The Tulsa Forum by TulsaNow

So I know there is no way to make this fly, but I'll put it out there anyway. 

What if the state dedicated itself to more rail to trail conversions allowing cyclists (or even runners) to get from city to city.  I'm not just talking about a trail between OKC and Tulsa.  I mean one that goes through every small town that it can.  I think it's the kind of thing that could easily be marketed as a way to promoted small town tourism.  I know that if I had a week off, it would be pretty tempting to cycle for about 4 hours then stopp in a small town see the sights and get to know the people etc.  I could grab a motel room or bed and breakfast and head on to the next town the next day.  It seems to me that it would be a great way to combine Tourism, State parks and recreation, state pride (it really is beautiful here) and encourage the growing outdoorsy/cycling culture that is going on here.  One sould even have small camp ground areas along the trail for people to camp rather than just stay in hotels.

Iowa has already done something similar. and people there do seem to get into it.  Invision it.  A network of trails that extends not just between OKC and Tulsa, but Tulsa and stillwater, OKC to Lawton.

Ok, guys, shut me down.  Tell me why this idea is nuts, impractical and will never work.

  Ok, here I am going to be Mr Grumpy.  You know if all the small rural towns in this state weren't so anti-tax and anti-big city, it might be something to consider.  Was in Guthrie a while back, could have been a great little town to do just what you talk about, visit and do some antiquing etc.  However, every single time I bought something or overheard someone else buying something, and it wasn't just in one shop either but several, the person ringing you up would make some comment in a snarky voice something to the effect of,,,"and now for the GOVERNMENTS take, grumble grumble".  And then would overhear other comments about how evil and horrid the government and taxes were etc.   You think that kind of thing is bad here, stepping into some of these small towns in Oklahoma is like visiting the twilight zone.  As I was leaving I was thinking, "you know, that little sh@t hole of a town probably couldn't afford to pay for the roads leading to and from itself without our "tax dollar" help.  So NO, I don't even want to pay for the roads going out there anymore, let alone bike trails.  Are you serious!?  Noooooo way.  Cut the state government, cut the federal government, if they want roads and bike trails leading to their city, let them pay for it or let em rot in their little uber conservative hells.  


So there ya have it... Welcome to Oklahoma everybody!  ;D

In some cases, like between here and OKC, the rail is still used for freight.  In other cases where the rail has been abandoned, like the Midland Valley, the property reverts back to the original owner or whoever owns it now.

I like your initiative, and likely safer than what I do.

I simply take existing highways with nice shoulders.  Route 66 is pretty cool from here to OKC, though there are narrow shoulders here and there.  A really nice ride is SW boulevard to “old” 66 to Sapulpa, then “old” 75 to Beggs, then whichever highway it is to Bristow (16?), then Bristow to Mannford, and Mannford back in.  Depending on your starting point in Tulsa, it’s 115 to 120 miles.

Well, even that's too simple. If the railroad actually owns the land, as they sometimes do, then it doesn't matter if the railroad keeps running or not, they still own the land. If the railroad has an easement, it reverts back to the landowner after some period of inactivity for the stated purpose. Most of the time, the corridor can have a trail constructed upon it, which then continues the transportation use and prevents the land from reverting.

And that's just the simple cases. :(

You may be able to put in a trail shortly after it's no longer a RR.  The abandoned ROW I see around here is mostly non-contiguous due to its being driveways, hay storage, and just plain reclaimed and put to other use.  One of the things I like to do is fly over the old ROWs and follow them.  Mostly they are easy to spot but some areas are difficult.

Part of this idea was spawned by looking at the older sections of 51 between Tulsa and Stilly.  There are portions of it that follow along the highway easment for a few good miles.  It seems that without a whole lot of effort (like mowing :)) they could be repurposed. Some combination of old highways, converted rail lines et al. could be used to make it work.

One problem is that the only parts of Oklahoma that are pretty are in green country. Take that red carpet country!

If you want to see what I have in mind, watch the movie The Reader.  You should watch it anyway because it was a really great movie.  There is a scene in the movie where the two main characters go on a riding holiday.  They take bikes off into the country to a small town for the weekend and think of it the way that we would think of having a weekend in Dallas or KC.  It appeals to me at least.  Even if I do run into a bunch of Obama-hating paranoid racist rednecks, Artist, small towns DO have their charm.  It's funny that you make that comment about Guthrie, the most agreeable person I know (My Latin/Greek professor) lives there.

I spent a day like that once in Niagara-on-the-lake. Even after ending the day the color of Grimace, I did not learn my lesson.

Is this the movie?  Seems like a totally different synopsis.  Just want to make sure I get the correct one.

"Post-WWII Germany: Nearly a decade after his affair with an older woman came to a mysterious end, law student Michael Berg re-encounters his former lover as she defends herself in a war-crime trial."

The Reader, with Kate Winslet, is excellent.

Yep that's it.  The part of the film I'm reffering to is in the early part of the film where they are having an affair before the war.

Another synopsis could be:

Former Nazi war criminal who is portrayed sympathetically because she is illiterate molest a boy, scaring him for life and preventing him for forming any meaningful emotional relationships.  The Nazi and her underage lover also go for a bike ride in the country.

 :o

Oh, hell that sounds much more compelling!

Somebody didn't like the film.  ;)