After picking up his Surly Troll touring bike, Australian Ron Maskell sets out on a trip of a lifetime beneath the Historic Route 66 sign in downtown Chicago.
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Ron Maskell / courtesy photo
In full touring gear, Maskell and his bike are road-ready with front and rear panniers fully loaded. He posed for this shot on a walking path in one of Canton's city parks.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
Maskell takes a breather in Baxter Springs, one of the town's along Kansas' short 11-mile stretch of the Mother Road in southeast Kansas.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
One of Ron Maskell's favorite stops was the Route 66 Museum in Pontiac, Ill. Among its artifacts is the funky school bus-turned ark seen in the right-hand corner of this photo.
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Ron Maskell / courtesy photo
The `Rabbit Ranch' in Staunton, Illinois, is a take-off on the better known `Carhenge' near Alliance, Neb, this one featuring half-buried VWs.
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Ron Maskell / courtesy photo
Ron was fascinated with the number of `tidy' old cars he spotted along Route 66, including this vintage Corvair convertible slowly wasting away behind a barbed wire fence. He said such finds would be quickly grabbed up in Australia as collector cars.
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Ron Maskell / courtesy photo
A classic Route 66 gas station of yore in typical pastel colors with a pair of `visible gas pumps' out front conjure up images of how the Mother Road looked back in the '20s and '30s.
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Ron Maskell / courtesy photo
Not every photo snapped by Maskell has a car or even a roadway in it. This nicely composed scene symbolizes farming in America's heartland.
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Ron Maskell / courtesy photo
Another pair of cars that brought Maskell to a stop on his bike: an old Plymouth business coupe and a 1964 Chevelle. He was wary of getting too close to some of the cars, for fear of being bitten by an angry watchdog.
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Ron Maskell / courtesy
Half a Chevy truck is better than none. This roadside attraction was offered at `half price.' Check out the retro lawn mower next to the truck and the sign proclaiming that `Abe Lincoln and Elvis Stopped Here.' Presumably, they weren't traveling together.
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Ron Maskell / courtesy photo
It would be easy to overlook the old Chevy farm truck stripped of its cargo bed and be stunned by the boat-tail Riviera parked in front of the old stone building, but both vehicles appeared to be in remarkably good condition, considering they are stored outside.
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Ron Maskell / courtesy photo
Ron was also impressed by this rare Corvair van, which looked to be in running condition. He resisted the temptation to buy it, load his bike inside and finish the rest of Route 66 behind the wheel.
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Ron Maskell / courtesy photo
Another throwback scene captured by Ron Maskell's camera: a vintage dairy truck parked outside a nicely kept roadside cottage, complete with white picket fence. Pure Americana.
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Ron Maskell / courtesy photo
Steve's Candy shop along Route 66 offers everything from shaved ice to hand-dipped chocolates and fresh beef jerky. But it was the funky Oldsmobile police cruiser that caught Ron Maskell's eye as a car guy.
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Ron Maskell / courtesy photo
A cat-fancier by nature, Ron was happy to meet Morris, the legendary 30-pound tabby who patrols the Galva Emporium antique store.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
Three Shoebox Ford forum members got to spend a little time together in Topeka. From the left, Virgil Wilson of Hiawatha, Ron Maskell of Brisbane, Australia, and Mike Berry, Wheels page editor. The three have been communicating with each other for years via the popular Oklahoma City-based website.
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Cassandra Immenschuh / courtesy photo
Dave `Coop' Cooper brought his shoebox Ford all the way from Tulsa to fetch Maskell and his bike, where Ron's journey down Route 66 would resume early this week. The `Coopty' is outfitted with a 302 Ford V-8 and 4-speed automatic overdrive and swallowed up the bike behind its back seat with no complaint.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
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