So long, Florida; The Spirit is headed for Alabama

For the next stop for OOIDA’s tour trailer, the Spirit of the American Trucker, skipper Jon Osburn leaves Vero Beach, Fla., behind and heads some 700 miles northwest to Dodge City, Ala.

The Spirit is scheduled to be at the Dodge City Petro from Sunday, April 15 through Tuesday, April 17. The Dodge City Petro is north of Birmingham, Ala., on Interstate 65. It is Exit 299.

On this trip, Jon gets to spend time on I-75, which stretches from southern Florida to northern Michigan. It is the second-longest interstate highway in the U.S. Only I-95, which goes from southern Florida to northern Maine, is longer.

I-75 and passes through six states: Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio and Michigan.

During his stay in the Sunshine State, Jon said the many truck hauling huge amounts of fresh produce was impressive. However, there is still confusion among truckers about ELDs and hours of service exemptions for ag haulers.

Perhaps the following will help with the confusion.

HOS regulations do not apply to drivers transporting agricultural commodities within a 150-air mile radius from the source of the commodities. Once past the 150-mile radius, hours-of-service rules kick in and drivers has to log their miles.

An ELD exemption announced in March by FMCSA gives ag haulers until June 18 to adopt an electronic logging device.

The confusion, Jon says, it over what is considered an ag hauler. If you are transporting cabbage or oranges from the field to the packinghouse, you are an ag hauler. If you are hauling fresh produce from a packinghouse to a retailer, you are not an ag hauler, and the ag hauler exemptions do not apply to you.

Whenever you see The Spirit tour truck, go say hello to Jon. He enjoys visiting about the Association’s activities and current issues. You also can join or renew your OOIDA membership for $10 off the regular price there. Also, you can get vouchers for free flu, shingles and pneumonia vaccines from Jon at The Spirit.