In early June, Ryan Chiaverini and his crew, "Sidekicks on 66," began their journey at the ceremonial start of the road at Navy Pier, driving a new Hyundai Palisade with only 22 miles on the odometer.
Passing by the 1937 start at Michigan Avenue and Adams Street, the crew rolled past Chicago classic The Berghoff before stopping at Lou Mitchell's, whose neon sign has been promising the "world's finest coffee" for generations.
"Lou Mitchell really was a pioneer in many ways in what he did," said Nick Thanas, owner of Lou Mitchell's. "Skillet eggs and Greek toast: Those things were created really under his wing. I mean a lot of this stuff came from our culture, and he brought it to the table."
Next, the crew stopped for lunch at Lulu's Hot Dogs and dessert at Ferrara Bakery before heading out of Chicago and into Will County. They paused for photos at Route 66 Park in Joliet and posed with statues of the Blues Brothers in Elwood before stopping in Wilmington, a town beaming with pride for the Mother Road.
"Wilmington is really one of the first small towns along Route 66, where you really start stretching your legs and getting outside of the city of Chicago," said Greg Peerbolte, CEO of the Joliet Historical Museum. "So, you have a lot of small-town charm and just a beautiful bunch of small and eclectic shops, art galleries and restaurants."
The star of Wilmington is its 30-foot-tall Gemini Giant. It's a "muffler man" statue first erected at the Launching Pad Restaurant to attract customers in the 1960s. Now standing at South Island Park, it greets new fans of Route 66 with its own gift shop and a beer available at Nelly's On Route 66 and Old School Brewing.
"We have our beer, which is 'Gemini's Reentry,' which is a golden ale," said Jay Hill, bar manager at Old School Brewing. "It utilizes Gemini hops and so we released that beer right when the Gemini came back."
For Chiaverini and the crew, it was one pier down and one to go in Santa Monica. But there was still plenty more to see over the next 2,300 miles.
"Pier To Pier: Celebrating 100 Years of Route 66" is sponsored by Hyundai.