As drag racers in the eastern U.S. prepare to head down to Florida to finish
off the season, they might do well to bear this in mind: the Florida DOT is
intent on enforcing section 390 of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations.
While most race rigs probably already comply with this national statute
regarding commercial vehicles, a few circle track racers were caught unawares a
couple months back.
As reported in the August 22 issue of National Speed Sport News by NSSN staff
writer John Clayton, a group of racers traveling through Florida turned around
and went home, apparently facing heavy fines for not being in compliance with
commercial vehicle requirements.
According to Keith Johnson, director of the American Sprint Car Series
Coastal Region, this action nearly killed attendance for his event at Southern
Raceway in Milton, FL.
“It had something to do with the length of the trailer behind the axles,”
Johnson reported, “the (graphics) on the trailers, if you had any kind of
sponsors on the trailers…You had to have a CDL (commercial driver licenses)
whether it was their motorhome type or not… I cancelled my race there for next
year; I’m not going to go back.”