Route 66 Takes a Detour Onto the HF Highway

What does amateur radio have in common with one of America's most famous roads? Connection — plain and simple. Ham radio has always been about linking people together, and for 100 years, Route 66 has done much the same thing for motorists, connecting small towns, friends, and adventure along the open road.

To mark that centennial, 24 special event stations are on the air throughout the anniversary, running from Saturday 12th September through to Sunday 20th September.

Who's on the Air

The event, Route 66 on the Air, is sponsored by the Citrus Belt Amateur Radio Club in San Bernardino, California, who are calling QRZ under the callsign W6C. They're joined by a full run of stations using the same W6 prefix, working through the alphabet from W6A all the way to W6Z.

Participating clubs span the length of the old highway itself, including the Barstow Amateur Radio Club in California, the Albuquerque DX Association in New Mexico, the Southwest Missouri Amateur Radio Club, and several others strung out along the route.

With that many stations active across such a historic stretch of road, expect plenty of traffic on the bands and no shortage of stops to make along the way — a fitting way to mark a hundred years of one of America's best-loved highways.