Roadtrip America a Sports Fan's Guide to Route 66 - (Scenic Side Trips) by Ron Clements & Roadtrip America (Paperback)

About the Book

A Sports Fan's Guide to Route 66 - the first sports-related book about America's Main Street.

Book Synopsis

Get Your Balls, Bats, and Sticks on Route 66!

Immortalized in countless books, songs, and movies, Route 66 is a timeless icon of American culture. Until now, however, no guide to this historic byway has focused on another beloved part of American culture: sports. That all changes with RoadTrip America A Sports Fan's Guide to Route 66. In this groundbreaking new book, sports writer and lifelong sports fan Ron Clements goes beyond nostalgic buildings and classic cars to highlight historic sports venues, storied sports professionals, and current sports events along the Mother Road.

Rolling west from Chicago to Santa Monica, the author shares inside information about the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB teams based in the cites and towns along Route 66. In addition, enjoy anecdotes gathered from auto and horse racing tracks, rodeo arenas, golf links, and the magnificent lineup of high school and collegiate sports programs to check out along the way.

The book has more than 300 photos and maps showing the various attractions in each of the eight states covered: Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California. And because no book about the Mother Road would be complete without it, there's plenty of info about the iconic roadside attractions that have entertained and enthralled travelers for the past century.

Review Quotes

"A Sports Fan's Guide to Route 66 is a joyful who's who of where's where; a guidebook to seeing all the sports landmarks you'd never thought to see. It's pure fun."--Jeff Pearlman, New York Times, best-selling author of nine books including Boys Will Be Boys, The Sweetness, The Gunslinger, Love Me, Hate Me and The Bad Guys Won.
"Best New Books of 2021: A delightful tribute to America's most prized byway. Color illustrations take you on one heck of a trip to sports venues, restaurants, and historic landmarks"--Men's Journal
"The book is something to keep in the car for reference -- a personalized handbook that can deliver more than what you could find with even the best of Google searches."--Nickolaus Hines, Matador Network
"The ultimate Road Trip book for sports."--Russ Cohen, Sportsology.com
"A thoughtful look at how sports unites communities, spotlighting those communities -- big and small -- that knit together the people and places of Route 66. I love this book!" --Jessica Dunham, author of Moon Route 66 Road Trip and The Open Road: 50 Best Road Trips in the USA
"Exhaustive in scope and brimming with passion and detail, A Sports Fan's Guide to Route 66 is a home run, touchdown, goal, slam dunk"--Chris Epting, best-selling author of 30 travel/history books, including Roadside Baseball and Hello, It's Me.
"The stories spin a rich fabric of American culture and one-of-a-kind personalities woven together by Route 66. This is a perfect book for the beach or your vacation."--Dave Nershi, Vino-sphere.com
"The Mother Road's purview to include not just its dinosaur statues and burger stands, but also its Mickey Mantle Museums and high school gyms incubating greatness." -Mike Wilkins, co-author, Roadside America, and co-owner, Pittsburgh Steelers.
"This book is full of interesting, informative and enjoyable stories of the players, teams and fans that are associated with Route 66." -James Conkle, publisher, Route 66 Pulse
"A great resource, not only for sports fans, but anyone checking out The Mother Road!" -Gary Herron, New Mexico Route 66 Association
"This unique perspective on America's favorite highway has something for everyone. I love this book!"----Shellee Graham, author of Tales from the Coral Court and Secret Route 66.
"I was inspired to add a few new stops to our next Route 66 odyssey" -Jim Hinckley, Route 66 historian and best-selling author of Travel Route 66: A Guide to the History, Sights, and Destinations Along the Main Street of America
"Details on everything from sports venues and historic landmarks to must-stop eateries along the Mother Road. This colorful collection of facts, figures, and photos is the ultimate travel guide for fellow fans, nostalgia buffs, and foodies!" -Kirk Richardson, author of Craft Beer Country: In Search of the Best Breweries from the South Pacific to the Pacific Coast
"Loaded with fascinating trivia, roadside attractions, and eye-popping photographs, this book is a grand-slam!"--Jim Ross, author of Oklahoma Route 66 and Route 66 Crossings.

About the Author

Ron Clements is a Wisconsin native and Green Bay Packers fan who married a Chicago Bears fan from Peoria, Illinois. Despite the rivalry, Ron and Patti make it work and have been living fulltime in an RV since March, 2018. They travel the country in search of new adventures and love attending baseball games and exploring national parks. They visited all 30 MLB stadiums in 2018 and have taken their RV to each of the lower 48 states. Ron is a veteran journalist of more than two decades and a summa cum laude graduate of East Carolina University, which he attended following his service in the United States Marine Corps. Ron has written for USA Today, Sporting News, CBS Sports, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Omaha World Herald, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Fresno Bee, the Montgomery Advertiser, and many other media outlets. Ron and Patti have two adult sons, RJ and David, and a four-legged travel companion named Maverick. While Ron's home base is in Florida, he is on the road in his RV twelve months a year.