What was it like 50 years ago??

[xs11jack]

Good ole days

After my father past away in 1953, my mother wanted to see her relatives in Canada, where she was born. We lived in WI. Since my father had purchased a new 1953 Ford 2 dr Mainliner, 6 cyl., 3 on the tree and no radio, she figured that would get up past Saskatoon to Choiseland where her twin sister lived. This was in 1955. We kept getting lost and would find the local farm and ask direction. About 50% of the time, the farmer or his wife(he was out in the field) spoke only French!!! We Didn't!! In Choiseland, all the farmers lived in town and had only machine sheds on the land to shelter the tractors, etc. We also stopped at a huge Museum in Saskatoon that was full of the really old farm equipment. At 15 I fell in love with steam tractors and still go to the ole time farm shows here in MO. and IL. Oh, sometimes the so called gas station consisted of building with a bunch of 5 gallon cans of gas and this old guy to pore them into your tank, not spilling more than a gallon and a half on the car. If you went back behind the building, out in the open was a 5 gal. can with the top cut off and a toilet seat on it. Unisex bathroom. Well, I can't turn this into a travellog, but I was a very luck to have made it. I still like to explore old gravel roads!

[BLUEJEEPLAB]

Ah Drive Ins, another thing that Southwest Ohio is blessed with. I read recently that there are fewer than 400 active drive ins in the US. In a 20 mile radius of my house there are 5 still showing movies.

What fun, take the truck, park in the back, put the lawn chairs in the back and drag out the cooler. And the Snack Bar, where else do hot dogs made from some sort of meat (maybe) taste so good? And Goobers!!!!!!

[chrisso]

[I'm looking forward to another trip to the Land Down Under. I am sure it's changed, but still would be great. [/B][/QUOTE]

New Zealands well worth a look too-Youd swear half the time your in 1958

[madmax-im]

Most of it is gone

Originally posted by randy
Yeah, I remember A&W and Stewarts and drive-in movies and the family car didn't have seat belts, they were optional! We had a 1956 Buick and a '59 Olds.

Hey, this thread got me thinking about a Route 66 rally, how about running it like a relay, where the local or regional group runs a piece of the road and meets up with the group that's going to do the next leg and "hands off" the rally. It would be a cross-country rally.

Just a thought.

Hey Randy!
As you know Rte 66 went from Chicago to LA...today the same routes thru the midwest are virtually non existant.The interstates in many places are rte 66.Parts in Ill are now I-55...across Missouri its I-44...you dont see any remnants of 66 'til you hit OK and can find sections of rte66 paralel to the will Rogers TPK and the Turner TPK into OK city but again only sections of it not a complete route...in Texas thru the panhandle its all I-40 all the way thru NM and only when you get into Arizona is there a real stretch of Surviving real Rte 66 and its a beaut! From a point abt 15 miles east of Seligman AZAZ to Kingman AZ is a most wild and scenic route thru AZ...the beauty of which will astound you...after Kingman thats just abt all there is of it...i did research this a few yrs ago cuz i read a fine rider report abt doing Rte 66.(Nelson Riddle's theme for the popular 60's TV show...Rte 66 comes to mind with Martin Milner and ...oh brain fart.... CRS just kicked in...LOL anyways the whole thing just harkens back to a more innocent time in our lives and its sad to say those days are gone forever..but the fine memories persist

[The Lorax]

Drive ins

Hey Bluejeeplab,

Have you lived in Fairborn long enough to know what they USED to show at the drive - in over on the north side of Wright - Patt. It was a thing of legend when I was a kid, we all called it the "Skyporn" ( for those of you who don't live in the Dayton area, it's actual name was the "Skyborn Theater). I, for the life of me never understood how a Drive in Theater could show hard core pornography. aparently, someone complained enough as they show regular movies now days. my bus used to go past that drive in on the way to and from school back in the seventies....ahh, memories. have a nice day and ride safe

[madmax-im]

Originally posted by chrisso
[I'm looking forward to another trip to the Land Down Under. I am sure it's changed, but still would be great.

New Zealands well worth a look too-Youd swear half the time your in 1958 [/B][/QUOTE]
I've heard this too.I'm sure its true...I also have heard that ppl there tend to only speed abt 5 mph over their limits...they're just not in a rush

[madmax-im]

Re: Most of it is gone

Originally posted by madmax-im
Hey Randy!
As you know Rte 66 went from Chicago to LA...today the same routes thru the midwest are virtually non existant.The interstates in many places are rte 66.Parts in Ill are now I-55...across Missouri its I-44...you dont see any remnants of 66 'til you hit OK and can find sections of rte66 paralel to the will Rogers TPK and the Turner TPK into OK city but again only sections of it not a complete route...in Texas thru the panhandle its all I-40 all the way thru NM and only when you get into Arizona is there a real stretch of Surviving real Rte 66 and its a beaut! From a point abt 15 miles east of Seligman AZAZ to Kingman AZ is a most wild and scenic route thru AZ...the beauty of which will astound you...after Kingman thats just abt all there is of it...i did research this a few yrs ago cuz i read a fine rider report abt doing Rte 66.(Nelson Riddle's theme for the popular 60's TV show...Rte 66 comes to mind with Martin Milner and ...oh brain fart.... CRS just kicked in...LOL anyways the whole thing just harkens back to a more innocent time in our lives and its sad to say those days are gone forever..but the fine memories persist

And the other actor was...George Maharis!

[STEPPENWOLF]

Don't forget the See Rock City,See Rock City Birdhouses, and Seven Caves bumper stickers put on the car..oh yeah Sea Lions cave in CA had stickers they put on your car and what else,Chew Mail Pouch Tobacco painted on barns around here,got one 1/4 mile down the street.

[madmax-im]

Originally posted by STEPPENWOLF
Don't forget the See Rock City,See Rock City Birdhouses, and Seven Caves bumper stickers put on the car..oh yeah Sea Lions cave in CA had stickers they put on your car and what else,Chew Mail Pouch Tobacco painted on barns around here,got one 1/4 mile down the street.

I remeber alot of old out buildings along the highways with those tobacco ads especially driving thru MO, Penn,Ohio W.VA,IN,IL and OK as well.

[STEPPENWOLF]

Gotta try and get a pic of the Chew Mail Pouch barn. Great thread...just remembered out south west the old Whiting Bros. gas stations..or close to that and in south eastern KY the Druthers fast food chain.......best breakfast ever. Burger Chef ..is that with or without?

[madmax-im]

Rte 66 correction

Well studying the 8 states that Rte 66 went thru and i find there are more sections of it than I previously stated..but its still piecemeal at best.The very best section is in Az but goes much further than Kingman as I previously posted.In fact it goes all the way to Toprock thru Oatman AZ.It is by far the most wild and scenic portion of 66 to survive..."Get your kicks on Rte 66"

[BLUEJEEPLAB]

How 'bout the old chime when you entered a gas station and a guy in a uniform would come out and do every thing short of a tune to your Dad's car? Back when every gas station had a lift, a tow truck and a mechanic...

[madmax-im]

Originally posted by BLUEJEEPLAB
How 'bout the old chime when you entered a gas station and a guy in a uniform would come out and do every thing short of a tune to your Dad's car? Back when every gas station had a lift, a tow truck and a mechanic...

1 guy? I remember a whole crew of like 5 or 6 and ea person had a function ...that was full service...and free air!With the meter that you could crank to adj the pressure you wanted and a bell that went off for ea.lb.of air that went in the tire..and the coke machine .10 cents for a real glass bottle of coke with the city where it was bottled embossed on the bottom.

[BLUEJEEPLAB]

QUOTE]I remember a whole crew of like 5 or 6 and ea person had a function [/QUOTE]

I guess Dad only stopped at the cheap places.

[planedick]

And

Then there was the Burma Shave signs. Little bits of funny poetry along the roadside. I can't remember any right now....