The Bloomington (Ill.) Pantagraph reports that a 90-mile stretch of old Route 66 from Joliet to Towanda, Ill., is going to be part of the Red Carpet Corridor Weekend Experience on May 5-6.
Not all the details have been worked out, but Pontiac is having a meeting Monday about its portion, and the corridor will have a general meeting next month.
Each town along the way is planning its own event, with the hope of drawing visitors and residents over the two days. The tour will be self-guided. […]
Several of the towns will be hosting communitywide garage sales, crafters, antiques, food and entertainment. Alexander said each town’s events should be finalized in the coming months.
Alexander said organizers hope the event is like the Spoon River Drive in Fulton County or the Covered Bridge Festival in Parke County, Ind. She said it will take time for the Route 66 event to grow into the same size, but she believes it will be successful.
This sounds like a good idea. Many of the towns along the stretch are tiny and would have trouble scaring up the money to promote their events. But combining their forces would likely beef up attendance overall on the route — just as long as the weather’s nice.
Great news, especially since that’s probably the best stretch of 66 in the Prairie State!