Our next cruise we drove up to Santa Domingo Pueblo. We are in search of Fred Thompson’s Santa Domingo Trading Post. We found it. It’s a great looking building. We learned that Fred died about 5 years ago and the trading post has been closed since then. There is a new owner now. They were in the process of cleaning up and repainting. They are in hopes of opening by summer; we wish them all the luck in the world. There is a great stretch of the old road across the tracks in front of the trading post. It’s short, but really nice. On our way back to Albuquerque we got off the Interstate at Algodones and followed the old route. There are historic 66 signs up to guide you on your way, which surprised us. This is a pretty nice stretch of road. It is slow paced until you reach Bernalillo, then the traffic picks up. Not much of the real old flavor left, but enjoyable just the same.

We will begin our journey west for the 10th Annual Route 66 Fun Run now. We are stopping for a few days at Red Rock State Park. Red Rock is a beautiful place. We hiked about half way up to Church Rock, which is pretty awesome on its own. The peace and solitude was great. We took a side trip up to Window Rock on the Navajo Nation. This is a great formation. We had hoped to hike up to it, but it is not permitted. The Navajo are in the process of building a memorial to veterans, it should look pretty good when finished. We also went to the Hubbell Trading Post. Pretty neat place. Hard to believe there was a little settlement way out in the middle of nowhere, but then again, I guess there were lots of these small villages everywhere in the early days. Interesting place, the buildings are still in great shape. For dinner we ate at the Ranch House. We had a Navajo Taco, according to Marion Clark, this is where the Navajo Taco was started. It was very good, and very BIG. Delicious and not as greasy as some we’ve had. Worth every penny.

Next stop was Winslow. Again we missed seeing our old friend Pete, he was on a trip down to Phoenix. We did find the Museum open and had a great visit there. They are always adding something new. Janice Griffith was at a meeting at La Posada. There is going to be a new park at “the corner”, looked like it was going to be nice. We bought one of the “Standin on a corner” tee shirts. We learned that when the Eagles played in Phoenix on their Hell Freezes Over tour Janice sent them some of the shirts. Don Henley also sent a donation for the park.

Next stop was Seligman and the Fun Run. We are pretty excited about being here, this is our first one. We were lucky enough to have an extra day here so we got to visit with some of the Delgadillos, namely Angel, one of his daughters, Juan and his son Robert. Friday was the grand opening of the Route 66 Magazine office and store, and we planned on attending. They had a pretty good crowd by the time we got there. It was great to meet some of the people involved. We got to meet Larry who did a mural on the wall of the store. It looks terrific! We also met Howard Suttle and picked up a copy of his new book “Behind the Wheel”, we look forward to reading his stories. We also met Larry of Route 66 Root Beer fame. And our friend Dan Harlow was there, it was good to talk to him some more. Then the main reason I came over to the grand opening, Bob Moore, I was so nervous about meeting him, I felt like a school girl going on her first date, butterflies and all. It was all for naught, Bob is a great guy, and not threatening at all. I had written to Bob several times, talked with him on the phone and even corresponded via email. Finally, I got to meet him. I’m sorry I didn’t get to meet his wife, Mauricia. It was a fun time.

Back in Seligman, where all of the participants of the Fun Run were starting to converge, the air was starting to fill with excitement. Angel had arranged for me to volunteer some of my time helping out the Association, I sold shirts, hats, cups, etc. I had a blast! Living so far away I am never able to give my time so it was great to finally be able to do so. Finally got to meet Jeff Meyer from Illinois, had a nice conversation with him. I had entered the drawing for Angel’s last shave and haircut. I won the haircut. I donated it to Jeff as he was in dire need. Angel also pulled my name out for the shave, he drew again, I don’t have many whiskers to get rid of. That evening we went to the Miss Historic Route 66 Pageant. It was nice, had all the feel of a small town happening, lots of support for all the girls. We were surprised to see that Martin Milner was a judge; he is one of Earl’s idols. He was able to get his autograph during a pause in the pageant. The highlight of the Fun Run. He is a very down to earth guy, and very accessible for being so famous.

Cheryl’s caption in 1997 read “Earl gets his idol, Martin Milner, to autograph some things”.

Cruise night was canceled due to Wolfman John breaking down. It was still enjoyable. Next day the beginning of the journey from Seligman to Kingman. Earl was helping to line people up and I was back helping the Association sell stuff. We were going to be driving our motor home to Kingman so we were not going to be in a hurry to get in line, in fact, we were waiting for everyone to leave. We figured that would be our best chance to stop along the way. It was great to see all the vehicles on the drive, from fancy corvettes and antique cars to motorcycles and even some motor homes. There were some beauties. We visited a bit more with Angel before we got on our way. We stopped at the Frontier Cafe and Bob Waldmire’s Visitor Center before making camp in Kingman. The loss of Jerry Richards seemed to be felt more in Kingman, but things were running smoothly just the same. We headed for the park and checked out all there was to see. We watched the slow drags which were pretty fun, wondered how our own vehicle would do. Looked at all the cars up close. Listened to the music and checked out the hot air balloons. Unfortunately, we didn’t win the corvette that was raffled off.

Next day was the last leg of the journey, Kingman to Topock. We were in line and ready to go right at l0am, this time we would be part of the group. It was a beautiful day and we were in the mood for a nice leisurely drive. We made our way to Oatman where it was the most crowded we have ever seen it. There were cars and Harleys everywhere. The burros were loving it! All of the car people were wanting one of the burros to knock over a line of the bikes just so they could hear a biker come out and ask “Who’s the ass that knocked over our bikes?” It would’ve been funny, but I didn’t want to see any of those beautiful bikes scratched. There were some new stores open since we were last here. On to the finish line we went, what a great feeling to pass through that shield. It was also a sad feeling because it meant that our fun was over. All in all it was a great experience, marred yet somehow enhanced, by the absence of the beloved Jerry. His spirit was felt by all who attended, I’m sure he had something to do with the beautiful weather that pervaded the entire weekend.

This marks the end of our Route 66 traveling for the time being. As we travel to major cities to see friends and relatives I’m sure that we long for the laid back attitude of the Mother Road. Hopefully, we will return soon.

	Seligman, Arizona – Route 66 Fun Run participants heading west.
	That’s us in our Blazer!

End of the 1997 Fun Run - Topock/Golden Shores, Arizona