DOT and towing race cars

james schaechter · 12-01-2013, 12:46 PM

I was going through some old paperwork and came across a couple letters that I received in response to my disagreement with the Iowa DOT and pulling racecars. In this case, it was a friend pulling an unlettered 24 ft enclosed race trailer with his personal pick up truck. He was travelling from Earville Iowa to home in Nebraska. The first letter shows the initial response and the second one after several lengthy discussions with a very helpful Iowa State Trooper. I know that there are a lot of discussions on this topic, but I thought some printed correspondence would be interesting for many of you. Jim.
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/h...ps9b147b27.jpg

http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/h...ps4c380d29.jpg

art leong · 12-01-2013, 02:33 PM

When stopped. If asked. You say it's a car. If pressed you say it's a show car. You participate for trophies not cash.
If you blurt out "that's my race car". You might be in trouble.

HandOverFist · 12-01-2013, 02:36 PM

Don't place decals on your trailer...out of sight, out of mind.

chevy620 · 12-01-2013, 04:28 PM

James,
I applied for and received an "oversize annual permit" for Iowa and I have one for Florida as well. About $25 ea.
In Iowa I am good for 80', 24 hours a day with no escort car needed. Same for Florida.
I have the name of my company on the trailer 6' x 2' and the company owns the trailer. It is not commercial and it is not for hire. If I win any money it is claimed on my personal income taxes and is no way to be confused with a "commercial enterprise". So far no issues with the decals but I got measured this Spring so I got the Permit. The DOT officer did NOT know they offered such a thing.

Be safe out there and have a great Holiday Season.

Jok

james schaechter · 12-01-2013, 05:55 PM

Jok, do you have to live in Iowa to get that? My brother got pulled over in our RV tag trailer combo once when we were on the wayhome to Illinois. If I could get a permit, we might get a 26 ft trailer next time. We are at 64 feet but anything over 65 in Iowa would have been an issue. How does a person apply or purchase this?

In the case above that I posted about,mthere was nothing that would idenify this truck and trailer as a racecar. No stickers, not over length. They were just trying to take advantage of their position of power to steal some money. At least the Governor's office allowed for some thoughtful follow up. Don't trust them just because they work for the DOT. They may be wrong in their interpretation of the regulations.

Painter · 12-01-2013, 06:13 PM

I have plenty of experience with DOT officers. We move oversize boats all the time. You have to keep in mind that right or wrong He is the law on the side of the road. Most trucking companies just pay the fines rather than travel to fight it in court several times. Jeff Teuton has excellent infornmation we all need. Our Associations should put forth some effort like was done in North Carolina a few years ago. The overlength permits are a good idea where available. Florida's annual overlength is only $20.00.

art leong · 12-01-2013, 06:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Painter

I have plenty of experience with DOT officers. We move oversize boats all the time. You have to keep in mind that right or wrong He is the law on the side of the road. Most trucking companies just pay the fines rather than travel to fight it in court several times. Jeff Teuton has excellent infornmation we all need. Our Associations should put forth some effort like was done in North Carolina a few years ago. The overlength permits are a good idea where available. Florida's annual overlength is only $20.00.

Yes. And you can apply for it and do the whole thing online. Plus you don't have to be a Florida resident.
I had one when I had the 48' trailer. It was 68' end to end.

BillK · 12-01-2013, 08:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by art leong

When stopped. If asked. You say it's a car. If pressed you say it's a show car. You participate for trophies not cash.
If you blurt out "that's my race car". You might be in trouble.

I would say that is lying and could possibly get you in a heap more trouble than telling the truth. Especially with Law Enforcement personnel.

Chad Rhodes · 12-01-2013, 09:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BillK

I would say that is lying and could possibly get you in a heap more trouble than telling the truth. Especially with Law Enforcement personnel.

You mean revenue enforcement

james schaechter · 12-01-2013, 09:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chad Rhodes

You mean revenue enforcement

More like Revenue Enhancement! If you claim racing as a business you should declare it as such and pay the appropriate fees if they are different. I also believe that there should be some changes to the regulations. My main point was that the local DOT does not always know what they are talking about. If you get stuck, and don't agree, you can at least follow up afterwards and try to, make it right. The federal regs have exemptions that apply to 99.9 percent of sportsman racers, and the DOT is not always aware of this. In this case, I was able to find some good people in Government that listened and made corrections.

12-01-2013, 12:46 PM	#1
james schaechter VIP Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Cumming GA Posts: 1,928 Likes: 1,064 Liked 1,212 Times in 249 Posts	DOT and towing race cars I was going through some old paperwork and came across a couple letters that I received in response to my disagreement with the Iowa DOT and pulling racecars. In this case, it was a friend pulling an unlettered 24 ft enclosed race trailer with his personal pick up truck. He was travelling from Earville Iowa to home in Nebraska. The first letter shows the initial response and the second one after several lengthy discussions with a very helpful Iowa State Trooper. I know that there are a lot of discussions on this topic, but I thought some printed correspondence would be interesting for many of you. Jim. http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/h...ps9b147b27.jpg http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/h...ps4c380d29.jpg __________________ James Schaechter 3163 STK

12-01-2013, 02:33 PM	#2
art leong VIP Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Richmond Hill, Georgia Posts: 2,003 Likes: 0 Liked 1 Time in 1 Post	Re: DOT and towing race cars When stopped. If asked. You say it's a car. If pressed you say it's a show car. You participate for trophies not cash. If you blurt out "that's my race car". You might be in trouble. __________________ Art Leong 2095 SS

12-01-2013, 02:36 PM	#3
HandOverFist VIP Member Join Date: Oct 2013 Location: Gulf Breeze, FL Posts: 1,655 Likes: 8 Liked 33 Times in 16 Posts	Re: DOT and towing race cars Don't place decals on your trailer...out of sight, out of mind. __________________ Rich Taylor I/SA - 321

12-01-2013, 04:28 PM	#4
chevy620 Banned Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 188 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: DOT and towing race cars James, I applied for and received an "oversize annual permit" for Iowa and I have one for Florida as well. About $25 ea. In Iowa I am good for 80', 24 hours a day with no escort car needed. Same for Florida. I have the name of my company on the trailer 6' x 2' and the company owns the trailer. It is not commercial and it is not for hire. If I win any money it is claimed on my personal income taxes and is no way to be confused with a "commercial enterprise". So far no issues with the decals but I got measured this Spring so I got the Permit. The DOT officer did NOT know they offered such a thing. Be safe out there and have a great Holiday Season. Jok

12-01-2013, 05:55 PM	#5
james schaechter VIP Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Cumming GA Posts: 1,928 Likes: 1,064 Liked 1,212 Times in 249 Posts	Re: DOT and towing race cars Jok, do you have to live in Iowa to get that? My brother got pulled over in our RV tag trailer combo once when we were on the wayhome to Illinois. If I could get a permit, we might get a 26 ft trailer next time. We are at 64 feet but anything over 65 in Iowa would have been an issue. How does a person apply or purchase this? In the case above that I posted about,mthere was nothing that would idenify this truck and trailer as a racecar. No stickers, not over length. They were just trying to take advantage of their position of power to steal some money. At least the Governor's office allowed for some thoughtful follow up. Don't trust them just because they work for the DOT. They may be wrong in their interpretation of the regulations. __________________ James Schaechter 3163 STK Last edited by james schaechter; 12-01-2013 at 06:02 PM.

12-01-2013, 06:13 PM	#6
Painter Member Join Date: Dec 2012 Posts: 227 Likes: 4 Liked 161 Times in 45 Posts	Re: DOT and towing race cars I have plenty of experience with DOT officers. We move oversize boats all the time. You have to keep in mind that right or wrong He is the law on the side of the road. Most trucking companies just pay the fines rather than travel to fight it in court several times. Jeff Teuton has excellent infornmation we all need. Our Associations should put forth some effort like was done in North Carolina a few years ago. The overlength permits are a good idea where available. Florida's annual overlength is only $20.00.