Travel Channel Aligns With Rand McNally and USA TODAY on the First Ever Television Event Capturing the Annual Best of the Road® Cross-Country Road Rally

CHEVY CHASE, Md. and SKOKIE, Ill., June 6, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Travel Channel, in association with Rand McNally and USA TODAY, announces a one-hour television event that will capture the thrills and adventure of the second annual Best of the Road® cross-country road rally.  "Best of the Road," which will be produced by CBS Eye Too Productions for Travel Channel, will take viewers to the front lines of this annual Rand McNally adventure in which road-tripping teams travel from Washington, D.C. to Seattle, WA, in search of the Best Small Towns in America.  Citizens across the country nominated their favorite towns on www.bestoftheroad.com, and online voting narrowed hundreds of towns down to a select group of finalists.  Travel Channel host and resident fun-seeker, Bert Kreischer ("Trip Flip") will serve as host and help facilitate the judging at the end of the road trip.  "Best of the Road" will premiere on Wednesday, July 25 at 8:00 P.M. ET/PT.

The Best of the Road® Rally kicks off on Friday, June 15 and will depart from Washington, D.C., where the pre-selected teams will be presented with their personalized road maps and the destinations they are to visit along the way.  Over the course of four weeks, each team will travel a different route across the country in search of the Most Fun, Most Patriotic, Most Beautiful, Best for Food and Friendliest Town in America as they travel to their final destination – Seattle, WA on Sunday, July 15.  You can track the team's progress and find more information about each of the towns on the Best of the Road web site; www.bestoftheroad.com.

"This special will put our viewers in the driver's seat as they take this unprecedented journey alongside three of the teams participating in this cross-country adventure," said Andy Singer, GM, Travel Channel.  "We are thrilled to hitch a ride on this road trip and explore and celebrate America's best small town destinations."  

"Rand McNally and USA TODAY are committed to celebrating what is great about our country, and over the past two years more than 1,000 towns have been nominated through the Best of the Road web site and online community," said Dave Muscatel, CEO of Rand McNally.  "Travel Channel shares our vision and we are very excited to work with them to bring Best of the Road to television."

In addition to the television special, Travel Channel will capture each team's off-the-beaten-path adventures as they travel with the Best of the Road® RV. Exclusive footage of the road warriors and outtakes not featured in the special will be available on TravelChannel.com and BestoftheRoad.com.  Follow us at @bestoftheroad and #bestoftheroad.  

About the Best of the Road® – Rand McNally has earned the reputation as a trusted source in maps, directions and travel content with its best-selling Road Atlas and annual Best of the Road online guide.  Its celebration of the Great American Road Trip has given way to an online guide of the Best of the Road and features top attractions in more than 20 categories -- from the Best Beach to the Best BBQ.  This year, Rand McNally is revving up, in collaboration with USA TODAY, for an all-new the Best of the Road search with content created by travelers online and to be published in the 2014 Rand McNally Road Atlas.  For more information about the Best of the Road, visit www.bestoftheroad.com.  Best of the Road is a registered trademark of Rand McNally.

About Rand McNally – Rand McNally is the most trusted source for maps, directions, and travel content.  Rand McNally's products and services include: Road travel review site bestoftheroad.com; Interactive travel referral service tripology.com; America's #1 Road Atlas; and TripMaker® RVND™ GPS for RVers;  IntelliRoute® truck routing software and GPS devices; and the leading geography-based educational resources for the classroom.  The 89th edition of America's #1 Road Atlas is now available and it includes digital TAGs that connect smartphone users to special mobile web pages. Consumers, businesses, truckers, and educators depend upon Rand McNally to help navigate today's world. www.randmcnally.com

About USA TODAY – USA TODAY is a multi-platform news and information media company.  Founded in 1982, USA TODAY's mission is to serve as a forum for better understanding and unity to help make the USA truly one nation.  Today, through its newspaper, website and mobile platforms, USA TODAY connects readers and engages the national conversation.  USA TODAY, the nation's number one newspaper in print circulation with an average of nearly 1.8 million daily, and USATODAY.com, an award-winning newspaper website launched in 1995, reach a combined 5.9 million readers daily.  USA TODAY is a leader in mobile applications with more than 14 million downloads on mobile devices.  The USA TODAY brand also includes USA TODAY Education and USA TODAY Sports Weekly.  USA TODAY is owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI).

About Travel Channel – TRAVEL CHANNEL (http://www.travelchannel.com) is a multiplatform travel lifestyle brand with the core mission of providing inspiring and compelling programming that takes viewers beyond their everyday destinations, making the unfamiliar familiar, whether it's around the world or around the block. 

A dual feed network that is also available in HD, Travel Channel is the world's leading travel media brand, and is available in over 94 million U.S. cable homes.  Owned and operated by Scripps Networks Interactive (NYSE: SNI), Travel Channel has offices in Chevy Chase, MD, and New York, NY.  Scripps Networks Interactive (NYSE: SNI) also owns and operates HGTV, DIY Network, Food Network, Cooking Channel and Great American Country.

Press Contacts:
For Travel Channel:
Caryn Davidson, [email protected], 212.835.3360
Amelie Tseng, [email protected], 212.835.3359

Weber Shandwick for Rand McNally
Jessica Parker, [email protected], 212.445.8263

USA TODAY
Heidi Zimmerman, [email protected], 703.854.5304

SOURCE Rand McNally