After Route 66 parade headaches, YouTuber warns of car event cancellations in Tulsa

Thousands of people participated in Tulsa’s world record-setting Route 66 Capital Cruise Saturday, but hundreds of credentialed motorists in their classic cars were stuck in gridlock traffic around Expo Square — and ultimately unable to reach the staging area or participate in the parade.

Following an influx of complaints, the Tulsa Route 66 Commission and Visit Tulsa announced Monday evening the parade would issue refunds of base registration fees for all drivers — not just those who were unable to participate. 

Physical checks will be mailed by the end of the month, with no action required by registrants. Drivers who purchased parade merchandise but were unable to pick it up on-site will have it shipped to them free of charge. 

“On behalf of the entire Capital Cruise team, we apologize to any driver who registered and checked in but was unable to participate,” the statement reads. 

Derek Bieri, a YouTube personality with 2.5 million subscribers who restores abandoned classic cars on his Vice Grip Garage channel, told the Flyer issues with traffic control soured the experience for numerous motorists. 

“I’ve been to hundreds and hundreds of shows all over this country and Canada — I have never seen a negligent lack of traffic control like this in my life,” said Bieri, who served as a parade grand marshal alongside Oklahoma Lt. Gov. Matt Pinnell, Tulsa Mayor Monroe Nichols and Cyrus Avery’s grandson Bob Berghell.

Now, Bieri says organizers in the broader car community are reconsidering future events scheduled for Tulsa.

“I already know of three events that aren’t going to Tulsa now because of this. Very large events are talking about rescheduling, which I won’t name, but you guys will figure it out,” he said. “In the end, it’s only going to hurt the small businesses in Tulsa.”

Headaches on the way to parade

Jonathan Huskey, senior director of communications at Tulsa Regional Tourism, says 5,100 drivers registered online to participate in the parade in celebration of Route 66’s centennial. Of those registered, 4,760 drivers checked in by Friday to receive their credentials.

Drivers were instructed to arrive at the staging area at Expo Square between 6 and 9 a.m. Saturday with a final deadline of 10 a.m. The staging time was extended to 11 a.m. to accommodate more drivers. Huskey says only 4,300 drivers made it before the cutoff.

Bieri blames that on a lack of traffic control getting to Expo Square.

“When they keep saying and deflecting, ‘drivers did not arrive at the Expo building in time,’ why the community is so mad is because it’s not their fault,” he said. “They couldn’t get into the Expo because there was no traffic control.”

Huskey deferred questions about traffic control plans in areas outside the parade route to the Tulsa Police Department. The Flyer contacted department spokesman Capt. Richard Meuelenberg Monday afternoon to ask about those plans, but he said all support units — with the exception of patrol officers — are off for Tulsa Race Massacre Observance Day.

After deductions were made for stalled, disabled or non-compliant vehicles and gaps longer than two car lengths, the official parade count closed at 3,596 classic cars. The total qualified Tulsa for a Guinness World Record, but not without controversy.

Apologies and angry complaints

As a parade grand marshal, Bieri drove a custom 1971 Ford F-100 that he restored over two episodes on his YouTube channel. He auctioned off the truck at the Capital Cruise Expo Friday night to an Atoka couple for $38,000. All proceeds from the purchase benefit Tulsa Mayfest.

“I had the time of my life going through (the parade). It was great,” Bieri said. “But when I finished the finish line and picked up my phone, I went, ‘oh no, this is not a good deal.’”

Bieri says he tends to keep quiet during issues like this, but the amount of angry messages he received about the event ultimately motivated him to speak out. He calls it “a black eye for the car community.”

“It seemed as if I didn’t stand up for the car community, no one was going to do it,” he said. “And as we’re seeing in front of our eyes, it’s being swept under the rug.”

Huskey apologized to anyone who received their credentials at Expo Square but was unable to participate in the parade.

“I’m sorry, because I don’t want anybody that comes to Tulsa, ever, to not have the best time of their life,” Huskey said. “For that to not have happened for however many people, that breaks my heart, and so I am very sorry.”

Huskey says he has not heard of any organizers considering rescheduling their events in Tulsa, but he wants to “put to bed” any apprehension about hosting an event.

“An event of this size was unprecedented in size, scale and complexity. It had never been attempted at this size in the continental United States. So, we take big swings in Tulsa, we can handle big things,” Huskey said. “We would love for you to come to Tulsa, we can handle it, and we would welcome you with open arms.” 

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