Forever MX-5 Magazine

Club Event Report: Hitting Route 66 in Illinois

Posted on 17. Jul, 2009 by jeffz in News

By Marcy Hotz, Don & Linda McCann

Don McCann of the Badgerland Miata Club of Wisconsin knew Route 66 was a trip he wanted to share with his Miata Club friends.  So it came to pass that the McCanns led a colorful parade of 22 Miatas on a three day tour of Route 66 in Illinois, from Joilet to St.Louis, Missouri, and back to Springfield.

The weather was near perfect as we left Joliet, heading south on Route 66, through Wilmington and past the 1950’s Launch Pad Drive-In.  We lunched at the Polk-a-Dot Drive-In (1956) in Braidwood famous for its chili cheese fries. We wound our way through many small towns, driving slowly past various Route 66 historic sites: gas stations, motels, diners, drive-in theaters.  Paralleling our route much of the time were railroad tracks on one side and the Interstate on the other, imparting an eerie feeling of driving into a time and place long gone.

“Hello!” announced Don on the CB.  “Our next stop is the old Ambler/Becker Texaco Station in Dwight.“ The sky was still clear, but the air was getting muggy and warmer. As we drove through Odell, “A Small Town with a Big Heart Where Everybody Is Somebody,” a priest coming out of St. James School shouted a hearty “Welcome to Odell!”  Signs along the road as we departed the town encouraged us to stop at the Route 66 Hall of Fame in Pontiac, which we did.

One couldn’t help but think, “This IS America,” as we drove into Pontiac.  The neatly clipped green lawns, modest homes, gas stations, churches and taverns made us feel right at home.  The Route 66 Hall of Fame was a welcome air-conditioned stop.  The museum had photos, road and store signs, and all kinds of Route 66 memorabilia.

Day two began with a quick jaunt to the Beer Nuts factory in Bloomington. Then we made a pit stop in Atlanta, at Casey’s Country Store; it was good to get into the air conditioning, as the heat and humidity were already mounting.

Pressing on to Springfield, we stopped at Shea’s Garage, now a museum. Bill Shea, a WWII D-Day survivor, told a lot of stories about the former gas station.  The museum was filled  with old gas pumps, signs (Burma Shave, S&H Green Stamps, Phillips 66, etc).

Two-tenths of a mile off Route 66 near Staunton, about half the group stopped to visit Classic Country Cars – a collection of huge auto-filled garages surrounded by an enormous circle of unrestored classics.  On display were over 600 classics or just very old cars.  A few of them were true classics, and all were for sale, as is.

Some of us who were old enough to remember these cars, or even actually owned or drove them, wondered just how in the heck we managed to maneuver these boat-sized autos in-and-out of traffic.

Day three found us caravanning from downtown St. Louis to the west end of the Chain of Rocks Bridge.  This bridge was the route used by Route 66 to cross over the Mississippi. Originally a motor route, it now carries walking and biking trails over the river. Don had arranged for the bridge to be opened up for our group to traverse, and we are grateful to have had this opportunity.

Our next stop was Girard, Missouri for dessert.  Turns out Girard has a Route 66 drive-in that goes back to 1956 that offers 50 flavors of ice cream!.  A young man with a shocked expression was at the back door of the small restaurant on his cell phone.  “You gotta see this!” he exclaimed to the person on the other end, watching a rainbow parade of 22 Miatas winding their way down their driveway and into the parking lot!  While we got in line to order, the owner drove up and helped the young lady inside take orders and dish out ice cream.  As we devoured this awesome treat, the wind blew the temperature and humidity down to a much more comfortable level.  The sky was darkly clouded, but it didn’t start to rain until we reached our hotel back in Springfield.

Following a quick shower and welcome change of clothes, we joined up with members of the Abe Lincoln Miata Club and the Windy City Miata Club.  With their 15 cars added to our 22, we were an awesome parade to Mario’s Italian Grill for dinner.  A lively discussion followed with plans for another get together between the clubs.   Everyone enjoyed the tour, and some are looking forward to driving the rest of old Route 66 to California.  Long live The Mother Road!

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