Kevin Canfield
Tulsa World Reporter
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City leaders on Wednesday announced the parade route for next year’s Route 66 Capital Cruise: World Record Classic Car Parade scheduled for May 30.
Cars will stage at Expo Square, with the official 5.5-mile spectator’s route beginning at Yale Avenue and 11th Street. Cars will travel west along 11th Street and pass through the roundabout at Elgin Avenue, where the road becomes 10th Street but is still aligned with historic Route 66. The parade route will end at 10th Street and Denver Avenue, where there is easy access to major highways.
Mayor Monroe Nichols thanked the elected officials, civic leaders and Route 66 enthusiasts who have worked over the years to maintain the roadway as a vibrant part of the city.
“For generations, this road has brought travelers and dreamers and explorers to the city, and it’s carried countless stories of families on the move, of workers chasing opportunity and of visitors who fell in love with Tulsa,” Nichols said. “Route 66 isn’t just history, it’s alive, and it’s a part of who we are today.”
The name of the event is perhaps a little presumptuous, but the goal is aspirational: Organizers hope to attract more than 3,000 entrants to make it the longest classic car parade in recorded history.
The official count of entrants will take place in front of The Markets at Mother Road.
“The Tulsa Route 66 Commission works to make sure the Mother Road isn’t just remembered but celebrated, and there won’t be a bigger birthday party in the country for the Route’s Centennial year than here in The Capital of Route 66®,” Josh Stout, chairman of the Tulsa Route 66 Commission, said in a press release. “Tulsa’s Route 66 Capital Cruise will be a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle for a once-in-a-lifetime celebration.”
Rhys Martin, president of the Oklahoma Route 66 Association, said the classic car parade will be a moment to highlight Tulsa’s many outstanding attributes.
“We have a really unique opportunity here to show folks that Tulsa is not just the oil capital of the world, but it’s the capital of Route 66,” Martin said. “And when they see everything that this city has to offer through this amazing and tremendous event, they’re going to want to stay longer. They’re going to want to come back.
“And the story of Route 66 will continue for the next 100 years.”
Renee McKenney, president of Tulsa Regional Tourism, said Tulsans can expect the classic car parade to be a big party for the whole city.
“I just want to underline that this is our Super Bowl. And so we are going to be activating the entire Route 66, and we’re just going to create a party for the whole day,” McKenney said. “We want people to explore. We’re going to make sure they know what to do in every district, and we will also create memories in each district.”
Route 66 runs from Chicago, Illinois, to Santa Monica, California, covering 2,448 miles. Twenty-eight miles of the road run through Tulsa.
Those interested in driving in the parade can submit the information for their car — model year 1996 or older — at capitalofroute66.com.
Other details of the parade are still being worked out, organizers said, but the hope is to have more than 200,000 people.
Nichols reminded those gathered at Wednesday’s press conference that it was “a little school called University of Tulsa sitting right on Route 66” that brought him to Tulsa.
“I was one of those dreamers and adventurers and explorers, and this stretch of road brought me right to a place that would lead to every opportunity that I’ve had since then,” he said.
kevin.canfield@tulsaworld.com
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Kevin Canfield
Tulsa World Reporter
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