We awakened in the dark of night of the summer solstice. My husband and I were on the road at 3:00 a.m. – heading east from San Diego toward Arizona. The logistics for flying to Louisville, Kentucky – our destination – were not beneficial so our journey became a road trip. With limited vacation time, our mission was to drive straight through with limited stops. A detour was the furthest thing from our minds.
Road Trip
Daybreak greeted us at 5:30 as we neared Yuma. We crossed the desert and headed north – marveling at the changes in topography. As we approached Winslow, a post to Facebook prompted a comment from a fellow Disney fan that became the pivotal moment in our road trip: Be sure to check out the Sipp Shoppe’s root beer floats at ‘Standing on the Corner’ and the places on Route 66 that inspired the Disney/Pixar ‘Cars’ movie.
Intrigued by the possibility of seeing first-hand places that inspired the movie, my husband agreed to some detours – if they did not increase our timetable too much. I started researching Route 66 and “Cars” movie-related places on our iPad. To keep on schedule, we decided to skip the root beer float and continued east on Interstate 40. Along the way, we discovered some sites just off the interstate that captivated us and beckoned us to travel Route 66, aka “The Mother Road.”
The Mother Road
El Rancho Hotel’s lobby in Gallup, New Mexico provided a glimpse of Hollywood’s Golden Age and western movies of the late 1920s. The Blue Swallow Motel’s neon lights mesmerized us as we drove through the heart of Tucumcari just after an evening rainstorm. A stunning sunrise started the next day’s travels as we admired the iconic architecture of Tower Station and U-Drop Inn Café in Shamrock, Texas. We found an old, rusty tow truck that could be Tow Mater’s long-lost brother from the movie, “Cars.” Two days and 2,066 miles later, we arrived in Louisville where we visited family we hadn’t seen in years.
Gallup, NM 
Hotel El Rancho Lobby 
Hotel El Rancho Lobby 
Tucumcari, NM 
Historic Conoco gas station on Route 66 in Shamrock, TX 
Shamrock, TX
Heading Home
On our return trip less than a week later, we detoured from Interstate 40 at times when it didn’t take us too far out of our way. We visited Route 66 establishments when we could, which brings us back to the root beer float. In Winslow we weren’t going to miss the Sipp Shoppe this time, located at the famous corner from the song “Take it Easy” by the Eagles. We ate lunch and I enjoyed a frothy, flavorful root beer float, the reason we had ventured onto Route 66 in the first place.
Winslow, AZ 
Krista & Monkey in Winslow, AZ 
The Sipp Shoppe is in a former bank building (1904). 
Sipp Shoppe – Winslow, AZ 
Monkey enjoyed a yummy Root Beer Float at Sipp Shoppe in Winslow, AZ
While we munched and sipped, we realized we are now fans of “The Mother Road.” Who would have thought that a suggestion for a root beer float would lead to this? We are determined to explore all 2,448 miles of Historic Route 66, with all its magnificent mom and pop shops and living tributes to days gone by.
Please note: I reserve the right to delete comments that are offensive or off-topic.