GO AZ Motorcycles Scottsdale
This year’s running of our Route 66 Tour felt extra special, extra fun! The west to east route had been run in the past and all the stops are the same but it I’m sure it had to do with the eclectic mix of people that attended the ride. Along with the usual suspects, we had a bunch of new faces participate, along with people that have ridden our rides before, but on their first Route 66 Tour with us.
Our first day started at GO AZ Motorcycles in Scottsdale, where they always roll out the red carpet for us! After our customary rider’s meeting, we set out for our lunch stop in Kingman via US 93 through Wickenburg with a brief gas stop in Wikieup. El Palacio, a favorite stop of mine whenever I’m in the Kingman area, sat us down in their banquet room for an excellent Mexican lunch. After our meal, we proceeded a few blocks west where we stopped for a photo op at the old Kingman power station that has been converted into a Route 66 visitor’s center where there’s a drive through Route 66 sign. We then embarked on the short ride to Laughlin which was our final destination for the day. The evening was filled with dinner at Outback, drinks, gambling and story telling!
The next morning, we left the Edgewater Hotel & Casino to 2nd Saturday Breakfast at Topock66. As always, the service and food was excellent! This is the best way to kick off a fun day of riding along The Mother Road. After breakfast we set off east on Route 66 to Oatman for some time visiting with the donkeys and taking in the sights and shops of this old town. The famous Hackberry General Store was our next stop after rolling through the infamous Sitegreeves Pass just east of Oatman and through Kingman.
Our next stop was in Seligman, where a lot of the inspiration for the movie Cars came from. Most of us enjoyed grabbing a snack at Delgadillo’s Snow Cap along with exploring the various shops in town. Our last stop of the day was in Williams where we enjoyed a great dinner at Cruiser’s 66 along with excellent pie at the Pine Country Inn.
Sunday morning, everyone was pretty much on their own to roll back home, but many of us waited out the very cold early morning and opted for a later departure time with a breakfast stop at the Ranch House in Ash Fork.
My plan was to ride down SR 89 through Prescott and run down Iron Springs Rd into Skull Valley into Yarnell and Wickenburg. Most of the group headed eat on SR 69 in Prescott where some headed down I-17 and others went across on SR 260 to the Beeline. Unfortunately, both of those routes had heavy delays due to accidents. I on the other hand, had a nice and relaxing ride home due to my westerly route and final destination.
Our Route 66 Tour marks the end of our 2021 riding season! We did a full slate of six rides this year in a compressed amount of time due to the leftover issues that 2020 brought us. Thanks to GO AZ Motorcycles in Scottsdale and Peoria for hosting our starts and special thanks to everyone that came out and rode with us this year! We are currently putting together a normal schedule for 2022, so be sure to watch out for announcements!