The Wonder of the Road

In this fifth episode of our seven-part road trip through Arizona, we hit the open road. Arizona has the longest preserved stretch of original Route 66 in the United States: more than 385 miles of neon, chrome and wide-open desert. And in 2026, the Mother Road turns 100-years-old so there’s no better time to drive it. We start in Seligman, the little town where Route 66 was reborn, with pranks, classic cars and a world-record-breaking drive-in. We meet the 99-year-old ‘Guardian Angel of Route 66’ who is credited with saving the Mother Road. And along the way, we discover what Route 66 really means, and how its story mirrors the story of America itself

Listen to the teaser

Episode highlights

The Snow Cap Welcome

Get sprayed with mustard, fooled by the door handles and offered a cheeseburger with cheese at Delgadillo’s Snow Cap Drive-In. Hear how owner John Delgadillo’s father turned a doctor’s warning into a Route 66 legend built on laughter.

The World’s Wildest Milkshakes

Find out how the Snow Cap broke a Guinness World Record with 266 different milkshakes, including flavors such as hot dog, and peanut butter jalapeño banana. Then meet the rusty old tow truck out back that inspired Mater from the movie Cars.

Blame It on the Bicycles

Travel back to the birth of the American road trip with historian David Purcell at the Museum of Northern Arizona. Discover the surprising origins of Route 66 and what it was really like to drive it in 1926: no pavement, no air conditioning, no map, and 25 miles an hour if you were lucky.

The Guardian Angel of Route 66

Meet Angel Delgadillo, the 99-year-old barber who watched his town die when the interstate came through, and then refused to give up on it. Hear how he led the fight to bring Route 66 back to life, and why he believes it still has something important to teach us.

In giving Route 66 its historic rebirth, we have captured the imagination of the world, and people are learning a little bit more about themselves.

Angel Delgadillo, founder, Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona