My Car Quest

March 19, 2024

Event Report : Route 66 Cruisin’ Reunion, Ontario California

Get Your Kicks on Route 66 – Every third Friday and Saturday in September…

Text and photos by Richard Bartholomew –

Sit back and listen as we tell a tale of yesteryear. A time when cars were not all clones of each other, when spanking new roads stretched across the country and the vehicles that used them had progressed past the older days when mechanics were needed for long trips and extra parts and spare tires (often more than one) were the necessary if you wanted to travel any real distance.

Route 66 Cruisin' Reunion

This is the spirit of The Route 66 Cruisin’ Reunion event that takes place every year on the third weekend in September. The storied highway goes back to November 1926 with road signs added in 1927, I’m wondering if any of the original signs exist somewhere?

I’m not sure who wrote the song of the route but surveyors and politicians wrote the route of song. It will wind south through Chicago, nearly 2000 miles all the way, it will go south through St Louis to Joplin Missouri then Oklahoma City is ‘oh so pretty’, you see Amarillo and Gallup New Mexico there’s Flagstaff Arizona, don’t forget Winona, Kingman, Barstow, San Bernardino.

The route in San Bernardino California has become Foothill Blvd. and the famous Wigwam Hotel is still there today on that very road, Route 66 continues west across the area east of Los Angeles known as the inland empire. Then Route (pronounced root) 66 crosses Ontario, California where every year they celebrate with period cars, food concessions, a beer garden, live music, kids rides and a mile of four lane road with a wide center area of grass and trees all blocked off for cruisin’ American iron makes for a Friday night and all day Saturday every year.

Route 66 Cruisin' Reunion

The cars cover the American car club genres from stock to hot rods to low riders to totally wigged out customs and everything in between. Honoring the Route 66 means leave the cars that don’t fit the era at home.

The road was decommissioned in 1986 but groups across the country are preserving the legacy and actual road through different means, even congress has gotten in the act by passing the Route 66 study act of 1990.

In todays world full of cloned soap bar shaped cars it was nice to photograph so many cars in one place that were so different and I was able to tell what they were from far away and plan my shots.

Route 66 Cruisin' Reunion

Photography tips for this particular show; start early because there is a big crowd and take lots of pictures because you can.

Let us know what you think in the Comments.

Richard Bartholomew is an artist and photographer based in Southern California. Visit his YouTube channel here. He is open to interesting consignments and can be reached at zeroagenow@aol.com

More photos are in the slide show below.

Route 66 Sign

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Event Report : Route 66 Cruisin' Reunion, Ontario California
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Event Report : Route 66 Cruisin' Reunion, Ontario California
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Celebrating a highway - this is the spirit of The Route 66 Cruisin' Reunion event that takes place every year on the third weekend in September.
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