoupe

thats crazy, ive shared similar incedents but not with CDL's and ****.

VtecCarHauler

I use to drive semi trucks all over the country, I now buy and sell them and frequently drive them to and from my storage yard. I hauled ref. goods, tropical plants and then cars. On the road DOT is just looking to give you a hard time period. Almost like a cop, they are just waiting for anything to come ther way. As far as the ticket, it is probably BS for sure. If that was the case all RV's should be getting tickets. I have never once heard of anyone getting a oversize ticket or really over length ticket in this southeast reigon much less everywhere else. Can you post a picture of your hauler and do you know the overal length? Here is what I found on the Florida DOT site.

Florida statutes require that non commercial vehicle combinations consist of no more than two units and such combinations may not exceed a total length of 65 feet.

F.S. 316.515(3)

Drivers of recreational vehicles are exempt from the requirement to obtain a commercial drivers license.

F.S. 322.53(2) (d)

Florida statutes are available at:
http://www.leg.state.fl.us

So ther is your awnser. Since u have a CDL plus a DOT # that rule doesn't apply to you situation. That officer doesn't even know what the regulations are. ****! , I am not an DOT officer and I know more than him, dumbass. So look this site up on your computer and show it to the judge or a higher ranking DOT officer. Tell me what happens.

E-Town4229

this must be a well known problem in the racing community. even the powerade guys on the way to gainsville are being alerted about the extreme ball busting.

http://www.nhra.com/content/news/18782.htm


-Roger

Bigblockhatch

Well his more than 65 ft.......I would say more like 52ft race trailer and a 30ft Renegade.....Way over the 65 ft limit

alpha

That's Florida for you. Welcome

World Racing Media

The toter and trailer combination is 83 feet give or take a few inches- as a tractor/trailer combo it is within DOT regs, The officer decided that the toter was the same as a straight truck and as such is limited to a 26ft trailer.
So the ticket was for $100 per foot with a cap of $1000.
You are right though- the guy was just determined to write me up for something. He told me he was expecting to get me for driving the toter on a car license...

Part of the problem is that the Toterhome salesmen tell people that you can drive the rig on a car license if it is registered as a Motorhome. Not true - if it weighs more than 26,000 pounds. Ya' gotta have a CDL. It don't matter if its a motorhome or a trycycle! Most officers don't know the rules so they don't know what to do.
I remember Ara's (Streetglow) driver getting pulled over a few years ago and they impounded the rig and Ara had to pay a small fortune in tickets and fly a CDL qualified driver out to pick the truck up.

Bottom line is that the DOT have are wising up to the "Motorhome" loophole and are starting to bust peoples *****.

Paradise Racing

I was just reading this on the NHRA website and saying "holly crap!!!!"

Gainesville travelers: Florida over-length information

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3/2/2007


NHRA has been informed by the Interstate Registration Service that Florida is requiring any vehicle with an overall length (truck and trailer) of more than 65 feet or a trailer length of more than 28 feet to have a Special Road Use Permit to enter and to leave Florida.

According to the Florida Department of Transportation Office of Maintenance Permit Office, the state is checking trailer length, kingpin settings, and overall length of all vehicle and trailer combinations (semi-trailer length, straight truck-trailer combination, bus combination, and non-commercial vehicle combinations).

Florida law provides for a penalty of $250 per foot over length, not to exceed $1,000, per vehicle for any vehicle that does not have an overdimensional road-use permit.

To contact the Florida Department of Transportation Office of Maintenance Permit Office, call (850) 410-5777 or Patti George, Interstate Registration Service, (800) 383-5829, ext. 1.

To obtain a PDF copy of the State of Florida Overdimensional Roaduse Permits, go to http://www.fdotmaint.com/permit/.

For a PDF copy of the State of Florida Commercial Motor Vehicle Manual, go to http://www.dot.state.fl.us/mcc...6.pdf.

VtecCarHauler

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by World Racing Media &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">The toter and trailer combination is 83 feet give or take a few inches- as a tractor/trailer combo it is within DOT regs, The officer decided that the toter was the same as a straight truck and as such is limited to a 26ft trailer.
So the ticket was for $100 per foot with a cap of $1000.
You are right though- the guy was just determined to write me up for something. He told me he was expecting to get me for driving the toter on a car license...

Part of the problem is that the Toterhome salesmen tell people that you can drive the rig on a car license if it is registered as a Motorhome. Not true - if it weighs more than 26,000 pounds. Ya' gotta have a CDL. It don't matter if its a motorhome or a trycycle! Most officers don't know the rules so they don't know what to do.
I remember Ara's (Streetglow) driver getting pulled over a few years ago and they impounded the rig and Ara had to pay a small fortune in tickets and fly a CDL qualified driver out to pick the truck up.

Bottom line is that the DOT have are wising up to the "Motorhome" loophole and are starting to bust peoples *****. </TD></TR></TABLE>

If your rig has a fifth wheel hitch it is not a staight truck anymore even if it was originally a straight truck. I also do alot of big truck fabrication changing truck bodies from box to flat beb as so on. You should be able to get off of that ticket easily.

Paradise Racing

What if it has a goose neck hitch? Most of these rigs have goose necks.

World Racing Media

Our truck has a goose neck too...What really sucks is that even when you get your permit and put on the orange flashing lights front and rear/oversize signs and red flags you are only allowed to drive during daylight hours and at the weekend or on public holidays you can't drive until 12 noon. Then you must stop at every single weighstation to get your permits checked and you are restricted to the route that is on your permit. What a pain in the *** , it took me a day just to get from Miami to Jacksonville.!

My boss is a lawyer and he looked into the regulations and as far as he is concerned we are legit but I guess its down to how the DOT in Florida see's it. We should know soon how our appeal went but probably not before we have to go to Moroso.
It would sure be interesting to find out what happens with the Powerade guys? I know that even a normal tractor/trailer must be really close to 65ft, if not a little over and a lot of the race teams are using 58ft trailers these days and they will be much longer than 65ft overall length.

Paradise Racing

Damn thats scary!!!

When you read the NHRA story it kinda looks like they are more concerned with overall length.

I didnt get stopped last year so I hope I have the same luck.

SpeedDreamz.com

mine was 33ft long and the trailer was 44ft and I never stopped at the weight stations. Was I supposed to? Never got pulled over though.

World Racing Media

Of course you can just blow past the weigh stations. However, if they see you and decide to run you down the crap will just double in depth. Normally I might risk it but they are obviously enforcing the rules pretty strictly in Florida right now and the fines alone can mount up to huge amounts of money when they decide to throw the book at you.

I will go ahead and get my permits ahead of time and allow for the extra travel time and having to run in daylight. It just means I'll have to wait until Monday to leave Moroso.
For those that need the oversize equipment any decent truck parts store should have them, It cost me about $170 for the two rotating lights/flags and front and rear oversize signs. The permit is pretty cheap at around $30. Get it ahead of time or they will nail you with a $1,000 fine minimum.

VtecCarHauler

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Paradise Racing &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">What if it has a goose neck hitch? Most of these rigs have goose necks.</TD></TR></TABLE>

yeah goose neck or king pin hitch is considered a fifth wheel hitch. Any hitch that sits over an axle is a fifth wheel hitch. DOT is bullshit! I have driven through almost every state in America and DOT always has some new **** to come up with. I know truck drivers that go around every weigh station. Meaning they take side roads that bypass the weigh stations. Like this one country truck driver told me, " ther's nothing good at the scale house". I have one very good solution for all you race teams that travel alot on the interstate highways. Try to get the "Pre Pass" it is almost like a sun pass or toll pass that you use when you are on toll roads. You can find it on the DOT website. It was the best thing I ever got, saved me alot of time and trouble instead of going through the scale house wondering if today will be my unlucky day.

Paradise Racing

I always thought the scale stations were for commercial vehichles only???

ExospeedAMcrx

Daaym that sucks. This totally opens up a new issue to just getting to the track.
Is Florida only that is cracking down like this or is this expected for most of the states we are planning to travel throughout the NHRA race season.

we should just do a crazy Smokey and the Bandit or Bj and the Bear move and book it as a group in the middle of the night haha. Get a decoy to throw off the cops

fieldafm

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Paradise Racing &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I always thought the scale stations were for commercial vehichles only???</TD></TR></TABLE>

they consider race haulers commercial vehicles
i know, b/c they'll come after you if you pass them if the weigh station isnt too busy or if they have a good number of staff at the scales

heck, i got pulled over by a DOT cop in Florida driving a big moving truck when i moved from tallahassee to jax... cop was a lady, and you all know lady cops dont f' around, lol
apparently, moving trucks over 26' are also scrutinized b/c they dont want anyone running citrus through the state(cop told me it was both an agricultural issue and a homeland security issue... apparently bombs can be made from certain citrous products)

[QUOTE]I remember Ara's (Streetglow) driver getting pulled over a few years ago and they impounded the rig and Ara had to pay a small fortune in tickets and fly a CDL qualified driver out to pick the truck up.
[QUOTE]

was that in Florida??? i remember a few years back passing the scales bout an hour north of moroso and saw Ara's rig parked on the side road of the weigh station

World Racing Media

[/QUOTE]was that in Florida??? i remember a few years back passing the scales bout an hour north of moroso and saw Ara's rig parked on the side road of the weigh station[/QUOTE]

Actually I think it was up north somewhere - Ohio? Indiana?

I haven't heard about any other states targeting race teams -

The pain in the *** factor of getting the permits and running as an oversize load is worth the hassle compared to getting stopped/impounded and having to miss an event- not to mention thousands of dollars in fines.
I'm taking no chances this time, I'll be legit. Good luck.

crazykid

Anyone know a NASCAR team?? find out what they did recently for the Dayton 500... thier trucks are big too... did anyone see them with the flags and signs??

AllMotorMark

this stuff has been happening to the guys up here in toronto canada for years, just a money grab so the rest of the time they can sit at dognut shops and do nothing

Corey G

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by fieldafm &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

they consider race haulers commercial vehicles
i know, b/c they'll come after you if you pass them if the weigh station isnt too busy or if they have a good number of staff at the scales

</TD></TR></TABLE>

I remember maybe two years back the Greek was telling me a similar story they chased them down, and made them go back to the scales. This was with MSP's smaller rig, and they said it was over weight, he had to leave the stacker and bring the toter to a camp place and dump all the tanks. I want to say he was down south either FL or GA.

Paradise Racing

Hey World Racing Media, how can I get in touch with you??? I need to make sure I do this right the first time to avoid the B.S.!!!

Thanks!!!
Luis
301-809-6345