DAYTONA BEACH — With locals still complaining about last weekend's Daytona Truck Meet event which resulted in more than 2,000 police citations, 77 arrests and nearly two dozen crashes, Daytona Beach is set to host another truck-related event Friday and Saturday.
But officials at the Ocean Center, which is hosting the 2018 Florida Truck Driving Championships, say this event will be something locals should welcome.
"This is in no way whatsoever similar to last week's event (the Daytona Truck Meet at Daytona International Speedway), though the timing is ironic," Tim Riddle, Ocean Center deputy director, said in an email.
Instead of monster trucks, this weekend's event will showcase the driving skills of commercial truck drivers and will also include educational sessions, according to officials with the Florida Trucking Association, the group putting on the Florida Truck Driving Championships.
It also is expected to provide a boost to the local tourism industry, filling 1,700 hotel rooms, according to Riddle.
"There will be no trucks doing donuts on the (Ocean Center's) East Plaza," Riddle said. "It's a 'professional' association meeting, just like any other professional association group we host throughout the year."
Bob Davis, president and CEO of the Lodging & Hospitality Association of Volusia County, who was strongly critical of the Daytona Truck Meet because of the rowdy crowds it drew, said he considers the Florida Trucking Association event "a good event."
"It's commercial truckers. Nothing like last week," Davis said in an email.
The Florida Truck Driving Championships event will test the skills of 259 of the "best (commercial truck) drivers in the state ... showcasing their safe driving skills and knowledge of the industry," according to Alix Miller, the Florida Trucking Association's vice president.
The event will also be "family friendly" and free and open to the public to attend, according to a news release from the association.
This will be the third year in a row that the Ocean Center has hosted the event, which last year drew more than 1,000 people for its awards banquet.
"It's a two-day skills competition where the winners will go on to (compete for) the National Truck Drivers Association (championship)," Miller said. "It's not jumping trucks over obstacles. It's a skills-based event that includes a written test, a pretrip inspection and a skills course such as having to approach a bullsye and honking when the driver thinks he's over the bulls-eye. ... Another portion of the course is to reverse these trucks, as they have to do in parking lots, loading docks. The space is extremely narrow and requires exacting driving."
The participants will include drivers from companies such as FedEx, Publix Super Markets, UPS and Walmart. Drivers will compete in different classes, including tanker, 3- to 5-axle, auto transport and flatbed.
The event will also have 90 volunteers from Florida Trucking Association member companies.
The event will be Friday, 7:15 a.m. to 3 p.m., and Saturday, 7:15 a.m. to 2 p.m. The beachside Ocean Center is at 101 N. Atlantic Ave.