brownwho63

We're meeting STL cruisin' friends Saturday at the Luna and will cruise to Litchfield "noonish." Just a stopover to say "hey" and then it's off to Farmersville....Bliss

Hey Denny, wondered which old roads you would be traversing on this long weekend. Looking forward to reading about the cruise in your journal. I initially thought we had taken 31 from MI through IN a few years ago but looked at my atlas and, alas, see that it was 41/63 from near Gary to Terre Haute instead. Cool drive, though. Don't know about the Indy area folks grilling this weekend but my plans for Weberizing pork steaks have been washed out, as we have had over 1/2" of rain since yesterday and it's still coming down. There was a time when that wouldn't have stopped me but I'm older now and.........(big sigh here). The marinated pork steaks will go into an old iron skillet instead and I'll bake spuds and onions on an electric grill that's under the deck overhang. Hope to see you, Pat, and Jennifer at Litchfield on Saturday morning the 21st. We'll be driving 'Lil Red (weather permitting) and will try to park at the Comfort Inn so we can peruse the old cars on 66 and say "hey" to friends. Cancelled Hampton and Ariston reservations and will stay at Art's for forty bucks and party with STL cruisers at Farmersville's three saloons on Saturday afternoon. The peel 'n eat shrimp and hot wings at Champ's are an awesome way to end the party!.....Bliss

Like nearly everyone else, we're concerned about the extra $$ going into the tank but, darn it, we've worked, saved, planned, etc. for retirement and if cruisin' our old Vette or supercharged Monte costs 3 or 4 times as much as it used to for fuel - so be it. We buy all fuel with credit cards so there's no out-of-pocket cost for it on the road (positive cash flow), then when the bill arrives a few weeks later, I just bite the bullet and pay it in full while remembering the good times we had while on the road. We do try to compensate for the higher fuel cost, though, by eating 2 meals per day rather than 3. Brunch and dinner work best for us and neither will be consumed at any place that's pricey. Small town cafes and diners are great and we have no problem with pulling into Mickey D's now and then. Beverage cost per gallon (no, we don't actually buy it by the gallon) at saloons is really outrageous so a cooler filled with the stuff from home is much cheaper after we've landed for the day - - and it's just as cold and refreshing. All we miss with this system is the local conversation. If we can locate a decent mom 'n pop motel we'll stay there - after inspecting a room first. If we can't find one, then we'll look for a lower-priced chain like Super 8, Comfort Inn, Days Inn, etc. A Continental breakfast bar is a plus. Otherwise, it's just cruisin' as usual and enjoying every mile. Happy Motoring....Bliss

The house shook a little but no damage was done....Bliss

I paid $3.69 for premium this week in STL County. No alternatives but to (1) stop cruisin' (2) buy a used 4-cylinder roller skate for city errands (3) do more turnarounds than overnights (4) other? It's not gonna stop so we just gotta deal with it....Bliss

At this point, I think a fall cruise would work out better for us. We can go nearly any weekend in October, as September is really busy for us; 2 family birthdays, MO 66 motor tour, Springfield 66 Festival, etc.....Bliss

Thanks. Sure glad we didn't drive up to Hamel last Sunday to attend a meeting. We won't be able to make it this Sunday. I try not to think about gas prices too much, even though they're outrageous. We're determined not to let prices keep us off the road and try to compensate with cheaper meals, lodging, etc....Bliss

Hey RoadDog, I'm confused regarding the IL meeting in Hamel. Your post is dated the 14th and for some reason I thought the Hamel meeting was on the 13th. Am I misreading your post? I envy your cruise from Dwight to Springfield on 66. We're registered for their June motor tour from STL to Wilmington and will probably spend Sunday night in Dwight....Bliss

Thanks for the info. We're registered for the August "River to River" motor tour on the LH and are looking forward to visiting IA and seeing new stuff....Bliss

I went to the official Iowa Lincoln Highway site today and downloaded a registration form for their first-ever motor tour ("River to River") to be held in August. While we don't particularly relish cruisin' Iowa in August, it's not any different than IL, MO, IN, or OH as far as hot weather is concerned. The motor tour appears to be well organized and will give us the necessary guidance for our initial Lincoln cruise; so we're going. Why not join us?. (Here's the site.)....Bliss http://www.lincolnhighwayassoc.org/iowa/tour/motortour.html

Can anyone provide me with turn-by-turn directions across Iowa on the Lincoln going east to west to Omaha or point me to a site that has this info? I'm thinking of entering the Lincoln at the IL/IO border and following as much of the old road as possible, stopping at great photo ops and points of interest. We may do this next month if the weather and schedules permit. Thanks......Bliss

I checked a site I read about in today's paper that's pretty cool. Most or all of you major league cruisers probably already know about it but if not, you might want to take a look....Bliss http://www.byways.org/

I Googled "Joplin, MO railroad bridge" and came up with the following photo of one of my favorite viaducts - just north of the old terminal. There were actually two viaducts in Joplin but in my opinion this one is better. Hope the 2-line web site will open for you. If not, you can do the same search. Good luck....Bliss http://cdm.sos.mo.gov/cdm4/item_viewer.php...BOX=1&REC=8

The spring cruise can always become a fall cruise like last October's IN Cool Roads Cruise. We, too, understand Pat's priorities.....Bliss

We live just a couple of blocks off the original 1926 alignment of old U.S. 66 in STL County and the traffic is horrible due to the growth of little burgs like Des Peres, Manchester, Ballwin, and Ellisville and some are in the discovery phase of red-light camera installation. No appeal, no warning ticket, no explanation - - just a ticket in the mail. Some run as high as $95 (Arnold area) and it's only a matter of time before the short yellows here turn to red while we're in the middle of an intersection. Sooooooo......the purpose of this post is to inquire whether or not any of you has used the PhotoBlocker plate spray (over-exposes the photo) advertised in various mags because I'm considering buying a can and spraying the inside of my clear plastic plate covers rather than the plate itself. Thoughts? Suggestions? Thanks...Bliss

Kip, you and Denny have produced excellent photos and text from last weekend's Sweetheart Cruise. We are sharing both with family and friends who otherwise would not have access to anything other than our few photos without text. We had a wonderful time on the cruise with our roadie friends. Always felt fortunate to have grown up in that part of the country and, especially, for finding my lifetime sweetheart there because the history we share is priceless. Thanks again for picking up the torch....Bliss

Count us in for either direction and whatever date is decided. Looking forward to doing some more cruisin' soon. Good weather would be a plus. Can you control that?......Bliss

Ours was dark green also with some rust and had "regular" whitewalls. (I preferred these at the time - now I can't even find white-letter tires to fit our '04 Monte.) Had auto tranny that our dog once shifted into neutral while we were cruisin' at highway speed. RPMs skyrocketed.....Bliss

Was the Kammback the 2-door wagon style? That's what we had and I thought it looked cool, especially with the chrome roof rack. Didn't have any engine problems; lucky, I guess. Our older son, 16 at the time, totaled the car by running into a police chief one Saturday night. Kid wasn't hurt - just his feelings....Bliss

I love Chevys! My Chevy history and personal ownership: Two '55 coupes One '56 sedan One '61 wagon One '65 sedan One '71 Vega (not as bad as the hype made it out to be) One '77 Monte One '79 Vette One '87 Monte One '04 Monte Borrowed a '49 from Dad and drove it about a year, borrowed Dad's new '59 Impala for my first date with Mary Sue - wife of 47 years now, borrowed Dad's new '60 Biscayne for honeymoon trip to the Ozarks, and tore up my first tranny in a hot '56. Unfortunately, the car belonged to Dad....Bliss

[ I wonder how the rest of you feel about this? Is it a good sign that roadside awareness has reached business owners along the route after 15 years of trying? Or the start of generic-sounding names replacing local flavor? I'm sure Route 66 experienced this same pattern. If I owned a business on a historic highway (or any other highway) I'd be in favor of using any name that would keep the doors open and the cash register ringing. As a nonowning consumer, though, I prefer no name changes. For example, the Red Cedar Inn on 66 in Pacific, MO just would not have been the same if the decades-old name had ever been changed. (Sadly enough, the Red Cedar now sets empty and is for sale.) Johnnie's Bar on 66 in St. James, MO just wouldn't have the draw (pun intended) it currently does if the name was changed. On the other hand, there are times when a name change works wonders for the bottom line. Our cruisin' friend Fran from Cuba, MO and her former husband operated a saloon on 66 for years that was named Buzz's. When they divorced and Fran got the saloon she changed the name of the place to Was Buzz's and still drew the same local customers. In the early 90's when she became a board member of the Route 66 Association of Missouri she changed the name of the saloon to Route 66 Lounge and had the new name painted in large letters on each end of the building so that 66 cruisers could not miss it. The new name attracted hundreds and perhaps thousands of new customers and the bar became a Route 66 icon until she sold the business a few years ago.....Bliss

We're enjoying the trip with you, Denny; although, I wouldn't drive 'Lil Red on a dirt road like you travelled on day two. Do you think the red clay will ever come off the undercarriage? Mary Sue asked just the other day if you were out somewhere on a Christmas Cruise. She's envious, as we'll remain at home over the holidays babysitting our granddog Pauncho while our son and family go skiing in CO....Bliss