There isn’t a single hauler driver for a NASCAR team that hasn’t been asked at some point during his career “hey, whatcha got in there?”  They get hollered at on their CB radios, asked at truck stops, and questioned at rest areas.  We’ve had some interest here from site visitors about what exactly the haulers carry to the track each week, so I figured I’d explain. 

The 70 foot long tractor/trailers that run up and down America’s highways each week with drivers and sponsors splashed on the sides of them are the mobile command centers for the teams.  Their main job is carrying the primary and backup race vehicles to the track.  But, these 18-wheelers are so much more.  The modern hauler has three main areas; an upper level where racecars are housed, a lower level, and a lounge.

Besides being the traveling garage for the racecars, the upper level also has room for scale bars, toe bars, observation deck ladders, fuel cans, and extra storage space way up front. 

The lower level of the trailer is a multi-purpose area and is accessed through those mirrored doors you normally see during driver interviews.  When the haulers are loaded at the shop the toolboxes, pitbox, and other equipment is loaded into the hallway of the lower level.  Along each side of this level are cabinets, drawers, and compartments chocked full of racing goodies.  There are springs, shocks, suspension pieces, spare engines, transmissions, rear ends, tons of nuts and bolts, office supplies, and anything else you would need to fix or setup a racecar.  Truck drivers also use this space to prepare food for the team and there is space for food storage and a refrigerator.  Some haulers even have sinks!  These trailers are completely customizable and many have locker space for crew members, couches, and monitors for scoring and TV coverage.

Lastly, the area in the very front of the trailer is designated for a lounge.  Lounges also serve many purposes, and in recent years have even been revamped.  Traditional lounges have couches, small tables, TVs and scoring monitors, and some small storage spaces.  Teams like Chip Ganassi Racing who have three seperate haulers at every race designate each lounge for a specific purpose: one for engineering, another for drivers, and the third for sponsors and guests.  A common setup these days is to have a lounge arranged like a conference room.  One big table in the middle with chairs all around.

So the next time you are rolling down Interstate 40 or 95 or 80 and a NASCAR hauler flies by, you’ll know what they’ve got in there.

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