“Oklahoma! Where the wind comes sweepin’ down the plains, where the wavin’ wheat, can sure smell sweet, when the wind comes right behind the rain!” That’s how the famed Broadway Musical song goes and it is most certainly accurate. Two consecutive Auto Show seasons have gone by where I was not originally scheduled to go to Oklahoma City, yet somehow I ended up going two years in a row. The show falls in March when you are so burned out by all the travel and inclement weather that you really just want a week at home to chill out in your own bed, but when that phone call comes asking you to pick up a show, you can’t help but say yes. The little voice inside of you says, “You need the money! The economy sucks! You may not find a summer job right away!” So, as in my case, this phone call came twice and both times I obliged.
I don’t think I have ever been anywhere quite like Oklahoma City. As the song declares, it is a city set on barren open land that is characterized by a gusty wind unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. Once you visit, you can definitely understand why this place is tornado alley. And as much as I dreaded going, I have to say, I tore that town up! The first year more than the second, but here are a few of my picks that you should definitely hit when in town.
If you are looking to shop, OKC has some of the best western wear shops in the country. My two favs are
Tener’s Western Outfitters and
Sheplers Western Wear. They have the largest selection of cowboy boots and Wrangler jeans that I have ever seen in my life! People travel from near and far to shop at these superstores. I saw an older man (definitely a purebred cowboy) who told the store clerk, “I came all the way up from Ft.Worth, Texas for your selection of boots!” He sat there with his spray-on Wranglers and bought himself not one, but two pairs of boots. Sometimes I wonder how on earth they get those jeans on. . . . .and with that, how they take them off while keeping them intact. So, since I was in the country I decided that, “when in Rome. . . . ” and I bought me a pair of shitkickers! Although a bit pricey (handmade high quality leather cowboy boots don’t come cheap) my Joseph’s boots will last forever. I thought that surely after this purchase I could rope me in a cowboy with these fancy numbers on my feet!
For eats? Well there are BBQ joints galore! You definitely have your pick. And if you head downtown to
Bricktown, there are plenty of more urban restaurants to choose from. From sushi to Italian you can find what you are looking for. There’s also a great assortment of bars and nightclubs down there as well, OKC peeps definitely know how to party! If you are at the
OKC Fairgrounds (which is where the
Auto Show is held), you can find fried everything. From peaches to pickles, they got it! If you have a sweet tooth, try one of their cinnamon or pecan rolls.
Since I haven’t spent too much time in the south, I was fascinated by the fast food chain,
Taco Bueno. It became a running joke amongst my co-workers. We’d say, “Don’t piss me off or I will force feed you
Taco Bueno!” It may not be that funny to anyone else, but for some reason that place just looks like a digestive nightmare. It almost makes
Taco Bell seem “gourmet”.
Now where can you blow off some steam when you are somewhere other than Bricktown? Options abound! If the rodeo is your thing, there is
Club Rodeo (among others) where you can watch a real live cowboy try his luck on the bull.
Feeling like some pool? OKC features
Slick Willie’s Family Pool Hall, which not only has the coolest name and neon lit sign I have ever seen in my travels, but it’s also a great time. They have tons of pool tables so you rarely have to wait, cheap drinks and good ol’ country tunes.
If dancing is your thing, you absolutely have to head to
Graham’s Country Dancing. It’s a dance hall like no other! Club music rocks out the front room, and good ol’ line dancing is on the menu in the back. This place is an honest to goodness Oklahoma gem. Generations span throughout the venue and if you don’t have it in you to attempt to go boot scootin’, just watching is entertainment in itself. These folks do not mess around, they know their stuff! And for the record, there is a pole dancing competition in the front room on Friday nights. Without me knowing, my co-workers Pam and Michelle thought it would be a great idea to enter me in the contest. When they called my name to take the stage, although I was shocked, I could not disappoint my fellow Auto Show team! I had to put the moves I learned from Jeff Costa at
Crunch Fitness in West Hollywood to the test! I danced my heart out, flipped upside down and. . . . I lost. The girl who won didn’t do any tricks but took her clothes off, so clearly she got wild applause. My applause level got me second place and although I didn’t win any money, I had many women come up to me afterward telling me how great I was and asking if I was a real stripper, wherever I came from. Hysterical! It seems as if it was obvious that I was not a local. I laughed and enjoyed the attention but still, no cowboy.
On my two visits, I did not have the time to hit up the
Banjo Museum,
Lighter Museum, or the
National Cowboy Hall of Fame, but if you have the chance, I hear they are definite must-sees.
Okay, so I may have complained the entire time I was in OKC, updating my facebook status to say things like, "Get me out of Oklahoma!" I admit it! Guilty! But in retrospect, it's really not that bad of a place. I wouldn't go so far as to say it's one of the country’s best kept secrets, but travel is what you make of it folks. So when you are stuck in the middle of nowhere, go out, explore and boot scoot your way to a darn good time.
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