Little Dixie; Big Economy R Lawton 629 5W (2 Avenue F0f.f SiU Lawton, OK 73501 CHA1\4SER WY(YUM~HRU.lnv Wichita Mot,Nalhs;,the oldest managed ~Ildhpreserve m the 560.355.3541 klni.ml S%&&. Explore natwe'a bwuQ in over 22=&30wres ~f 800.872.4510 wi.ldGfe hbitat,or fish and btonem ofoqrmeny lake,Lavvton Fa& &iff-It's ewto sew affwpu the n@tw& 'things ta OKLAHOMA Where the West was I FAVOR^ 'PAST' TIME. ' ranch, explore FFaalr LIqd WcigMs only - - &ysqxx,~~runiqw~utesaod dmce the g~.dm and his.trn of I BARTLESVILLE, OK -1I &American w&t. Where High Style Meets Frank Lloyd Wright's , SITBARILESV L L I MARCH . APRIL 2004 1 VOLUME 54, NUMBER 2 TODAY On the Cover: Timber is king in southeast Oklahoma. On the Talimena Drive, a dog- wood mixes with hardwoods for a mystical landscape. Photograph by Michael Har- deman. Left, John Newsom with Full Circle. FEATURES Pop Nature Seven Summits Cool Clear Water Where the Timber Andy Warhol meets John Highpointers, take note: Gather your rod ,~ndflies, and Grows Ja111es Audubon in this fusion Although Sir Edmund Hillary cast into one ofOklahoma's Paul Bunyan has nothing on of bold color and dramatic would find our summits a best-kept secrets, the Blue OklahotnA timber industry. wildlife. Enid native John breeze by comparison, the River. Here, one photographer Underneath the ceiling of Newsom takes us on a Sooner Srate has its share of reflects on what nukes the pine trees that keeps the comic-book tour of the great brearhralung vistas and chilling protected stream such a southeastern Oklahonla outdoors via oil on canvas. toppers. Join us as we examine pleasure for the world wcan: economy running strot~g, By Lolrisa McCu?ze these seven beauties. Why? Its blissfill remoteness. sawmills roar loudly while Because they're there. By Michael Ha~denzan loggers work to the buzz of By Scott Wigotz the chain saw. By Chad Love DEPARTMENTS Contributors.................4 Marketplace .............10 The Range................ 17 Events Guide ...........61 Joe Jared, Steven Walker, A myriad of goodies for the Oscar-winning makeup Richad Florida, a~~rhor and Michael Hardenian outdoor enthusiast, from artist Matthew Mungle and of The K/P of'thp Crrdtir~~ Lo\vmnce GPS nits to a a fleet of 'Vettes in Enid Clil.css.;at rhc Okl'1homa City Editor's Letter ...... 6 champion Labrador Marriorr on April 6 Ok1'1homa City's new dog Getaway Guide.. ... 57 park is heaven on earth. Calendar ........13 The journey may be the The End ...................... 64 > E The Swap Show and Sale destination, but researching The Name Game: Are you a 2 Feedback .........8 in Ada and a photog~~phy and buying your equipment city slicker or rural royalty? To-by! lo-by! To-by! exhibit at the I'lains Indians is \vIiere the real fun begins. Take our just-for-fun quiz to 5 Readers couldli'r get enough 81 Pioneers h/luse~unin Six outfitters stock all the find out where you fall on - of our 2003 Oklahoman of Wood\~pard necessities, fro111 fly rocis to the small-town sayscale. the Year, Toby Keith. Patagonia attire. CONTRIBUTORS Oklahoma Since 1956 TODAY In 2004, art directorStevenWalker ush- ' ered in his sixteenth year with Oklahoma BRAD HENRY, Governor Today. Widely considered one of Oklaho- ma's premier graphic artists, Wider's draw- ings appear in "Seven Summits" (page 28) and "The Name Game" (page 64).Walker, a lifelong doodler, caremy designs each IOAN HENDERSON page of the magazine with attention to bal- Publisher ance. "Design involves problem-solving" LOUISA McCUNE he says, "and editorial problem-solving Editor in Chief comes naturally to me. I'm in my comfort- STEVEN WALKER WALKER CREATIVE, INC. able shoes when designing the magazine." A AnDirector Norman resident, Walker is married to Jill STEFFIE CORCORAN, Senior Editor and says he enjoys playing video gameswith BROOKE DEMETZ, Associate Editor CMYARNOLD, Edtro~IAsj~(tant children Bailey and Joe. He alsoplays the EMILY JERMY, SHAWNA PARKS. drumsbrrock band Loose Change, which KIM SHIPMAN, andJA'RENA SMITH Editorial Interns I can be seen at various Norman bars, indud- ing Brothers, and private parties. Contributon SHEILAH BRIGHT, KELLY CROW, BRUCE EAGLE, JOHN ELK III, GORDON GRICE, ROBERT HENRY, IOHN IERNIGAN. YOUSEF KHANFAR. RE. LINDSFI. Joe Jaredscribbled his first poem, "I Am the Lonely Wind," on a napkin while COLLEEN McINTYRE, hduction Manager KLM RYAN, AdvertisingAccount Executive driving through western Oklahoma in LAURA BEAM, Aduertisrng Account Euecutive USA BRECKENRIDGE, Accountant 1996.An adminkmtivehearing officer for KATHY FUGATE, WceManager the Oklahoma Department of Rehabilita- TAMMY CONAUGHTY, Custom Service Specialist tion Services, Jared writes poeny and prose Tourism and Recreation KATHRYN L. TAXOR, Cabinet Semctary in his fieetime. His novel,-~heknso&of RALPH MCCALMONT, Interim Director thehneW~m,was published last year Tourism and Remation Commirrion by PublishAmerica. "The book explains LT. GOV. MARY FALLIN, Chair ROBYN BATSON. TENNIFER COLBERT. IOE HARWOOD. how Norsemen came to Oklahoma and MELVIN ~oih,JANISRICKS, JIM ~CHLIMPERT, left their mark in the form of the Heavener BECKY SWITZER, WAYMAN TISDALE Runestone," he says. His poem "Mon- arch" appears in this issue (page 62).Jared spent four years in the U.S. Army indud- ing a tour of duty in Vietnam, and now ahlahorn Todrrya d include: 2003 IRMA Gold for Best Nature Featute; lives in Yukon with hiswife, Cindy. 2003 Oklahoma SPJ Fist Place, Overall Excellence; 2003 Oklahoma SPJ First Place, Feature Writing; 2002 IRMAGold for Best Profile; Sierra Club 2001 Conservation Journalism Award; Michael Hardeman, whose photograph Three Dah Press Club 2001 First Prize Honors; of the trees along the Talimena Drive ap- IRMA Mayinc of rhc Year, 1991, 1993, 1994,199(1; 1999 Folio Ed~rorialExcellence Award; 1998 Wtlbur Award pears on this issue's cover, was inspired by the untamed wilderness of the Blue River O&hhuT (ISSN 0030-1892) is ublished biionthl :in Januaty, tVhICf%aF J& September,an$ ~oyemb~rby the itate for his pordolio, "Cool Clear Water" (page of Oklahoma, OklahomaTourism and Rccmnon De amnent 15 Norch Robinson, Suite 100, Oklahoma Ci ,OK 7402. PO'ST- 28). His fifth photographic piece for the MASTER: PERIODICAL POSTAGE PA% IN OKLAHOMA magazine since 1995, Hardeman discovered CIn, OK, AND ADDITIONAL ENTRY OFFICES. Send the popular location for fly-fishers near Tishomingo a year ago. "Blue River has very few signs of civilization," says Harde- man. "And it presents many photographic opportunities." Hardeman, whose images I have also appeared in Outdoor Photographer and DiscoveringArchaeoIog;y,is the host of America; Best Country Countdown, a nation- ally syndicated Sunday afternoon radio show with more than 750,000 listeners. He lives in Richardson, Texas. I OKLAHOMATODAY .MARCH/APRIL 2004 ltrol tor a d~risionot th Okln and women ow nud "Every dog has his day."-Winston Churchill Editor'sLetter DOG IS THEIR COPILOT AY GOODBYETOCOCKTAILPARTIES,THE GROCERY STORE,ANDTHE Sgym as primevenues for get-to-know-youconversationin the capitalcity. Paw Park, OklahomaCity's firstoff-leashdogpark, is the hottest spotin town. On a recent Sundayafternoon,the finaldayin a run of unseasonablywarm winter weather, no less than four hundred good-natured dogs ran like crazed beasts within the confines of a two-acre playground designed exclusivelywith their affabilityin mind. Paw Park, open sinceNovember 2003,attractsthose unmistakabledogloversamongus and inspirestangible states of awe, happiness, and delirium-and that's just amongthehumans. "Thedogs can't believe their eyes," says Don Bobzien, the doglover responsible for thecreation of Paw Park On March 4, Bobzien,vice president of community relations at Union Bank and a formerOklahomaCityclothier,will be honored by OKC Beautifulwith theirVisionaryAward. It's an award that recognizes Bobzien's gatedenvandexit systems lifetimecommitment to animalwehebut particularlypraises the Free to Live affermaximumsecurityfor Animal Sanctuarypast-presidentfor the two-year effort that brought Paw Park leashedcomings andgoings. into being. He says the park currentlyis one of the most popular socialsettingsin Awebsite, pawokcom, offers comprehensive OklahomaCity. informalionaboutthefree- "Unsnap theleash," he says, "and thesocdmngbepsin the mostwonderfulway." okharge, off-leashpark. Paw Park, the first urban spaceof itskind in Oklahoma,is modeled after Dexter, right, asixmontfr- dozensof successfuloff-leash parks around the country, and it may not be too far- oldGreatDane, is afrequent fetchedto swest that as Oklahomanstake on theseriouscharge of growingour visitor to Paw Park. economy,dogparks could serve theinterest of recruiting professional talent to our state. For many, safespacesfor caninecompanions translate to a high qualityof life. Case in point: Austin, long considereda talent mecca, has thirteen dog parks. Seattle, another model cityfor recruiting business and talent,has no less than eight. Minneapolishas four. Networkmgwith parkdesignersinthese andother cities proved instructivefor Bobzien, who avoided themistake ofpositioningbenches andwatering areas in the center area,where dogs tend to congegateand get themost rambunctious.Thoseare nowsituatedalongtheperimeter. Bobzien's thirteen-year-old chocolateLabrador, MurphyBrown, servedas partialinspiionfbrPaw Park's focalpoint, DuckPond, 4time-ht-deepwateringhole. "Dogs love toget downin there: he says.Thanksto fourhundredtonsof finelimestonegravel donatedby DoleseBrothersCompany, the beach is awater dog's heavenlysplashmggrounds. Thereare rules andregulationsatthe