The city manager of Litchfield, Ill., plans a bicycle ride down Route 66 in spring 2012 to raise money for a Litchfield Museum and Route 66 Welcome Center, according to the Springfield State Journal-Register.
Andy Ritchie will use a recumbent bicycle, and will attempt to take on all 2,400 miles of the Mother Road, if he can:
“I’ve done some distance riding before, but not at this level,” said Richie. “I’ll probably leave in May or June.”
Richie expects to make about 80 to 100 miles a day by riding from 9 a.m. to noon and 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. At that pace, said Richie, he should be able to make the trip in about 30 days. He also expects to be accompanied along the way, including possibly by his wife.
Plans for the museum and visitors center are only in early stages. Backers have a site picked out just off Interstate 55, which generally tracks the route of the historic road through Illinois from the St. Louis area to Chicago.
Ritchie understands that some portions of Route 66 are inaccessible, or have been supplanted by the interstate. In those cases, he’ll use nearby alternative routes.
Ritchie says he’ll take a leave of absence from his job once the city’s yearly budget is complete. He’s motivated to finish the trek within a 30-day or so window, because his son is getting married in July.
As for the museum / welcome center, Ritchie says an association for it has been formed, and it has applied for nonprofit status.
UPDATE 10/17/2011: The Journal-News in nearby Hillsboro, Ill., published a story about Ritchie’s quest. Additional details:
While still trying to put a team together and secure some SAG support, Lon Haldeman, of PAC Tour (www.pactour.com), who has ridden Route 66 at least 15 times in the past 20 years, has agreed to give Ritchie ‘route cards’ that have the entire Route 66 course planned out.
“Someone once said that there is a fine line between having a hobby and having a mental illness,” Ritchie said. “I’m hoping that riding the length of Route 66 does not cross that line.”
Does anyone have anymore info on this? I live in Litchfield, and I really don’t recall reading anything more than maybe a small blurb in the local paper.