Last Eight Days Off Duty

[UT_Thomas]

I have been out of the trucking field for about eight months now. I started a new job with a small company I worked for in the past. I leave with my first load tomorrow morning. Here is my issue/question. With larger companies they have always given me a form saying I was not working the last eight days.

My new employer told me to just write on my log Off Duty Last Eight Days on my new log. So first is this all I need to do? Do I create a log for Today shows off duty all day and write that in the remarks section or do I write it in the remarks of the log I start tomorrow?

Also, I am headed into California with a flatbed trailer. It is a three axle trailer and I am not sure what the weight limits would be with it in CA. I know with the normal trailer it is 12K steer, 34k drives, and 34k on trailer. Is it the same or can I add a little weight?

Thanks,

Tom

[Rev.Vassago]

My new employer told me to just write on my log Off Duty Last Eight Days on my new log. So first is this all I need to do? Do I create a log for Today shows off duty all day and write that in the remarks section or do I write it in the remarks of the log I start tomorrow?


Yes, you need to fill out a log for today showing yourself off duty, and then in the remarks section, put "Off Duty 8/8/09 - 8/15/09", and include the city and state. Then fill out tomorrow's log normally.

[AC120]

Also, I am headed into California with a flatbed trailer. It is a three axle trailer and I am not sure what the weight limits would be with it in CA. I know with the normal trailer it is 12K steer, 34k drives, and 34k on trailer. Is it the same or can I add a little weight?

Tom, it depends on the distance between the center points of your first and third axles. Up to eight feet you're a tandem group as far as California is concerned, so, yeah, it's 34,000 tops.

California rounds axle distances to the nearest whole foot. So if your first-to-third axle distance is 8'5", they'll call it eight feet. Again, that's 34,000 max. If your rounded-to-the-nearest-whole-foot-distance is nine feet, it's 42,500; 10 feet is 43,500. When it's exactly six inches, they round up. 8'6" is measured as nine feet.

My info is from an old California Commercial Vehicle Code print out. It says, "Chapter 5. Weight. Article 1. Axle Limits, Section 35550." I hope this helps. Measure carefully and scale out. Expect California to measure your spread--they do not fool around. Safe trip.

[AC120]

Here it is:

http://law.justia.com/california/codes/veh/35550-35558.html

[UT_Thomas]

Thanks a bunch! I am really looking forward to getting back on the road. I just hate trying to find parking in CA for the night. I am hoping to be able to stay at Hesperia tomorrow night. It will be Sunday so maybe I will get lucky :)

[AC120]

Thanks a bunch! I am really looking forward to getting back on the road. I just hate trying to find parking in CA for the night. I am hoping to be able to stay at Hesperia tomorrow night. It will be Sunday so maybe I will get lucky :)


Well, there's the Hesperia Pilot and that other truck stop (don't recall the name). And then there's the economy, so hopefully you won't have a problem finding a place to park between the two! The Outpost restaurant (right behind the Pilot; Pilot bought the Outpost truck stop and rebuilt and re-branded) used to serve reasonably good food. Safe trip.