Lincoln Highway Conference 2010
Day 1
Reaching the Lincoln
Day 2
Conference Kick Off
Day 3
Rain, Sun, RAIN
Day 4
Windmill, Riverboat, & Root Beer Floats
Day 5
Education and More
Day 6
Starting Home
Day 7
One More Basket
As this was my first LHA National Conference experience, a big part of it was just seeing what takes place and meeting people. There were attendees I'd had telephone or email contact with but had never met. Kathy Franzwa, Mindy Crawford, and Jeff LaFollette were in that category. I also enjoyed meeting folks whose names I knew but with whom I'd had no contact of any sort; People like Bob Dieterich, Rollin Southwell, and Jay Banta. Then there were people that I didn't even know existed but who were a real treat to meet. Wayne Silvius, the Urbans, the train riding dudes from California, and the greasers from Ohio were a few in that group. And Robert Owens, too, although I met him quite by accident and nowhere near the conference. But maybe the best meetings were with those I'd met once or twice and got to know a bit better. Among these were Brian Butko, Esther & Bernie Queneau, Russell Rein, and Lynn Asp. The bus tours were great, the meals were all good, the presentations informative. A good time was had by me.
Attending national gatherings for Route 66 and the Lincoln Highway back to back certainly invites comparisons. I've frequently made the statement that Lincoln Highway folks wish they had Sixty-Six's recognition and the Route 66 folks wish they had the Lincoln's organization. That last word, "organization", is probably the key one in comparing events. I sense some real ramble potential here and I don't want that. I just want a paragraph in the postlude of a road trip. The LHA conference was a single coordinated event. Piecemeal participation was possible but the all inclusive approach (priced at $200 plus) included banquets, lunches, bus tours, and presentations and was by far the most popular. There really were no "public" events although I doubt anyone would have been booted from the book room. Piecemeal participation was the standard at the Route 66 gathering. There was an awards banquet and a group breakfast but there were different people behind them. I'm sure the majority of attendees at one were also at the other but there was hardly 100% overlap. There were, at least in theory, some public elements in the Route 66 event. The public was certainly welcome in the AAAAA (Authors, Artists, Associations, Artisans & Archivists) area and at the car show. The word "membership" can also be tied to some of the differences. Everyone attending the LHA Conference was a member of the national Lincoln Highway Association. There is no national Route 66 organization. While many, perhaps most, of the Route 66 attendees belonged to one or more state organizations, they certainly did not all belong to the same organization. These differences aren't secrets. They're well known and recognized in the event titles. Each year some group puts on a festival for fans of Route 66 and each year a national conference is held for members of the Lincoln Highway Association. They're both great fun.
June 27, 2010 (day 7)
When you end one day and start the next with a 'burger basket, you might
be on a road trip. I did and I was although the road trip was about to end. Besides
the basket, I had some pie in a reopened diner and a cool drink in a 165
year old house.
June 26, 2010 (day 6)
After the general membership meeting, I picked up some local sights I'd
missed then headed home on US-52.
June 25, 2010 (day 5)
We heard several informative talks today plus got to visit a museum, a
president's home, and a veterans park. A nicely done awards banquet closed
out the day.
June 24, 2010 (day 4)
Today's weather was beautiful as we visited the windmill in Fulton and
the John Deere home in Grand Detour eating lunch on a boat and dinner
from a basket.
June 23, 2010 (day 3)
It was raining as we boarded the tour bus in Dixon and the rain continued
as we took the expressway to Joliet. It started to clear as we turned west
and we were dry through several interesting stops. Then, as we approached
Ashton, we hit some pretty heavy rain and some intense wind.
June 22, 2010 (day 2)
It was a short pleasant drive to Dixon where the welcome banquet was also
pleasant... and entertaining. I got to say hi to some folks I knew and to
some I was meeting for the first time.
June 21, 2010 (day 1)
Another hour of expressway brought me to Ames, Iowa, and the road to
Dixon. In a truly serendipitous meeting, I picked up some stranded medicine
from an LHA Consul. Niland's, Youngsville, and the Lincoln Cafe in Mt
Vernon were closed but I did get inside a store and a mill that I'd only
seen from the outside before. There was a little rain but it wasn't all that
bothersome.
Prelude 2 - May 23, 2010
Ever since the dates for the 2010 Route 66 Festival were solidified and it
became apparent that my drive to that event would flow right into the
drive to this one, I've struggled with thoughts of combining the two into
a single trip report. Partially because I could never settle on what to
call it, I've decided to continue treating them as two separate trips for
purposes of the website. The locator map linked to the button at the top
of this page shows the route following the 2010
International Route 66 Festival near Joplin, Missouri, and leading to
the 2010 National Lincoln Highway Association Conference
in Dixon, Illinois. A locator map for the combined drive is
here. The journal for the drive to Joplin
is here.
Prelude 1 - January 15, 2010
This year's Lincoln Highway Association Conference is in Dixon, Illinois.
Last year's was in South Bend, Indiana. I remember that when I first
learned of this a couple years back, I was kind of excited and thought I'd
be at two consecutive conferences. It didn't happen. My work schedule
prevented me from attending last year. That obviously won't be the case
this year so I really think I just might make my first LHA conference
ever. The LHA conference opens on June 22, a Tuesday. The International
Route 66 Festival wraps up in Joplin on the preceding Saturday. That seems
to be just the right amount of time to make a leisurely drive between the
two events.