I recently received a message from Yves Barbreau of France, who plans to take an ultra-marathon team to America in September 2008 so it can run one marathon a day in eight days, on each of the eight Route 66 states. It is called Team Globules, boasting a two-time French marathon champion and a winner … Continue reading Running marathons on all eight Route 66 states
Category: People
Induction day
The Pontiac (Ill.) Daily Leader was there Wednesday when Betty Estes was inducted into the Illinois Seniors Hall of Fame. She's been a major Route 66 booster in the Pontiac region. Asked what she was most proud of in her work with the city of Pontiac, Estes said it would have to be the Route … Continue reading Induction day
Skating 66
Robby Love, aka the Roller Rapper, has posted another excerpt from his as-yet-unreleased documentary from his Route 66 tour last year. He didn't actually roller-skate the entire length of Route 66, but he did roll by some picturesque places. The footage of the Glenrio ghost town is particularly choice.
Senior Hall of Fame inductee has Mother Road connection
One of this year's inductees to the Illinois Seniors Hall of Fame has a connection to Route 66. That inductee is Betty Estes of Pontiac, who founded the town's tourism department and was its first tourism director, according to the Ottawa (Ill.) Times. And then there's this: She also helped develop the Red Carpet Corridor, … Continue reading Senior Hall of Fame inductee has Mother Road connection
A chat with George Maharis
Early in a phone interview with "Route 66" television series co-star George Maharis, I acknowledged to him that I had never seen episodes of the early 1960s drama until I received an advance copy of the upcoming re-release on DVD. Maharis made a startling admission: Neither had he. "It was the first time I'd seen … Continue reading A chat with George Maharis
Firefighter finishes ride across America
Laddie Williams, the firefighter who was bicycling across America (including Route 66) to raise money for the surviving relatives of nine firefighters who died in a furniture store blaze, finished his trek. The Post and Courier in Charleston, S.C., reports: After dodging a snake in Oklahoma, a vicious dog in Arkansas and a hit-and-run driver … Continue reading Firefighter finishes ride across America
The man behind Cadillac Ranch
The Austin American-Statesman published a good article about Stanley Marsh 3, the helium magnate who came up with the idea behind Cadillac Ranch near Amarillo, Texas, in 1974. Marsh bought the old cars from junkyards, paying $100 to $125 each. Some didn't have engines; most couldn't run. But from the waist down, they were gorgeous. … Continue reading The man behind Cadillac Ranch
Don’t try this at home, kids
Pole-vault aficionados B.J. and Becca try their luck vaulting onto the tops of the planted cars that are part of the Cadillac Ranch near Amarillo, Texas. At least they didn't try to vault over the cars, where no landing pad awaited them.
Death of a cyclist
The Alibi, an alternative newspaper in Albuquerque, tries to piece together the scant facts about an accident on Route 66 in nearby Tijeras that killed an area cyclist, James Quinn, 27. I'd heard about the accident weeks ago, but information was infernally sketchy. Even now, the sheriff still hasn't released an accident report, the vehicle's … Continue reading Death of a cyclist
Shave, but no haircut
Robby Love, aka The Roller Rapper, stopped in Seligman, Ariz., during his Route 66 tour in 2006 to get a shave from the Guardian Angel of Route 66, Angel Delgadillo.