Event Coverage Road Trip! D/FW - VLV via Route 66!

Thanks for the ride Mr! I'll be seein ya'll later then! Drive carefully now, ya hear!

 

If I had my way, all the interstate highways would catch a disease and crumble into dust tomorrow. They are great for getting somewhere fast without seeing anything. That was the joke in 1960, and it's the awful truth today.

We made several trips back and forth between Denver, CO, and Muskegon, MI, by the time I was 10. That was before interstate highways. One trip was with one of my mother's cousins, two families traveling in a 1949 Ford Woody Station Wagon and camping beside the highway each night. Lots of good memories of lots of good little towns back then.

I've seen almost everything you posted photos of, since we've traveled all 48 states in a truck and taken side trips in a rented car. Of all the states, Utah is our favorite just for the striking scenery.

By the way, I remember when Whiting Bros. operated a chain of truck stops, each one with a motel.

 

Killer thread........great photos.........
who would have thought there would be that many gray 60 Ford Station wagons around. They must have been very popular

 

Thank you very much! I was every day checking updates and enjoyed my time on this. Please do the same with your next trips.

 

wow......imagine that.....wonder where it went?

Thanks for sharing the journey...I did it(66) in 95, and visited Bob last month....good times, lifetime memories.

 

I really believe that sometimes the destination is not nearly as important as the "road trip"......thanks. I really looked forward to this thread.

 

that was sure a cool road trip ,i got my kicks,thanks for the tour !!!

 

Well, I've crunched the numbers and this is what I came up with. On the trip, Stevan & I covered 2660 miles, burning roughly 194 gallons of gas (on a couple of stops I forgot to get the gas ticket, so I guessed as to how many gallons we took), averaging around 14 m.p.g. The least we paid for gas was in Bushland, TX. @ $3.59 with the highest being in N. Las Vegas where it was $3.92.
It was one heck of a trip and I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat! Most of the time, Stevan & I were like Buzz & Todd from the t.v. series "Route 66". Sometimes, we felt like Frank & Mike from "American Pickers" while we were keeping our eyes open for cool junk along the highway. And, had the Oatman Hotel upstairs area been open, we might have been like Grant & Adam from "Ghosthunters".
I'll always have fond memories of the trip. From the waitress who's standard greeting was, "Ya'll sit anywhere you'd like, hon?" to the tumbleweed that blew across the highway in front of us as we were entering Shamrock, TX. Or the familiar echo from all the business owners along Route 66 about how bad things were. Or the lighthearted kidding among two friends who, using the time between gas stops or photo ops, mentally built cars where the phrase, 'What if you did this?' was an invitation to bump it up a notch on the car build.
I learned some things from taking a ten day car trip with Stevan. The main one being, in order to avoid a face full of water, remember to point the shower head down when someone taller than you takes a shower first!

Thanks again for all of your comments about the trip. Those comments made updating this thread worthwhile.

 

Or you could take a shower with him and use him as a shield.

 

Absolutely!!!

 

The shots of the old theatres are awesome. Working in Theatre myself, its cool to see the shots of them. Thanks for posting this amazing trip!!

 

After reading your excellent post, I have decided, I, too, would like to become a photo journalist.
Yes. thats it, a photo journalist AND a free lance gynecologist.
Great story , blog and travelog, all wrapped up into one.
Thanks for the ride.

 

We left our mark on the red truck at the midpoint cafe a year ago.
do you have a picture of the grill of that truck?

 

thanks foir taking me on your road trip, got to see cool stuff ill probably never get to see in person very cool

thanks again

 

Unfortunately, I didn't get a shot of the whole grill. Just the one that I posted is as much of the grill that I got.

 

I feel like I just read the damn best coffee table book ever!!
Your commitment to this road trip documentary ---jeez imagine a film version!!!---
is phenomenal! Thanks so much!

 

Wow! What a treat, thanks for sharing.
V/8

 

Wow. Missed this thread until now. Spent the morning enjoying immensely. Fan-Frickin-Tastic!!!

 

So cool. Can I go along next time?

 

How good will it be telling your story 30,40,50 years from now.this trip will live with you guys forever.Just fantastic,just fantastic

 

Lar, great trip...finally read this today, from start to finish...took me two hours...!!!

One thing about doing a "trip thread" is that one can read it days after the event and still find neat things in it.

The canyon going up into St. George, Utah, from Mesquite, NV on I-15, is called the Virgin River Canyon...and the trip thru Zion is gorgeous...took a 20 foot trailer thru that tunnel at about 5:45 one evening last October...the Rangers held traffic at the other end for us since we had to run the center of the tunnel so as to not to hit the sides of it and do damage to the trailer. We actually stayed overnite at the motel you pictured there in Junction.

Great thread...love reading about other's trips...especially on the highways and the places I've travelled...and as you know, I've been doing those kinds of trips since 1977...I built my first '57 for highway flying...and still doing it.

R-

PS...is there still any of the original "Top Tin" guys left around...???

 

It's good to hear from you, Roger! Thanks for checking out this thread. Yeah, there are three of us left in the club from back in the day with me being the last of the four founding members still with 'em. Top Tin celebrated thirty-six years as a club last Halloween. Who'd have known that we would have lasted that long, huh?

 

Great coverage. I did the same trip along the same route last year, got as far as Needles California. The drive to Oatman reminded me of the old roads at home, was fun when an 18 wheeler was coming from the other direction. We did from the Red Barn in Oklahoma, now I have to go east from the Red barn some day to Chicago. Was a great trip and I have over 500 photos and hours of video.

 

Just saw this thread...awesome.

 

Yes, we are going to do it again next year....Shamrock to Needles up to VLV and around the north rim back to Flag.
Seriously, it could be like a rolling car show.
No fast food, no Motel 6's......all old school. mom & pops and motor courts.

For those who can't make it, my wife is writing a book about the trip.
Think "Grapes of Wrath" for the Hot Rodder.
Hey Faith, wanna come along and film it?

 

Saw your wagon on 6th st in Amarillo last weekend for the Rt 66 festival--wife really liked it too. I have been living opn or driving 66 for over 50 years. The museum in San Jon is a good place for a break.

 

Just saw this thread, man what a great read, great stories, great pictures. Never drove Route 66, have dreamt it, maybe when my truck is all dialed in.

Thanks for all the work you put in this, many of us have truly appreciated it.

 

I have always wanted to drive across the country following as much of Route 66 as possible and have talked about it from time to time but after following this thread from the 1st post I decided it's time. I bought a very nice Custom to drive out there, tickets and a room for Viva and a couple of cool iPad apps for Rt66...stay tuned.

 

TTM and I are going to do it again next year, just with more wagons.
Come join us, the more the better.
it's going to be even better this time.

 

I've been talking to him about...I plan to take this.