Re: dot compliance
 

The whole "for profit" tact that the DOT is taking is suspect at best. First of all in any business cash flow doesn't constitute profit. Cash flow minus operating expenses etc. then equals profit. I've in this game long enough to know you have to win a lot of races to make a profit, especially when you factor in the "true" cost of the racecar, trailer, tow rig, tools, entry, the list goes on. The average guy doesn't make a "profit".

So if this is the direction the DOT is going, then every guy with a set of golf clubs in the back of his pickup who is heading for a golf tournament, or a guy with a little boat and a fishing pole heading for a fishing tournament should all be subject to the same rules, because there is the potential for profit. The whole thing smells.

We're easy targets.

Re: dot compliance
 

Question 21: Does the exemption in §390.3(f)(3) for the "occasional transportation of personal property by individuals not for compensation nor in the furtherance of a commercial enterprise" apply to persons who occasionally use CMVs to transport cars, boats, horses, etc., to races, tournaments, shows or similar events, even if prize money is offered at these events?

Guidance: The exemption would apply to this kind of transportation, provided: (1) The underlying activities are not undertaken for profit, i.e., (a) prize money is declared as ordinary income for tax purposes, and (b) the cost of the underlying activities is not deducted as a business expense for tax purposes; and, where relevant; (2) corporate sponsorship is not involved. Drivers must confer with their State of licensure to determine the licensing provisions to which they are subject


How a "consultant" can say that if you make a profit makes you commercial when this is on the books makes me curious how sharp the guy is. This question, guidance is in the dot book, and its to tell the dot cop how to interpret the law. Its federal.
The length is a bigger issue in my mind. There is no length limit for semis (surface trans act).

cw

Re: dot compliance
 

Ed

It isnt all about having a CDL
You may not need one but still come under DOT
And yes your correct medical is a big issue
You need a medical card even if it isnt CDL
If you have diabetes and take the shot each day
you cant drive anything that is DOT
You need to have a log book or time sheets
You can only drive so many hours in a 7 day period
And you have to keep track of hours working no matter what you are doing...
more to come.....

Re: dot compliance
 

Oh Ed it doent come down to if its an open trailer or enclosed
As you would say have a nice day.....

Re: dot compliance
 

Yes you need a CDL for more than 10, 000 pounds but you do not have to log if you are not in a commercial business. I know there is interpretations of what is a commercial business is. What Charlie Westcott was taking about, the exemption, not filing expenses from drag racing or any other endeavor as a deduction on your tax return, should beat a ticket in court.

Re: dot compliance
 

I have an appeal of a ticket for the 'is it commercial' and 'is it exempt' in North Carolina right now. This was a local Louisiana racer who got the treatment in NC. I have filed the appeal and have a hearing probably in March next year. Same crap, different state. Maybe it will set a prefrence. This one also deals with 'is it motor home' issue. Matter of fact, I need to find Jack Zimmerman and talk to him. He was at the meeting that the NC State Police had on one of the big NASCAR teams to address the issue, and of course the police did something else. More as it unfolds.

Re: dot compliance
 

Tony, you only need CDL if your GVW is over 26,000 pounds, not what your weight sticker on your plates show. they look on your trailer for GVW and your truck and add together, Like truck 11,400 plus three axles on trailer 6,000 each totals 29,400 pounds. DOT is different story, It depends on the state you are driving in and how you have your vehicle registered, In Nebraska you have to register your truck commercial or farm, if you drive a dually the scale boys known your GVW is over 10,000 pounds and most states want you to weigh at weigh station`s. But i drive by most of them, if they want me they come get me. Oklahoma chased me down and gave ticket in my dually. Tom

Re: dot compliance
 

A trailer that has a GVW of 10,001 lbs used in a commercial application requires a Class A cdl. 26,001 is for combinaton vehicles(truck and trailer) and single vehicles (straight trucks/ dump trucks) Basically if you were to hook a 10,001 gvw car trailer to the back of a pickup and you get paid to pull it down the road you need a class A cdl.

What pisses me off is I can hook my Buddies 40 foot speed boat to the back of my Dually and anybody can drive it anywhere in the country and have fun with it with NO PROBLEMS. My father who cant get regular cdl due to health and my son who just turned 18 can drive the farm semis anywhere with in 150 air miles of the farm NO PROBLEM. My mother who could not drive a hot nail in a snowbank Rented the biggest RV she could find last year hooked a car to the back of it and set out with her lady friends to knock down every pole, gas pump and mail box between her house and california NO PROBLEM. My sister and fathers girlfriend who drive about the same as my mother can do the same with a big *** horse trailer NO PROBLEM. But if I want to go down the road to have some fun with my race car I need a Class A cdl, Medical card, drug test myself, Dot numbers on my truck and keep track of all the hours I work all week for my logbook. Then my elected officals in Washington DC write a law and add a exemption for guys like me to race without it but my home state of IL as well as IN, OH, FL, and NC and most likely others decide to say that does not apply to their state.you better do it or its 2,500 fine for the driver and 25,000 to the owner of the truck. before any ladies get offended by the coments about my mom and sisters driving I am not being jerk they even admit that they should not be driving anything other than a car but my dad and I usually dont have time to take them so they are forced to drive the trucks and trailers or not go.

Re: dot compliance
 

My mother who could not drive a hot nail in a snowbank Rented the biggest RV she could find last year hooked a car to the back of it and set out with her lady friends to knock down every pole, gas pump and mail box between her house and california NO PROBLEM.

That right there was funny....

Re: dot compliance
 

If you put a DOT# on your pickup, how much do you think you should up your liability insurance?

What if you have that DOT# on there and get in a wreck? Then an ambulance chasing attorney is going to jump right and say you are a commercial vehicle and try to treat you like a semi truck. this could happen if you are towing, or just taking your tow vehicle out to get a gallon of milk!

i read the rules for the 10,001# trailer the way rob petrie does. if the gvw of the towed vehicle is 10,001 or more, you need a class a cdl.

but my feeling is that if no one is paying you to haul the vehicle, you aren't commercial.
you could be taking you dually out to the local casino with the possibility of winnning money also. do you need to stop at a weigh station on the way there too?