Putting 66 in Focus - the 2023 OK/TX Route 66 Motor Tour
BY RICHARD STEPHENS, JR.
One hundred Route 66 enthusiasts drove from Clinton, Oklahoma to Amarillo, Texas on October 6th and 7th this year, stopping to enjoy the sights and making new friends along the 177-mile journey. The Old Route 66 Association of Texas (Texas 66) organized the 2nd Annual Motor Tour in collaboration with the Oklahoma Route 66 Association.
Day 1: Clinton to Shamrock
Gary Daggett, President of Texas 66, registered and welcomed participants at the Route 66 Museum in Clinton. Pat Smith, Museum Director, opened the museum for our group. “Our museum tells the history of Route 66 by decade,” she said as she welcomed the crowd into the museum at 9:00 AM.
Fifty-three vehicles, ranging from motorcycles to a Vista 35-foot motor home, snaked towards Canute in one mile-long caravan. Like wagon trains in the 1800s, the convoy traveled together to reduce the chances of getting lost (although that still occurred.) Window flags with the cruise logo also helped drivers find each other if they became separated.
Driving an average speed of 45 mph allowed people to stop, take pictures, and hop back at the end of the line without getting left behind. Stephanie Daggett, Vice—President of Texas 66, and Gary’s wife, took the last position as “Sweeper” to aid those getting lost or having vehicle problems. “I’m the clean-up crew,” she said.
After a stop at Canute’s Heritage Center, the cruisers visited Elk City’s National Route 66 Museum. Maxine Jackson, Office Manager, informed everyone, “We offer them a tour of all eight states that 66 passes through.” Brad and Diane Gilbert of Cleburne, Texas, enjoyed the displays, saying it keeps, “the heritage of the past. It’s a little history that we don’t see all the time.”
Texas 66 served lunch at Elk City’s Ackley Park. A $50 registration for the motor cruise provided two lunches, banquet dinner, and door prizes – a real value.
Then, it was off to Erick, Oklahoma. Decked out in red and white striped overalls, bearded Harley Russell sang, played guitar, and entertained us inside the Sandhills Curiosity Shop. “Amarillo by Morning,” “Yesterday,” and “(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66” vibrated inside the small store, accompanied by 20 tambourines and maracas from the crowd.
After visiting Masel Zimmerman at Texola’s Tumbleweed Grill & Watering Hole #2 and looking around the (almost) ghost town on the Oklahoma/Texas border, the gang crossed the state line and drove on original Portland concrete to Shamrock, Texas.
As the sun lowered and neon lights from the U Drop Inn brightened Route 66, the Texas Crossroads Band played a variety of music for the satisfied travelers.
Meals on the road (and anywhere, really) lend themselves to sharing stories. At the newly-opened Grif’s Steakhouse, Jeff and Kimberly Bertel of St. Louis proudly shared that their son, Kurtis, designed the motor tour’s tee-shirt many were wearing. Amy Stoker’s story was sadder. Her son, Levi, lived with her in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. Levi loved trips with his mom on Route 66 until he died at age 10. She had given some of his cremated ashes to Harley Russell back in Erick.
Day 2, Shamrock to Amarillo
Driving west on Saturday, the caravan rolled across the Texas panhandle towns of McLean, Alanreed, Jericho, and Groom before stopping in Amarillo for the night.
The Devil’s Rope Museum in McLean is a one-of-a-kind-stop. The Texas Barbed Wire Foundation and Delbert Trew, 90, founded it in 1991. Delbert proudly explained the hundreds of varieties of barbed wire to visitors as he escorted them through the museum. “We’re the biggest attraction, I guess, in Texas, other than maybe, the Big Texan, Cadillac Ranch,” he said.
At the Slug Bug Ranch in Conway (featuring five VW Beetles nose down in dirt), Kathy Schones of Canute shared her experiences of her first group cruise. “It’s been a lot of fun meeting people,” she said. Her husband, Doug, bought a 1964 Chevrolet Impala at the Edsel Graveyard in Shamrock to use for parts. That’s how it is during a car cruise: most folks buy souvenirs; a few buy entire cars!
The day ended at the Cactus Cove Inn and Suites in Amarillo (not on Route 66 directly, but with the vintage vibe that 66 travelers enjoy), with a good dinner of chicken, BBQ, and lots of extras. Each cruiser received a door prize. Awards were given for those who traveled the farthest (Berlin, London) and for oldest vehicle on the cruise.
The well-planned and executed motor tour filled up both days with enough to see without being overwhelming. Although it’s nearly 100 years old, the route is still sturdy enough to carry everyone’s dreams and desires through the 21st Century.
