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Reporting From the Road

7/20/2012 | Hotel Ruminating

As I told you about as part of our July cover story, Motel 6 is celebrating its 50th anniversary by reviving three “Great American Road Trips.” Yesterday, the hotel chain let us in on the three “open road correspondents” who are beginning their journeys and documenting their steps along three adventures that are reminiscent of days gone by, with a twist—they are all eco-friendly road trips.

Motel 6 fans submitted compelling videos illustrating why they deserved to travel and report on some of the most iconic stretches of American highway. The winners’ upcoming eco-friendly adventures nod to Motel 6’s beginnings as an idea born during a cross-country road trip by its founders.

Here are your correspondents and their videos:

Dan Bakst of Temple Terrace, Fla, whose lighthearted video includes vintage postcards and a self-written travel song featuring his ukulele talents.

Keaton Davis of New Braunfels, Texas, whose video meshes clips of his previous road-trip adventures through cities, mountains and desert.

Brianna Poster of St. Charles, Ill., whose video shared personal clips, including a cliff-side bungee jump, along with past travel footage and photos.

Correspondents will travel “green” by using environmentally friendly vehicles and digital map applications to help conserve fuel and energy. They will also stay at predetermined Motel 6 locations, several of which have been updated with earth-friendly features.

Each correspondent and a travel companion will explore one of three routes, all approximately 1,000 miles long with four to six city stops. Bakst will travel Route 66 through Amarillo, Texas, to Santa Monica, Calif. Davis will trek The Pacific Coast Highway from Turnwater, Wash., to Santa Barbara, Calif. Poster will explore the Southern Route, starting in Austin, Texas, and ending in Destin, Fla.

Traveling between July 16 and Sept. 3, 2012, they’ll document their trips by providing status updates and photos on their personal social media profiles, and sharing content with Motel 6’ Facebook and Twitter fans.

You can follow each traveler’s journey on Motel 6’s Facebook page. I’ll be following and be checking back in with updates from the journeys.