OOIDA on the road – June 2023
The truck show season is hot and heavy during the summer. Marty Ellis plans to hit as many as he can as he tours the U.S. reaching out to professional truck drivers.
He plans to be at the American Truck Historical Society national convention and truck show on June 8-10 in Reno, Nev.
After that, the Southern Idaho Truck Show; Walcott Jamboree at the Iowa 80 truck stop in Walcott, Iowa; Rigs at the Run at the Buffalo Run Casino in Miami, Okla.; and the Top Gun Large Car Shoot Out in Rantoul, Ill., are all on the schedule.
Truck shows are good places to talk with drivers because the ELD isn’t chasing down every second, so folks may have a little extra time. Some shows have things for the kids to do while the parents are talking, too. Most shows are very safe and family-friendly, Ellis said.
The varied locations of the shows and other stops on the tour trailer schedule help OOIDA connect with a varied cross-section of the professional trucking community, Ellis says
“If you’re near the oil fields, there are a lot of local frack sand folks, and in more rural farmland you have farmers that also have and operate trucks,” Ellis said.
Likewise, areas with a lot of food manufacturers, you get more reefers, cow trucks and hopper bottoms. If there are machinery makers in the area, they draw flatbeds, lowboys and drop decks.
There are usually basic concerns at all the stops, such as truck parking, restroom access and brokers. However, rural areas are more in tune with ag exemption issues, and every region has different concerns when it comes to law enforcement.
Ellis discusses the issues and funnels back to OOIDA the concerns he hears about from truckers.
Stop by when you see the trailer at a truck stop or a truck show. Let Ellis know what you have been coming up against and share your story with him. LL