Brand Identity for a Traveling Sports Broadcaster

Route 300
Brand identity for a sports journalist covering the PBA Tour

The ask
Route 300 is a newsletter and YouTube channel from sports journalist Nolan Hughes, telling the stories of the people behind professional bowling. Nolan wanted a modern-retro brand, vintage, faded, and inspired by highway signs and postcards, that could turn casual sports fans into PBA fans. The brief was clear about what to avoid: nothing AI-generated, nothing overdesigned, and none of the pins, balls, and strike marks that define most bowling brands. He needed a logo with enough variations to work across socials, large signage, apparel, and print applications, plus a versatile type system.

The process
I started with research: who Route 300’s direct competitors were in the bowling space, and how it could stand out. Right away it was clear Nolan had a strong niche. He’s a one-man show with a sports journalism background, working in an industry not known for modern design. Besides the official PBA and one other sports writer, there was no direct competitor telling these stories.

The brand needed to say what the content already does: real bowlers, real stories, written by humans for humans. Staying far from anything AI-generated was a priority for Nolan, so every element was designed to feel hand-drawn and distressed.

The concept comes from Nolan’s own story. He travels cross-country in his RV alongside the PBA Tour, reporting from event to event. That led to the Route 66 inspiration: faded highway signage, vintage postcards, and typefaces that recall mid-century roadside America, all pointing to a reporter on the road.

Deliverables
Logo suite (badge, postcard wordmark, and on-air sign illustration) · Color palette · Type system · Brand voice and positioning