Originally Posted by motofool250r
rabbit earlier you mentioned getting a tag for the vehicles weight, you mean licensing the trailer in that state correct? well considering i dont have an address in any of those states i dont see how i could license them there anyway to drive through the sate.
ive talked to a local guy who pulls his trailer 30' with 40' motorhome from texas to oklahoma and back.
hes over length in both states by 5' hes been pulled over a couple times because he has stickers on it and they harass him about a CDL and log books because they say he races for money. (which he does) but they never mentioned getting a length ticket.
i would like to find a way to be legal to do this but so far i have not found a way to do it 100% correct which is the same for alot of things in life.
so from the earlier post i should stay out of florida and NC while towing a big trailer that is good info.
BEFORE ANYBODY READS THIS NOTHING IS NEW AND NOTHING HAS CHANGED FOR 2013, SO DON'T START PANICKING ABOUT D.O.T. STUFF. DRIVE. HAUL, RACE JUST LIKE YOU DID LAST YEAR!!
Not much I can add as far as being over length. It is what it is! lol
Stickers draw big attention to a racer. I'll explain the sticker issue as a DOT officer sees it.
1 You are a business and you are advertising your products or you are advertising your business / products. If you are a business you ARE COMMERCIAL. Having the tow vehicle registered in the business name obviously for tax reasons is what causes many guys their issues with the DOT. If that vehicle ( even a 3/4 or 1 ton pickup) is registered in the business name it may be a commercial vehicle. (that doesn't mean he has to have a CDL or do a log book, but MAY need a DOT physical) I got a ticket in my F450 service truck ( no trailer) for not having a DOT physical in 1995)
2. You are a racer that has sponsors that
pay you to use their products.
It is impossible for an officer to say you made $ unless he was actually at the track and saw you get your $, but the decals are a excuse for him to be able to pull your vehicle over for " an inspections" to see what he may find. All an officer needs is a "reasonable cause" to pull you over and for a DOT officer that can be about anything. Decals DRAW ATTENTION.
I'll also add that he honestly is not concerned about the money you won at the track, it's about the tax breaks you get from the advertising your doing with those vehicles. Many business use their race program as a BIG tax right off as "advertising".
I've heard so many rumors from racers about the DOT telling me I need to get a CDL, but didn't give me a ticket. B.S. DOT DOESN'T GIVE WARNING. THEY GIVE TICKETS TO GET $ FOR THEIR STATE.
You have to have the correct weight tag from
your tag office in the state you register the vehicle when you get your tag.
Just like my dually, if I go in the tag office and just pick up a tag it's only good for a 10,000lb trailer. I have to tell them to tag me for a xxx weight. That only cost about $20 more, but I have to have it.
Some states are a lot worse than others. NC because off so many NASCAR and dirt track guys for many years were racing for large amounts $$, getting the tax breaks, not abiding by the DOT laws and eventually the DOT got involved.
Even at that it's still very rare they pull over a race trailer of any kind.
If an officer pulls you over you don't have to tell him anything about what you do or where you have been. He has no way to prove that you race for money or not or even that you were racing. You don't have to tell him anything and you shouldn't !! It even opens up a can of worms about how much fuel you have it the trailer. Some states you can haul as many 5 gallon cans as you want. Some states say no more than 55 gallons, some no more than 500 gal. Best advise on that is just make sure your fuel is in some kind of approved container and securely tied down.
This is nothing new it's been this way for many years, but every year about this time of the year you start hearing rumors about CDL, DOT #'s etc.
2 or 3 years ago a friend started his DOT CDL, DOT log book, need #'s, that he heard somebody got a ticket, we can't haul more than 5 gallons of fuel crap again and I told him to load up his 40' Goosneck behind his dually and go get his CDL w/ combinations and HAZMAT endorsement with it then I'll believe it! lol
They would laugh at him all week if he tried it.
BEFORE YOU READ THIS LOOK AT THE 2ND PAGE AT EXEMPTIONS!!
It states for recreational vehicles for personal use. That is the part so many people don't pay attention too and it's the most important part for us!! lol And yes, a race car trailer is "personal use" so don't think it's only for a true RV with water, and it's own power source.
That is where the idea of using " Not for Hire" on our trailers came from. It was started by the girls in the tag office and they don't know shit about the DOT laws! That was actually told to me by a DOT officer! lol
