'Cruisin Route 66' to Litchfield
passing through Lincoln

[JUNE 23, 2004]  Maybe you remember the movie "American Graffiti." Or perhaps you just lived it. This weekend you can relive a part of that age. Classic car owners from all over the upper Midwest are gathering in Joliet today (Wednesday) to participate in the "Cruisin Route 66" tour along Route 66 to Litchfield.

The trip is scheduled to visit at least two Route 66 sites near Lincoln on Friday: the Paul Bunyon statue in Atlanta around 11 a.m. and the Pig Hip Restaurant in Broadwell around noon.

If you can't make it to Atlanta or Broadwell, do the next best thing: Take your camera and stand along Route 66 in Lincoln between 11 a.m. and noon on Friday. Wave at the drivers and take pictures of the reminders of a time long past but never forgotten.

The tour culminates in the Route 66 Classic Car Festival in Litchfield this weekend, featuring 1979 and older cars, trucks and motorcycles. A special guest will be Paul LeMat, who starred as John Milner in "American Graffiti." Included in the festival is a car show at the historic Skyview Drive-In, featuring dignitaries John Weiss, 2002 Steinbeck Award winner, and his wife, Lenore;  Jim Ross, 2000 Steinbeck Award winner; Shellee Graham, famous Route 66 photographer; and Route 66 Magazine publishers Paul and Sandi Taylor.

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For complete information on the Friday through Sunday festival, go to www.litchfield.il.us.

For more information regarding participation in the "Cruisin Route 66" tour, please call John Weiss, [phone].

[News release]