Tulsa shattered a world record on Saturday after a total of 3,596 classic vehicles participated in the Route 66 Capital Cruise.
That surpassed the previous record by more than 1,100 vehicles.
The event also drew an estimated 100,000 spectators along Route 66 in the city, according to various media reports.
Cars departed from Expo Square on Saturday morning and went 5 1/2 miles down the Mother Road.
If you have a few hours to kill, McPeek Adventures videotaped the entire parade and posted it on YouTube:
In all, the event to celebrate Route 66’s centennial lasted about 3 1/2 hours. Cruise participants came from 42 states, Canada and France.
News on 6 in Tulsa reported:
Guinness World Records adjudicator Michael Empric announced the record after officials verified participating vehicles and reviewed event requirements.
“The mark to beat was set in Puerto Rico in 2017, and that was 2,491 vehicles,” Empric said. “Today, I can announce in Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA, you had a total of 3,596 vehicles. Congratulations. You are officially amazing.”
The previous Guinness World Record for the largest parade of classic vehicles was set in Puerto Rico in 2017 with 2,491 vehicles.
The record-breaking bid required that vehicles in the parade be made in 1996 or earlier. Guinness docked a few vehicles from the official count, but Tulsa still broke the record by a comfortable margin.
Tulsa Mayor Monroe Nichols was one of the grand marshals, along with “Route 66: The Mother Road” author and longtime Tulsa resident Michael Wallis, Vice Grip Garage founder Derek Bieri, descendants of Cyrus “The Father of the Mother Road” Avery and Oklahoma Lt. Gov. Matt Pinnell.
The parade stationed tow trucks along the route in case mechanical issues popped up.
Fox 23 in Tulsa, however, pointed out that about 1,400 cars didn’t make it into the parade for various reasons.
Husky told FOX23 that some people were turned away for arriving to the parade line up too late. Drivers were set to arrive between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m.
According to Husky, organizers even extended the time to 11 a.m., officially closing the line up at 11:07 due to the time slated for the parade.
Husky explained that the reason for the low record number compared to the number of sign-ups was due to some people being turned away, some people not showing up, and the Guinness Adjudicator ruling some participants out due to their cars not meeting certain criteria.
Vice Grip Garage, one of the promoters, stated that it was “deeply saddened, completely gutted, and ultimately embarrassed” that hundreds were unable to participate in the parade.
It added that the event “was grossly unprepared for the turnout it received, and its ending came far earlier than many expected.”
(Image from the Route 66 Capital Cruise by the University of Tulsa)