Aluminum doesn't rust - Day 5

An original Route 66 sign!

Day 5 finds us venturing west on I-40 along the old Route 66 from Weatherford, Oklahoma to Gallup, New Mexico. This will be the longest leg of our Tesla Coast to Coast journey. While most of the day will be spent driving, there are a few special stops we have planned. Of course, even before we were underway, Oliver was excited about getting a picture with an original Route 66 sign. Fortunately for us we found one at our first stop.



Our first stop was for a quick charge in Shamrock,Texas. The Tesla chargers are located in the parking lot of a historic Conoco gas station. They no longer serve fossil fuels here, only electricity. This station was the basis for one of the buildings in the Cars movies and Oliver was very interested in its history. Curator Diane gave us an awesome tour and history lesson as well as helping take some photos of us. This is a must stop for anyone traveling this route. There is some interesting history to be learned here. If you want to know more about the place, you can find them on Facebook at U-DROP INN.

Our lunch stop was at The Big Texan. This is the home of the free 72 ounce steak and fixins. Provided you can eat it all in 60 minutes of course. While we chose to go the modest route, we were still able to see the challenge area and the timers they have for multiple challengers who want a free meal. Our waiter, Daniel, was very well-versed in all the facts and history related to the challenge.  He was able to answer all of Oliver's questions with ease. It turns out that all the answers can be found on the cups for our drinks. During our lunch, we were serenaded by a roaming minstrel, David Waddle,  who sang some Johnny Cash tunes for us. We told him the story of Oliver's cousin Cash and he enjoyed it.

No trip along historic Route 66 would be complete without a stop at the Cadillac Ranch. This middle of cornfield homage to the Cadillac of cars is a Route 66 icon. The Cadillacs are well preserved considering they're exposed to elements and just plopped into the ground. I suppose it's the hundred layers of paint has something to do with the preservation of the vehicles. Of course, if someone chose to stick a Model S in the ground like that they wouldn't have to worry about painting it, because aluminum doesn't rust.

The rest of the trip was quite enjoyable, the New Mexico desert is a sight to behold. Fortunately for us, there were few traffic problems and the Tesla lapped up the miles like a kitten lapping up cream. Thank goodness for auto pilot.

Tomorrow, we meet up with Mom in Tucson. Will we be at the airport on time? Tune in tomorrow.