The Route 66 Chick

In just a week, the population of Springfield, Illinois, will temporarily increase significantly as thousands of people arrive for the 13th Annual International Route 66 Mother Road Festival. From Friday through Sunday, September 26 - 28, our capital city will be hopping with plenty of live entertainment on the Hot Rod Stage, the traditional Friday night car cruise (huge!), plenty of vendors and food, and the Travel Illinois Expo.  The Travel Illinois Expo (that's where my esteemed co-author Joe Sonderman and I come in) is presented by Illinois Route 66 Scenic Byway and will be set up on Washington Street between 5th and 6th Streets on the north side of the old capitol/old courthouse. For those of you that caught up with us there last year, we'll be set up in the same spot - at the corner of Washington and 5th Streets. We were at the center of lots of action last year! For starters, Joe parked his tropical turquoise 1957 Chevy Bel-Air right beside our tent for a little eye...

On Sunday, Joe Sonderman and I presented our first program for our new book, Route 66 in Illinois, in Edwardsville, Illinois. Madison County Historical Society graciously hosted our first program and book signing at their Archival Library. We had a good crowd who stayed engaged with us through our slightly-long presentation - there are just so many stories we want to share! Special thanks to Mary Westerhold, Research Manager, Cindy Reinhardt for great publicity and handling cashier duties while we signed books, and Steve Rensberry for snapping some photos. Photo by Joe Sonderman. Photo by Steve Rensberry.  Joe's beautiful new hardcover, full-color book, Postcards from Route 66:  The Ultimate Collection from America's Main Street," was also available and on display. Today, Monday, June 9th, is the official release day for Route 66 in Illinois so it is now available for shipment from Amazon. Don't give up on your local book stores as well. In speaking w...