As I turned south to go under I-40 to the gas station, I noticed a homeless guy sitting on the corner. He wasn’t bothering motorist as they passed. He simply sat there with his sign requesting any help anyone wanted to offer. I didn’t stop at the time, but decided I’d get some change (something smaller than a $20) and drop it off on my way back. I bought gas and breakfast at the station (it wasn’t a McDonalds’ sausage burrito, but it was a breakfast burrito and coffee).
I hadn’t had any tunes on the trip to this point, so as I was mounting back up to leave the gas station, I fired up the iPod, stuck the ear buds in my ears and turned on some riding music. The first song that hit my ears was Free Bird by Lynyrd Skynyrd. What a great way to hit the road!
The homeless guy was still at the corner, so I pulled over and slipped him a five. I had Lynyrd Skynyrd blasting in my ears, so we didn’t exchange any words, just a respectful nod from me to him and him to me. I pulled away and hauled butt to Clinton, Oklahoma, where I planned to pick up Route 66 at the point I left it seven years before.
Route 66 runs parallel to I-40 across Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and part of California where it swings south and runs along I-15 into San Bernardino. The nice thing about my ride on this day was I could hit parts of Route 66 that looked interesting and jump on I-40 to gain some time as needed. Clinton was only 35 miles from Hinton, so I didn’t have far to go before I was stopping and taking pictures.
The Route 66 Museum in Clinton, Oklahoma with indoor and outdoor displays.
The next 50 miles in Oklahoma was an on again, off again affair between me, Route 66 and I-40. I made Route 66 detours through Oklahoma cities like Elk City (home of the National Route 66 Museum), Sayre, Hext, Erick (hometown of singers and songwriters, Sheb Wooley and Roger Miller) and Texola before crossing into the Texas panhandle. I met an older couple walking hand-in-hand at the National Route 66 Museum in Elk City. We chatted for a few minutes and the lady told me how they were on another one of their many rides along Route 66 (this time traveling from the west to the east). The museum in Elk City is laid out with the various shops you might have found in any small town in America back in the 40’s or 50’s. There was a hotel, saloon, bakery, general store, bank, etc. It was a nice stop and I spent an enjoyable few minutes wandering around the “town”.
Pictures of the reconstruction Route 66 “town” at the National Route 66 Museum in Elk City, Oklahoma.
The inside is the general store, but I liked the reflection of the "town" in the window.
A view inside the "bank".
The local gas station.
The wishing well in "town".
I said my usual, “Woo hoo” as I crossed into Texas. Texas was home for 23 years, so it always feels good to cross back into the state, even if I’m just passing through. My first Route 66 stop in Texas was Shamrock. Shamrock’s Route 66 attractions include the Tower Station and the U-Drop Inn. The Tower Conoco Station got its name from the tower that sits on top of the roof and was built in 1936 in an art-deco style. The U-Drop Inn is connected to the Tower Station and was called "the swankiest of swank eating places”. The station operated for 50 years, sat dormant for 20 years, and since has been fully restored and serves the Chamber of Commerce and tourism office.
The Conoco Tower Station and U-Drop Inn in Shamrock, Texas.
McLean was the next town on Route 66. I passed through town and stopped long enough to get a couple of shots of the restored Phillips 66 station. From McLean, I rode into Groom. Immediately on my right I spotted the leaning water tower. It was actually built this way as a roadside attraction to get travelers along Route 66 to stop in Groom.
Restored Phillips 66 gas station in McLean, Texas.
The leaning water tower in Groom, TX.
I passed through Groom and stopped at the largest cross in the western hemisphere for the second photo op offered in the little town of Groom. Erected in 1995, the cross in Groom stands 190 ft tall. Information on the website says they have 1000 visitors a day and estimates that 10 million people pass by on I-40 every year. I could see the cross in my mirror for many miles as I rode west on I-40 toward Amarillo.
The 190 ft cross in Groom.
I exited I-40 east of Amarillo and, as a result, I missed out on stopping at the Big Texan Steak Ranch, home of the 72 oz Steak Challenge. The meal is free if you can eat the 4 ½ lbs of sirloin steak, shrimp cocktail, dinner roll (with butter), baked potato and salad in an hour. The original restaurant was on Route 66 and opened in 1960. Once I-40 opened, in the early 1970s, they built a new restaurant alongside it. A fire destroyed a lot of the restaurant in 1976, but they managed to re-build.
The Big Texan Steak Ranch (from their website)
The last time I looked there were more than 30 pages listing the names of the people who managed to beat the 72 oz Steak Challenge. In 1976 they lost their records in the fire. Later, records from 1976 through 1991 were water damaged in a sprinkler system accident (kind of ironic, huh?). But, if you have your certificate from pre-1991 and want to make sure your name is in the record books, all you have to do is send them a copy and they’ll put you into the new computerized records (I hope the hard drive doesn’t catch on fire and cause the sprinkler system to go off!).
I rode through downtown Amarillo, but missed my turn on 6th Avenue. Route 66 runs along 6th Ave, then swings down to 9th Ave and west out of town on Amarillo Blvd. I missed the turn on 6th and ran into I-27 at about the point where it intersects with I-40, so I jumped back on I-40 west and blew out of town. Ten miles down the road I made a gas stop that coincided with a trip to see the Cadillac Ranch (not to be confused with the Bunny Ranch in Nevada). The Cadillac Ranch is ten Cadillac sedans buried nose down out in a field. Don’t ask me why, but Stanley March “planted” them back in 1974 and they moved them in the late 1990s to the current location. They are covered in colorful graffiti. I took a picture from the road and kept moving, but was surprised at the number of visitors. Apparently, the Cadillac Ranch is quite the tourist attraction (probably exactly the reason Stanley planted them in the first place).
Cadillac Ranch
I continued west on I-40 with Route 66 side trips that passed through Vega and Adrian in Texas. Adrian is the midway point between Chicago and Los Angeles. By this time there were clouds building and storms on the horizon. I decided to stop screwing around so much and make up time on I-40. A few miles east of the New Mexico state line I got lucky and split a pair of thunderstorms, one north of I-40 and the other south. It was actually kind of cool because I could see the rain and lightning and hear the thunder from both storms. It was like Mother Nature’s stereo and 3D all in one.
Mural on side of café in McLean.
I didn’t make another Route 66 stop until I came into Tucumcari, New Mexico. In Tucumcari, Route 66 is lined with motor inn relics and restorations. Some of the motels are still in service, but a lot of them are now closed and sit empty with weeds growing in the parking lot. Still, it was a nice trip down nostalgia lane.
You'll see a lot of motels like the Economy Inn in Tucumcari, NM along Route 66 where time and lack of attention has left then boarded and fighting the weeds.
The main drag on Route 66 in Tucumcari, NM.
I made one last Route 66 detour in Santa Rosa before focusing on Albuquerque.
Shots from the Route 66 Auto Museum in Santa Rosa, NM
My plan was to get to Albuquerque without getting caught in a storm. I can only say that was the plan, but alas, as John Lennon once said, “Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans”. On this day, life included riding headlong into a nasty cold front. I hit the leading edge of the front a few miles east of Clines Corner. A strong headwind began to blow and the temperature began to drop. I needed gas anyway, so this seemed like a good time to stop, get gas and gear up (another opportunity to bust my butt putting on my rain pants).
Two other riders were at the pumps when I rolled in. They had left south central Colorado that morning and confirmed for me that I made a good decision in going south toward Oklahoma the day before. They told me they had spent most of the day going a few miles, stopping and scraping the ice off their face and windshields and thawing out. It sounded like a miserable day of riding for them. They had traveled south on US-285 most of the day and were about to head east on I-40. They were ecstatic when I told them the weather was 20 degrees warmer 20 miles down the road.
I contemplated going into the restaurant and taking a break, but the weather reports made it clear I wasn’t going to avoid the storm unless I was willing to spend the night there. I didn’t want to do that, so back on the bike I went. Clines Corner is 60 miles east of Albuquerque and the rain started before I re-entered I-40. It rained for the next 50 miles and the temperature continued to drop. But, I got lucky in Albuquerque and the rain stopped, making the ride through town a little warmer and safer.
I was thinking about riding to Grants and stopping there for the night. I saw a sign stating that Grants was another 70 miles down the road and simultaneously saw a sign for the Route 66 Hotel and Casino. That settled it. I decided the Route 66 Hotel and Casino would be my home for the night. I managed to get checked in, up to my room, shower and change into some dry clothes before the sun began to set behind the mountains to the west.
Route 66 Hotel and Casino (from their website)
I wandered around the casino checking out the various games and tables. After a tour of the casino, I made my way back to the main bar and settled into a stool. The bartender was from Hawaii and a good guy. He was very laid back and pretty funny. He chatted up anyone who saddled up to his bar. A couple of patrons were frustrated to learn that casino rules prevented them from being able to take their drinks out of the bar and into the casino. I have to admit, that was a first for me too. I don’t think I’ve ever been to a casino that didn’t allow alcohol on the floor. But then again, I don’t get out much. Oh well, I wasn’t gambling anyway, so it wasn’t my problem.
I watched bits and pieces of the NHL game on the TV behind the bar and order the chicken quesadilla. The guy sitting next to me struck up a conversation and within 2 minutes turned it into his personal diatribe about the Obama administration and his desire to overthrow the US government. He was all for the removal of Obama, Pelosi, Reid, and probably several others. He was talking to me and anyone who would listen. I was listening, but my heart wasn’t in the debate. I had just ridden 600-plus miles, the last few miles in the rain, wind and cold, and really just wanted to sit at the bar sipping my Coors Light and chilling out. I finished my meal, grabbed a Coors Light to take to the room and decided to call it a night.
Back in my room, I turned the TV to The Weather Channel and learned that there was a very deep low pressure system making its way across New Mexico just north of where I was sitting. Normally, a low pressure system looks like a comma on the weather radar. This bad boy was wrapped around itself so far it looked like a backwards “at sign” (@ - but you have to reverse it in your mind). The system had dumped snow along I-40 in eastern Arizona and was currently dropping snow in Gallup and Grants. Suddenly, my decision to stay the night at the Route 66 Hotel and Casino seemed like a stroke of genius. As I’ve said many times, I’d rather be lucky than good. This day ended with another 645 miles on the odometer and me comfortably spread out in my king size bed.
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