It's the centennial anniversary of historic U.S. Route 66. And starting Tuesday, June 2nd, 66-year-old Irish endurance cycling champion Joe Barr will be cycling from Santa Monica to Chicago non-stop, with a small documentary crew in tow.
The eventual film will also highlight what the highway means to individuals and businesses along the way, and for that portion, over the past ten days, co-directors Leslie Eades and Matt Wagner have been traveling in reverse from Chicago to gather B-roll, interviews and other footage. Patrick Mullan is the third co-director, alongside producer Margaret McMullan
Barr is no stranger to these sorts of treks. He has twice completed the Race Across America (RAMM) and in 2019, won the 50+ age category for that event. His partner Jillian Mooney, a performance nutritionist, will also be featured in the film along with crew chief Marc Poland, a former aerospace engineering executive and himself a cycling world record holder.
One of the coolest aspects of this project is that folks can follow along live via the Web as Barr tackles 2,488 miles in 8 days. The link for that data is here.
'For Joe Barr, this journey started two years ago when the spark of this world record attempt was born,' the documentary team shared on Instagram. 'For our crew today, it meant soaking in the nostalgia of the Shamrock Court Motel, the Cuba murals, Hooker’s Cut and the Devil’s Elbow Bridge.'
'We embraced the quirky side at Uranus Fudge Factory, ate at the Route 66 Diner and stopped at Supertam on 66,' they continued. 'We interviewed owner Chris Briley about the spirit of the road, Joe’s upcoming ride, and had to fuel up on some Superman ice cream. We wrapped up the day chasing the sunset through Kansas to see Galena’s Cars gas station and the Rainbow Bridge. Then, the nighttime production began: uploading terabytes of footage, confirming more interviews, and taking a quiet moment to journal before we head into Oklahoma and Texas.'
More recently, Barr won the 2023 Ulta-Cycling World Championship in the 50+ age category. He is also a two-time winner of the Race Around Ireland. As part of fundraising for the project, backers will have a chance to win the Route 66 bike.
Immediately following this newest cross-country U.S. ride, Barr will turn 67 on June 13th. It's definitely no coincidence that the filmmakers timed the ride so he could be the namesake age of the history highway.
[Instagram: Joe Barr Route 66 Project]
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