The founders of the Route 66 Navigation app and Route 66 Passport program announced Monday they have assumed ownership of the Historic Route 66 website, at historic66.com.
Marian Pavel and Jan Svrcek take over the reins of the oldest Route 66 site on the internet, established in 1994 by the husband-and-wife team of Swa Frantzen and Nadine Pelicaen.
In fact, the website on Monday already bore the copyright being owned by Pavel’s Touch Media.
“We have maintained the website in that old-timer spirit of giving back to the community that helped create it. However, we are at a point in our lives where it’s time to pass on the torch to somebody who will let it grow further than it would under our supervision. We’re happy to announce that we have found that torchbearer,” Frantzen stated in a news release.
The Facebook group Historic66, the website’s Facebook page and Instagram account will carry on without changes.
Historic66.com will be redesigned in the coming months and continue to serve as a source of useful information when planning a trip on Route 66.
“We are honored to take over a project with a 26-year tradition from Nadine and Swa. With love for historic Route 66, we will continue to develop the Historic66.com project with the largest group of Route 66 roadies on Facebook to be a useful source of information and a place where people can plan their life trip or share their joy of driving on Mother Road. Route 66 Navigation, Route 66 Passport, and Historic66 will provide their services to more than 50,000 people every year while on Route 66 or planning to do so soon,” Marián Pavel said.
“We see a great love for Route 66 both in words, as well as in the actions of Marián and Jan. We’re sure the website and the community that supports it is in caring and capable hands to let it flourish,” Frantzen said.
“We’ll always keep Route 66 in our hearts, even as we take on a less active role,” Pelicaen added.
Frantzen, who hails from Belgium, gave a fascinating “Route 66 Through the Eyes of Europeans” presentation during the 2015 Miles of Possibility Conference in Edwardsville, Illinois.
In 2008, Frantzen won the top award at the 2008 Will Rogers Awards Event in Litchfield, Illinois, for his pioneering work on the website. Frantzen said during his acceptance speech he began setting up the site after initial attempts to find more information online about Route 66 failed.
(Screen capture of the Historic66.com website)