New Guide for Laws Regarding Motorsports Trailers

Click on the link in the 3rd paragraph.


http://www.onedirt.com/news/sema-provides-new-guide-for-laws-regarding-motorsports-trailers/

Note to self: don't put your name on race trailer....keep trailer small....use money from smaller trailer to build better race car.

It seems the rules for transporting our toys is getting more complicated than the different racing classes themselves.

I am continually amazed by how STUPID our government is. We have terrorists killing people on American soil, drug problems throughout the country. Problems that need to be dealt with, yet they still have time to jack around working guys racing as a HOBBY !! Used to be great country. Sure would like to take it back. Can anybody tell me when the last time your trailer killed 14 people and injured 17 others.

I'm legal for MOST states around here.. I have a 65'
total length here.. one other state near me has a max
trailer length of 40' and a total length of 65'.. my
trailer is 3' longer than their limit but I am shorter
than the total length... but I have never hauled in
their state... I just hope the cops have this data and
read it

Most of those laws and regulations have been around for a long time.
It was guys with the Toter homes that started to draw the Attention of local law enforcement. Ant time you have your name on a trailer they figure it is a business and that requires a DOT number and commercial plates.

Myself, I've never had any lettering on my trailers
and I've only been pulled over 1 time and that was
for a minor speeding(5 over).. he let me go and just
said to watch my speed.. he did ask what was in the
trailer which I told him.. I asked if he would like to
see inside but he didnt care too... so I went on my way..
that was with the truck and trailer I run now

55 mph is the maximum
speed for any vehicle or
vehicle combination that
weighs over 8,000 lbs.

I had no idea Ohio had this rule.

A racer was sited for hauling fuel across State lines in a "non-DOT approved container" A fuel cell in the race car. The fine was $4,000.

Also no stickers of any kind on trailer or car
Most Stock & SuperStock guys have taken all of their stickers off their cars.

This took place last year
One of the Nostalgia Super Stock Guys got busted by the IL State Troopers, on the way to the NMCA race at Gateway, Memorial Day weekend.

Gray haired, grandpa, looking guy was towing a 24', non-stickered, enclosed trailer (under 10K GVW), with his 2500 Dodge Ram.

Trooper pulled him over asked what he had in the trailer. the guy responded, a race car. Trooper looked at the car and said because the car had stickers on it (contingency decals?), he was racing for money, and that made him commercial. Trooper said he had to have CDL lisc., log book, DOT physical, DOT number, etc. His car is a 12 second car, that doesn't even have a name on the side!



A week later, he got a ticket in the mail, addressed to his name " Racing". $750.00 fine for no DOT numbers on his "rig".... and if it wasn't paid promptly, it would be $1,000.00.

This isn't some second-hand, internet story. It happened this year to one of our friends we race with at NMCA.

Your allowed to carry 100 gals of fuel in the proper
and labeled containers which is 2 55 gal drums(they
dont actually have 55 gals in them)... anything more
than that you need a CDL.. I use to carry 40 55 gal
drum to different events for Chrysler and had to get
a CDL due to this issue.. I was using a U-Haul truck
that didnt have any labeling but being that I was a
representative of Chrysler I had to be legal and ended
up getting the CDL.. but I dropped it a couple of years
later due to the hassles with it
EDIT
Also.. the drums MUST be grounded at ALL TIMES ... I
normally carry a 30 gal drum of fuel besides whats
in the fuel cell.. and the drum is grounded

The reason, we are an easy mark, with money in our pockets! Look at all the "groups" that can raise flack and sue back(and win) it's not worth the hassle to mess with them, but us little guys, we're fish in a barrel.

So in pa we can be 65ft overall length, with a fifth wheel and truck. Doesn't say for a bumper pull.

What?????

Your still allowed a max of 65'... some states show a max
trailer length and a max total length... thats the reason I
am not legal in IL... they have a max trailer length and I
am 3' over that but still within the total length(I run a
fifth wheel trailer)

http://insurancenewsnet.com/oarticle/201...p-a-512442.html


Many racers tell me that they do not put logos/signage on the hauler because of the DOT claiming it would be a commercial vehicle and that it would increase the cost of insurance and registration and require a special license. Others have told me there are no logos on their hauler because it would draw attention that they are hauling a race car and could result in the vehicle being stolen.

On top of that, fines are being levied for carrying fuel in a non-DOT-approved container (the fuel cell!) regardless of size and gross vehicle weight rating. As for the IRS saying racing is a hobby or a business, there are some proper procedures you should follow so that you do not get into tax troubles. Get a good accountant who can save you a heap of headaches.

Pretty sure that is no longer correct. Ohio did limit the speed based on weight a few yrs back but the law was changed. Now semi's, cars and mortorcycles have the same posted speed on the interstates.

Did some checking House Bill 2 in 2009 raised Ohios truck speed limit to 65mph, Then in 2013 raised it aagain to 70 mph to align it with the car speed limit of 70mph.

Check out Class racer forum. Check out the Stock/SS forum and look up the Illinois towing post. Joe Tueton gives a lot of great info. Apparently cops(local and state) don't know much about the laws they are trying to enforce and yes it seems to be a $$$$$ thing. Read all of Joe's posts.

Illinois is a communist state.

According to the OP posted link, if the driver doesn't have his IRS tax return with him ( a facetious comment in the link) and the LEO has any suspicion its a commercial use, he cites the driver and says tell it to the judge. Hard to believe a decal constitutes enough suspicion to warrant a citation.-What link are you referring to? I did not post a hyper link.

The link also mentions transporting fuel in a "non DOT approved fuel cell", I don't know of any DOT approved racing fuel cells.
-Again what link? Correct Racing Fuel Cells are not DOT approved , hence the citation

So now you know why I said "What???"

So drain the fuel cell and you would be legal on
that aspect

http://www.semasan.com/page.asp?content=DOT/UCR_Registration&g=SEMAGA

Is a stock tank DOT legal? Does this apply only to towing or driving a car with a fuel cell also?

A production fuel tank is approved, being that it
passes all fed impact test(we have a standard 301
that the car/truck must pass) to be able to sell
the car/truck... I dont know if a fuel cell is DOT
approved or not.. being that its sold for race car
use, I would think it passes testing OR the fuel cell
company would be sued if a failure occurred.. JMO
on the cell part

Most fuel cells are not DOT approved that was the reason for him getting the citation - Some fuel cells are DOT approved but they are mainly in Baja Trucks that run in California and they also meet Calf. CARB laws

Most Racing Fuel cells meet SFI certification and that is for Racing only
DOT is for use on Public streets and highways

See how smoothly things go when the government "helps" us?

I didn't read the link, but whatever it says, has probably been said before and is probably a law on the books NOW. The problem is, the laws are different in every state and even the officers don't really even understand what the law IS, nor how to enforce it. Boils down to this. If an officer WANTS to give you a ticket, he WILL and there will be some type of look at some law, that will allow him to do so. Luckily, most of the time, they never give race rigs, lettered or not, a passing glance. Stickers on a car or trailer does NOT automatically mean anything, other than you have stickers. I see trucks and cars running around all the time on the street with various stickers. Does that mean they automatically race for money? of course not and if you don't TELL anybody what you do with your car, they sure aren't going to know.

Stories like mentioned above, we hear about now and then and are likely all true. But out of the thousands and thousands of race rigs that get hauled all over every year, the incidents are a very small percentage. I have never much worried about it myself and have never been pulled over. For one 5 year stretch, I hauled my stuff all over the nation with no tag on the trailer and never once even got noticed

But WEIGHT is most guys problem. A gross of over 10,000lbs requires a DOT number. A dually, with an enclosed trailer of any size, race car and other items, WILL be over 10,000lbs. Just depends on if they choose to enforce it and check your weight

I believe at the PRI show there will be reps from the DOT and will take Q's and A"s.

That would be nice.. BUT the cops HAVE to know the
laws and enforce them when needed... not just because
they want to give out a ticket and say... tell it to
the judge.. I know damn a well that the guys hauling
to and from races/anywhere want to be legal.. we dont
want the hassles of being pulled over and maybe lay
out hundreds or thousands of bucks... if its out of
state you have to show up in court or just pay.. most
times its hard to make it to court... and I think that
is part of the reasons they give the tickets.... JMO

Mr P is right, only interpretation that matters to us is the guy's who is standing in front of us with the pen and ticket book.