OOIDA tour trailer stops in Utah, Nevada

Marty Ellis plans to have the OOIDA tour trailer in Toole, Utah, on Friday, June 2, and then on Sunday and Monday, June 4-5, in Wells, Nev.

The June 2 stop will be at the TA Travel Center at Toole. That is on Exit 99 from Interstate 80. Toole is west of Salt Lake City and just south of the Great Salt Lake. There is parking for 191 tractor-trailers there. Burger King and Taco Bell Express are there plus grab-and-go food.

The June 4-5 stop will be at the Petro truck stop in Wells, about 160 miles from the stop in Toole. That is Exit 352A from I-80. There is parking for 250 tractor-trailers there, plus an Iron Skillet restaurant and a Dunkin’ restaurant.

The Toole TA is the truck stop that commemorates Doug Smith, 2022 Citizen Driver and an OOIDA life member from Bountiful, Utah.

Westlake, Ohio-based TravelCenters of America launched the award in 2013 to recognize the professional drivers who keep America moving.

Concerns about nuclear jury verdicts

On Friday Land Line Now broadcasts, Ellis shares some of his concerns about what he sees and hears from other drivers on the road. Last Friday, he aired some concerns about nuclear verdicts by juries. He read about a $100 million verdict that he thinks was absolutely insane. He thought it would have been cut on appeal, but so far it has not.

“I’m really confused, because I was reading through some that information on that particular case, and there must be something that I’m missing because I don’t still see where the truck driver or even the trucking company did something wrong,” Ellis said.

The weather was bad, he noted, but it was not bad enough for the state to shut down the roads. The truck was going 40-45 mph, so the driver was being cautious. It was actually a passenger vehicle that crossed the median and collided into the tractor-trailer. Yet, the company and the driver were found mostly at fault.

He said it was an insane amount of money. Do verdicts like that one mean drivers need to rethink any time there is bad weather whether or not they should be on the road, he asked.

Listen to the segment here.

 Stop by when you see The Spirit

If you see the OOIDA tour trailer, stop by and say hello. Ellis looks forward to visiting about the Association’s activities and current issues. There are copies of Land Line Magazine to pick up there. You can join or renew your membership with the OOIDA 50th anniversary promotion of two years for $50. That’s a $40 savings. You can use the promotion as many times as you like.

After Toole and Wells, Ellis plans to haul the OOIDA tour trailer to Reno, Nev., and then Boise, Idaho.

Find upcoming Spirit stops here. LL