The Mother Road Runpresented by PEAK
2,500+ miles of Route 66. 8 states. One 1978 Ford F-150 named Brownie.
The whole run, filmed.
Joliet to the Santa Monica Pier, day by day. Press play right here, or open an episode for the full written chapter.
- 2,500+Route 66 miles · Chicago → Santa Monica
- 6,313Total miles · Miami and back
- 1926Route 66 commissioned · Nov 11
- 8States on Route 66
- June 3Left Miami · 2026
- June 19Reached Santa Monica
- 1978Ford F-150 4x4 · Brownie
- 100Years of Route 66 · Nov 11, 2026
A childhood dream, driven.
The Mother Road Run presented by PEAK started with a simple idea that felt too important to ignore.
Route 66 turns 100. America turns 250. I love old trucks, American highways, small towns, roadside history, vintage signs, gas stations, motels, and the freedom of the open road. This was one of those moments that felt like it was speaking directly to everything Ford Era is about.
The plan was to take Brownie, my 1978 Ford F-150 4x4, and drive historic Route 66 from Chicago to Santa Monica. We would start in Illinois, join Hot Rod Power Tour for the first part of the trip, and then continue west on The Mother Road Run all the way to the Pacific Ocean.
On paper, it sounds simple. In real life, it was anything but.
From the road
“Once we got on Route 66, Brownie became the main character.”
Chicago to Santa Monica on historic Route 66
2,500+
miles of the Mother Road
Chicago to Santa Monica on historic Route 66.
2,500+ miles across 8 states, drawn mile by mile.
The stops that defined the trip.
Pacific, Missouri
Bigfoot 4x4
Home of Bigfoot #1, the original monster truck — a lifted, KC-lit dentside Ford that started it all.
Visit the stopShamrock, Texas
U-Drop Inn / Conoco Tower Station
A 1936 art-deco Conoco tower and cafe — one of the most beautiful buildings on the entire route, famous for inspiring Cars.
Visit the stop
Amarillo, Texas
Cadillac Ranch
Ten Cadillacs buried nose-first in a wheat field since 1974, layered in decades of visitor paint.
Visit the stop
Tucumcari, New Mexico
Blue Swallow Motel
A 1939 motor court with hand-painted neon, attached garages, and rooms kept alive by generations of owners.
Visit the stop
Holbrook, Arizona
Wigwam Motel
Concrete tepee cabins from 1950 where you still sleep inside a wigwam with vintage cars parked outside.
Visit the stop
Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica Pier
The symbolic end of Route 66 — the End of the Trail sign over the Pacific.
Visit the stop6,313
miles — Miami and back. Brownie's full journey.
Brownie became the main character.
A 1978 Ford F-150 4x4, transformed for the run, and honest about every fight it put up on the way to the Pacific.
The Partners That Made It Possible
This was not just logo placement. These brands became part of the adventure, part of the truck, part of the road, and part of the story.
Read the full recap
“I did not know if it would make the drive before the trip even started.”
We actually did it.
You can talk about driving Route 66, or you can just do it.
We did it.
Route 66 is visual. So is the proof.
Daily clips straight from the road, Illinois to the Pacific, and the full photo gallery behind them.
The road isn't done yet.
Drivers, sponsors, and Route 66 stops for what comes next in 2027: raise your hand. No payment, no commitment.
Be Part of the Next One