“Hotel California” takes some inspiration from the Mother Road

https://youtu.be/NUbTW928sMU It seems obvious when you think about it, but one of The Eagles' biggest hit singles, "Hotel California," took part of its inspiration from the band members' westward journeys on Route 66. That's according to one of the band's previous members, Don Felder, who was interviewed by Music Radar about the 1977 million-seller. Felder … Continue reading “Hotel California” takes some inspiration from the Mother Road

The inevitable Chinese invasion

I noted a little more than a year ago that China, with its 1.2 billion residents, would likely become a big force in Route 66 tourism in the coming years. Today, a report in the Kingman Daily Miner in Kingman, Ariz., strengthened my hunch. Nearly 40 Chinese citizens, under the auspices of that country's branches … Continue reading The inevitable Chinese invasion

A closer look at the Wigwam Motel in Holbrook

A road-tripping family spent the night at the Wigwam Motel in Holbrook, Ariz. The patriarch used his video camera to capture a lot of details about the historic Route 66 motel. https://youtu.be/iZXRtPrHGL8?t=37s

Motel 6’s Mother Road correspondent

You may remember that Dan Bakst won a Route 66 trip and a bunch of goodies from the Motel 6 chain in a contest. He was required to post his adventures from the road via video and social media. Roadies weren't thrilled that the trip would exclude historic Route 66 motels. But his posts on … Continue reading Motel 6’s Mother Road correspondent

A trip into the past

This is a special music video. Not only does it contain audio of live-in-concert performance of "Route 66" by Asleep At the Wheel during the 1970s, but it's interspersed with footage of Route 66 from a 1980s news report and vintage photos of the band. You'll even spot the U-Drop Inn in Shamrock, Texas, a … Continue reading A trip into the past

To & From the Mother Road

If you've got some time to kill, I recommend you sit back and peruse this online issue of To & From magazine, which devoted a special issue to Route 66. You can flip the pages right here, and enlarge them as well: [issuu width=420 height=272 embedBackground=%23000000 backgroundColor=%23222222 documentId=120805235656-d79333313e634ae18d3b353453ca7e88 name=route66_toandfrommagazine username=toandfrommag tag=mother%20road unit=px v=2] Diana Nguyen, … Continue reading To & From the Mother Road

An early image of La Bajada Hill

Take a look at the above photo. It's a photograph of a circa-1922 Dodge Bros. Touring Car at La Bajada Hill, southwest of Santa Fe, N.M. Date of the image is unknown, but likely before Route 66 was certified in 1926. The back of the photo read: Ma and Dad. This is at the top … Continue reading An early image of La Bajada Hill

A different kind of time-lapse trip

Shaun Callahan recently took a trip from Baltimore to Santa Monica, Calif., much of it on Route 66. This clip shows the trip in a time-lapse mode, but with a twist -- he periodically superimposes images of landmarks from the Mother Road. Route 66 in 6 Minutes and 66 Seconds from Shaun Callahan on Vimeo.

A short film about Run It Forward on Route 66

Here's a short film about the Run It Forward campaign, which took place on Route 66 in May: https://youtu.be/1PiH49HzdMA A relay of eight top running athletes ran on all 2,400 miles of Route 66 in 18 days for the charity, which aims to promote fitness, nutrition, and dental health to underprivileged kids. Run It Forward also presided over … Continue reading A short film about Run It Forward on Route 66

Road Trip Route 66 app is updated

Kelly Ludwig's Road Trip Route 66 app, initially released for iPhones in early 2011, recently received an extensive update. Those who already have the app should simply update it through their iPhone or iTunes account. Those who don't have it ought to get it soon -- it's been discounted to 99 cents through the month … Continue reading Road Trip Route 66 app is updated