I often refer to Route 66 as a living, breathing time capsule, a place where the past and future flow together seamlessly. With the passing of each day, as the excitement continues to build, that becomes a more apt descriptor.
Few things exemplify this more than the Miles of Possibility: The Edwardsville Conference scheduled for the last weekend in October. As evidenced by the general schedule released yesterday, the name for this event is a bit deceptive.
This is more than a mere weekend filled with conferences and workshops. It represents an eagerly anticipated rebirth of the annual conventions once hosted by the U.S. Highway 66 Association. It is the intersection of the highways renaissance and its origins as an American icon in a meeting that branded U.S. 66 as the Main Street of America.
This, however, is but one aspect of the excitement that will be building between now and the event in Edwardsville. Exciting events will be taking place in Holbrook and Springfield (Illinois as well as Missouri), Kingman and Tucumcari, Amarillo and Victorville. In between will be the legions of international fans of the double six that infuse the Route 66 corridor with infectious enthusiasm. All of this ensures that 2015, one year before the highways 90th anniversary, could very well be one of the most exciting in the roads history.
And now, the Edwardsville schedule –
Tentative Schedule for Miles of Possibility: The Edwardsville Conference
Here it is – our tentative conference schedule!
MILES OF POSSIBILITY: THE EDWARDSVILLE ROUTE 66 CONFERENCE
Thursday-Saturday, October 29-31, 2015
Wildey Theatre, Edwardsville, IL
Sponsored by the Illinois Route 66 Blue Carpet Corridor Coalition
Hosted by the City of Edwardsville
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
Thursday, October 29
12:00 noon – 6:00 pm Registration, packets/goody bags/info available – Wildey lobby
Afternoon – Edwardsville Historic Districts tours – by City of Edwardsville Historic Preservation Commission
Wildey Theatre tours – by Joan Evers, Wildey Theatre historian
Evening – Route 66 Pub Crawl – Stagger Inn, Springer’s Creek Winery, Hi-Way Tavern, a couple newer Main Street establishments
Friday, October 30
8:00 – 10:00 am Registration, pick up packets/goody bags/info – Wildey lobby
9:00 – 9:15 am Welcome – Wildey auditorium – Mayor Hal Patton
9:00 am Author Book Store/Artist & Collector Expo opens – second floor
9:30 – 10:30 am Concurrent conference sessions – auditorium and third floor
10:45 – 11:45 am Concurrent conference sessions – auditorium and third floor
11:45 am – 1:15 pm Lunchtime stroll – downtown restaurants and shops
1:15 – 2:15 pm Concurrent conference sessions – auditorium and third floor
2:30 – 3:30 pm Concurrent conference sessions – auditorium and third floor
3:45 – 4:45 pm Conference session – auditorium only while buffet sets up on third floor
4:45 pm – 6:00 pm Shop/visit Author Store/Artist & Collector Expo or Evening Main Street Stroll
6:00 pm Author Store/Artist & Collector Expo closes for the day
6:00 pm Buffet Dinner – third floor
7:30 pm Band concert – auditorium
Saturday, October 31
8:00 am Tentative – E-group Breakfast (hosted by Mike & Sharon Ward, Mesa AZ) – Location TBA
9:00 am Author Book Store/Artist & Collector Expo opens – second floor
9:30 – 10:30 am Concurrent conference sessions – auditorium and third floor
10:45 – 11:45 am Concurrent conference sessions – auditorium and third floor
11:45 am – 1:15 pm Lunchtime stroll – downtown restaurants and shops
1:15 – 2:15 pm Concurrent conference sessions – auditorium and third floor
2:30 – 4:00 pm Special Surprise, announcements of future events – auditorium only
5:00 pm Author Book Store/Artist & Collector Expo closes
5:00 pm End of conference events at the Wildey
4:00 – 6:00 pm Free time – nap, eat, shop, drink, get a spot for the parade
6:00 pm Halloween Parade steps off at Lincoln Middle School but does not arrive downtown until about 6:30 pm. Parade theme “Miners Mobsters and the Mother Road.”
After parade – Roadie Party (hosted by Dr. Nick Gerlich, Amarillo TX, and Roamin’ Rich Dinkela, St. Louis MO) – Tentatively at host hotel Holiday Inn Express Conference Rooms. Joe Sonderman (Route 66 author/collector and long-time St. Louis radio personality) will DJ.
Sunday, November 1
Blue Carpet Corridor tour for attendees staying through Sunday
