OOIDA’s tour trailer stops in Jackson, Miss.

March 15, 2021

Chuck Robinson

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The capital city of the state of Mississippi is where OOIDA’s tour trailer is scheduled to be for the first half of this week.

The Spirit of the American Trucker is scheduled to be at the Jackson, Miss., Petro Stopping Center through Wednesday, March 17 – St. Patrick’s Day.

The Jackson Petro is Exit 45 from I-20/I-55. There are 194 parking spots for tractor-trailers there, and the Iron Skillet dining room is open or sit-down service.

No parade, but museums

It looks to be a quieter St. Patrick’s Day season for Jackson than it has been. For the second year in a row, the Hal’s St. Paddy’s Parade in Jackson has been canceled because of the coronavirus. It has been a big blow-out to raise funds for the children’s hospital at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, but this year organizers are contemplating a virtual celebration on March 27.

If you can shake loose for a few hours, there are several museums in Jackson worth a visit. A rideshare won’t cost that much. They include the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum and the Museum of Mississippi History, which is next door.

For those artistically minded, there is the Mississippi Museum of Art, and the Eudora Welty House and Garden, which memorializes the work of the famous writer of Southern fiction. The Smith Robertson Museum and Cultural Center is dedicated to African-American art and culture.

Hammond, La., enough with the traffic circle

The first impression of Hammond for someone driving a tractor-trailer is that the city is too much in love with traffic circles, Osburn said.

There are four major truck stops at the exit The Spirit took to get to its scheduled stop, and the city seems to have gone hog wild replacing intersections with traffic circles, he said. The idea of traffic circles may look nice drawn out on a plan, and they may even work in Europe, he added, but not in the U.S.

“Europeans don’t have to drive through these things with a big tractor hauling a 53-foot trailer,” Osburn said.

Stop by when you see The Spirit

If you see OOIDA’s tour trailer, stop by and say hello to Osburn. He enjoys visiting about the Association’s activities and current issues. He usually has copies of Land Line Magazine to hand out. You can join or renew your membership for $10 off the regular price there. Face masks are available for anyone with a commercial driver’s license at The Spirit. You also can get forms for drivers without medical insurance to get flu, shingles and pneumonia vaccine vouchers at The Spirit.

After Jackson, The Spirit is scheduled to stop March 19-21 in West Memphis, Ark.

Here is the schedule for The Spirit. LL