Rumble Road
Untold Stories From Outside The Ring
Jon Robinson
Published: 2010
Pages: 208
Synopsis: A collection of road stories and ribs from WWE superstars.
When you walk out of your hotel room and see Big Daddy V sitting on someone, you know something crazy just went down. And that's exactly what happened one time in England. We were all getting off the bus in either Manchester or Birmingham in the UK. Anyways, we were pulling into the hotel, it was really late, and there had been a kickboxing matching at the arena across the street and all of the fans were headed to our hotel.
Next thing we know, one of their fans punches one of our security guards and there was a short scuffle. Our guys were all very professional actually, but what stopped the whole fight was Big Daddy V sitting on two people. That was the end of the fight. I walked out of the hotel and was like "Why is V sitting on that guy?"
Some time back, I reviewed Are We There Yet?, a WWE-published compilation of what life can be like on the road. It made for a fun, light read, and my only major complaint at the time was that many of the wrestlers listed had left the company by the time of publication. Five years later, they came up with a sequel.
What has changed in five years? A lot. Hornswoggle, surprisingly enough, has been dubbed one of the most notorious pranksters and troublemakers on the road, and you read how he gets under the skin of Kofi Kingston and others. Randy Orton has (allegedly) grown up from trying to find the seediest strip clubs across America, traveling in a pimped-out tour bus that he takes family across the country in. And Cryme Tyme can't seem to get any respect, be it from other wrestlers and even store owners.
Is the sequel as good as the original? Hard to say. I liked some of the elaborate ribs more in Are We There Yet?, but Rumble Road gives us a bit more insight into the lives of the wrestlers we watch on TV. I'd have to call it a push.
Overall rating: Transitional Champion. Absolutely nothing wrong with giving this a quick read, perhaps during a road trip of your own. But to find a range of lengthier and better books.... well, click here.