Sharing Seaba Station

KFOR in Oklahoma City did a nice video piece on the Seaba Station Motorcycle Museum in Warwick, Oklahoma.

The segment is called "Is This a Great State or What?"

We couldn't agree more.

Lost City: Find Yourself

Local Ride

When you only have time for a quickie.

Last week while roaming around the wilderness near Fort Gibson Lake we found Lost City, avoided a speed trap, and stumbled across a wonderful destination tucked away in the Oklahoma hills.

Lost City Road takes you on a 12-mile stretch  through Cherokee County. It runs from Peggs to Hulbert, passing through the mysteriously named town of Lost City, Oklahoma.

Dallas Day One

Dallas International Motorcycle Show: Day 1

Rubbing elbows with old racers, drooling over cool prototypes and yes, we like Ike.

We made the drive to Dallas today and stormed the Convention Center with cameras blazing. Attendance at the show was light for this first day, but the overcast skies and occasional drizzle probably kept many riders away.

But for us, the first day of the show was pretty darn busy. We got to meet Superbike legend, Scott Russell, talked trials with the Smage brothers and got the scoop on several new motorcycles that are new to the American market.

Brad interviews five-time Daytona 200 winner
and AMA Hall of Famer, Scott Russell.

As Seen on TV:
Smage Brothers, finalists on
America's Got Talent

Fun day? You bet.

Stay tuned.

Rex and Brad's Excellent Adventure

We're going to Dallas so you won't have to!

The 2011-2012 season of the International Motorcycle Shows has kicked off and they're once again making a stop in Dallas. Since this is the closest venue to Oklahoma on the tour we're planning to head down and get the goods on all the new bikes, gear and industry news we can soak up in three days.

Road trip!

Life Beyond the Beeline

Alternate 75 is the first new episode of Two Wheel Oklahoma produced in 2011. It had been a year since we had shot any video so we decided to stay close to home. When I suggested we explore US-75 towards Okmulgee the response was a collective yawn.

Photo by Travis Edwards

This highway is not typically known for its scenic beauty or sweeping curves. Most of the way through Oklahoma it's pretty darn straight. Especially the section between Tulsa and Okmulgee. In fact, it's called the "Beeline" by the locals due to its boringly linear track.

But what most people don't realize is the old highway is still alive and kicking. It's even an officially recognized Federal highway between Sapulpa and Beggs- and if you keep your eyes peeled you can make it all the way to Okmulgee on old highway 75.

Backroad to Birch Lake

Local Ride
When you only have time for a quickie.

This is the latest in our series of local rides. If you have a ride you'd like to share contact us.In our fourth episode Brad and I visited Barnsdall, Oklahoma in Osage County. You might remember it as the town with the oil well in the middle of Main Street.

But it turns out that's not the only attraction to see near Barnsdall.

Oklahoma's Smallest Town

Population Trend Looking Grim for Mule Barn

Mule Barn, OK— Times are tough for small towns in Oklahoma. 

Corporate farming, foreign oil, offshore manufacturing and more have impacted our rural way of life. Declining populations make it difficult for smaller municipalities to cope- and nowhere is that more evident than Mule Barn, Oklahoma.

Once a thriving community of 3, today Mule Barn's population is 0. A dramatic 300% decrease in only 13 short years. Many people ask themselves: How could this happen?

Land of the Onion Burger

We headed off to Western Oklahoma looking for Route 66, but found onion burgers.

Windmills near Weatherford

Our sixth installment of Two Wheel Oklahoma featured a stretch of the Mother Road from El Reno to Weatherford, Oklahoma. Along this route we discovered some thriving communities, proud of their history- and their fried onion hamburgers!

The best I can tell the onion burger became popular during the Depression years. Restauranteurs searched for ways to make their expensive meat go further. Onions became a popular choice as filler because they were cheap and helped keep the burger moist. Eventually customers became accustomed to burgers with onion fried in, and the practice continued even after good times returned. Today the city of El Reno holds an annual Onion Burger Day each May and fries up a 700-pound burger. But onion burgers aren't the only thing to see.

Oklahoma's Roadside Architecture

Notable Design at a Mile a Minute

I see a lot of cool buildings and structures along the highway.

There's probably a higher concentration of unique designs out on the road because of the desire to catch your attention as you whiz past. Some of the most interesting roadside attractions are also the most mundane.

2011 Oklahoma Bike Nights

We'll periodically update this post- so make sure you're on our mailing list or follow us on Facebook.

It's that time of year again! Time to dust off the two-wheeler and show it off at your nearest gathering spot. Here's our list of bike nights, gatherings and weekly happenings around the state of Oklahoma. If you have details on a weekly bike night in your area let us know about it.

Forward to Avant

Local Ride
When you only have time for a quickie.

If you have a favorite ride you'd like to share contact us for details on how you can submit it.Oklahoma State Highway 97 is relatively short stretch of highway that runs from Sapulpa to Sand Springs. It was commissioned in 1952 and extended north into the Osage a few years later. That section, where it passes over the rolling hills north of Sand Springs, is the most scenic part of the road. But just when it's getting good OK-97 ends abruptly at the gates of the John Zink Ranch. End of the line.

Bridge over Bird Creek at Avant

Or is it?

Let Off Some Steam

One of my favorite annual events in Oklahoma is the Pawnee Steam Show. Or, if you prefer the official title, the Pawnee Steam and Gas Engine Show.

The event is held each May on the Pawnee Fairgrounds and organized by the Oklahoma Steam Thresher & Gas Engine Association. Participants bring out their vintage machinery and show it off for the crowds. But it's not just a gearhead paradise. I mean... it is, but it's not just a steam punk festival. There's cool stuff for kids too! You'll find fresh ground corn meal, tiny little hay bales made by a tiny little hay baler, multiple demonstrations of dangerous machinery and fresh squeezed lemonade.

TWO Does Dallas

2010 International Motorcycle Show in Dallas

For this year’s International Motorcycle Show held in Dallas, Paul at Brookside Motorcycle Company offered me a chance to ride a Kawasaki Concours 14.

The Concours 14 during a stop in Wetumka

It was going to be a four-day trip with a passenger and we needed the luggage room. The Kawasaki fit the bill perfectly for this trip. Much better than the bike I usually ride!

The big Kawasaki always seems to rank right at the top of the class in all of the riding comparison tests, and it seemed to fit my needs perfectly. It falls in the Sport Touring class of bike, not in the big class of touring rigs, like the Gold Wing, the BMW LT, etc. It gives enough long distance comfort and still returns a sporty and usable ride when the road starts to curve. The 14 is a good place to be for extended hours in all kinds of weather with the electrically adjustable windshield, adjustable rear suspension, near perfect riding position and eerily smooth drivetrain.

15th Annual Gold Rush: one of Oklahoma's most unique motorsport events

2010 Oklahoma Gold Rush
Taking their cue from the Lake Elsinore Grand Prix, an off-road motorcycle race popularized by the Sixties movie On Any Sunday, the Oklahoma Gold Rush Grand Prix was first run in 1995. Back then 90 motorcycle riders showed up- this year they are expecting over 750 riders on motorcycles, ATVs and UTV's, ranging from the very young to very old to the very fast pro classes.

Billboard Hides Famous Round Barn

A giant steel billboard is being erected just a few feet from one of Oklahoma's most notable landmarks- the Round Barn in Arcadia. Visitors traveling Route 66 call it an eyesore. If approaching from the east, the sign almost completely obscures the view of the barn from the historic highway.

But fans of the Mother Road and the unusual barn aren't keeping quiet. They're voicing their complaints and, for now, may be winning.

Construction has been temporarily halted. But there is no guarantee the sign's owner, Zoom Media LLC, won't eventually proceed. Members of the Arcadia Historical Society promise a court battle if the construction continues.

We met Mister Sam on our very first episode...



Image courtesy of KFOR-TV

Road to Upper Spavinaw

Local Ride
When you only have time for a quickie.

If you have a favorite ride you'd like to share contact us for details on how you can submit it.We showed you some highlights along Highway 20 in our second episode. The riding around Salina and Spavinaw is well know as some of Northeast Oklahoma's very best. But the next time you're cruising the Copperhead Trail look for this lesser known road that runs between OK-20 and Kenwood Road.

N4559 is better known as Eucha Road or Eucha Dam Road. A couple of years ago the Cherokee Nation repaved this stretch, and the result is a perfect road for a Sunday ride, with wide sweepers and awesome views of Lake Eucha (aka Upper Spavinaw). The road runs from the small town of Eucha, or New Eucha technically speaking, past the Spavinaw Widlife Management Area, under the Upper Spavinaw Dam and on south to the small community of Kenwood.

Try making a loop from Salina up through Spavinaw, then back south through Eucha and Kenwood.



View Eucha Dam Tour in a larger map

Getting in Touch with My Roots

A recent Sunday ride found us traveling the Cookson Hills near Tahlequah, Oklahoma. Passing through the community of Park Hill reminded me that I had never visited the Cherokee Heritage Center. As a lifelong Okie, and card-carrying member of the Cherokee Nation, it was a little embarrassing to admit I'd never visited this historic site.

So Jackie and I veered off US-62 and I prepared to get in touch with my Cherokee heritage. All 1/8th of it.

The Cherokee Heritage Center is located about 6 miles south of Tahlequah in Park Hill. The location was once the site of the Cherokee Female Seminary, a progressive institution of higher learning that opened in 1850. A fire destroyed the original building in 1887 and all that remains are three brick columns. Today they stand at the entrance of the Cherokee National Museum.

The best known attraction here is the Ancient Village. Once known as Tsa-La-Gi (which is Cherokee in, well... Cherokee) this "living history" concept took shape beginning in 1966. The Ancient Village offers us a glimpse of what Cherokee life was like hundreds of years ago. Based on factual accounts and historical records, the exhibit features tribal members making stone tools, playing stick ball and practicing their skill with a blow gun.

Built in 1974, the museum serves as a genealogy center, art gallery, gift shop and exhibit space. The museum also houses a permanent Trail of Tears exhibit that documents the ruthless eviction and removal of Native Americans from their homes in the Southeast. It's an emotional display featuring interactive exhibits and first-hand accounts written by survivors of the ordeal.

Famous Tulsa Landmark Burns

Yesterday fire engulfed an iconic Tulsa landmark. A little before 2:00 p.m. the immense screens of the Admiral Twin Drive-In caught fire. 60 years of memories were reduced to ashes in less than half an hour. Initial reports indicate an electrical fault ignited the wood structure.

The unique shape of the Admiral Twin
was a familiar landmark on I-244.

Flames shot high into the sky, and the smoke could be seen for miles around. The heat was so intense passing cars caught on fire, and the nearby interstate had to be closed.

Less than an hour after the fire was extinguished, hopeful fans set up a Facebook page dedicated to rebuilding the famous drive-in. That evening a steady stream of cars drove past the site hoping to get a final glimpse of the remains. Optimistic employees used the occasion to sell their last t-shirts and promised to rebuild. The owners had no insurance.

Seaba Station Breakfast Ride-In

Join us for a ride to Oklahoma's newest motorcycle museum- the historic Seaba Station in Warwick, OK. It's on Route 66 just west of Chandler. They'll be cooking up all sorts of goodies all morning.

Run, ride, roll or walk- come on out and we'll tour the Mother Road! Just be prepared to roll out at 8:30 am. We'll meet up Sunday morning at the QuikTrip map on 49th West Avenue at I-44.


They're serving breakfast from 8:00 to noon, but will be open till 6:00 pm and might even make you lunch if you want to come as you please. Visit www.seabastation.com for more info on the breakfast or the museum.

Winding Along the Talimena Drive

A few years ago Brad and I made a run down to the Talimena Drive. Oklahoma's only National Scenic Byway is located in the Ouachita National Forest and offers some beautiful winding roads. Most of the twisties meander across Winding Stair Mountain, part of the highest range between the Rockies and the Appalachians.

We headed down with cameras and gear to try our hand at shooting some video for a zany idea we had called Two Wheel Oklahoma. Unfortunately my dime store camcorder wasn't up to snuff, and those early videos look pretty lame compared with what we're doing today. But we shot some great photos, rode some great roads, met some great people and had a heck of a good time.

We unknowingly picked a great weekend to go- cooler weather and less traffic on the scenic Talimena. In a week or so the leaves would start turning and the twisties will be crowded with Land Yachts full of gawkers. The lack of traffic was almost spooky– like we had the place to ourselves!