Okie Doke
Gov. Brad Henry was in the Oklahoma Panhandle on Monday to help dedicate the Jack Begley Memorial Highway, a stretch of U.S. Highway 54 from the Texas line to the small town of Optima.
He also proclaimed Monday, Jan. 23, 2006, as Jack Begley Day. Family and friends surely were honored.
He gets to proclaim another day this weekend, when Friday, Jan. 27, 2006, will be honored as Justin McBride Day. Family and friends surely will be honored.
Of course, the latter surrounds the three-day Professional Bull Riders event at the Ford Center in downtown Oklahoma City, and it honors the 2005 PBR champion from the western Oklahoma burg of Elk City.
Yes, the PBR returns to Oklahoma City in what has become its only premier-tour event in the Sooner State this year. An event that was scheduled for Tulsa in July has been canceled. So this will be the PBR's Okie Doke for 2006. On the list of Okies scheduled to ride this weekend are McBride, J.W. Hart of Overbrook, Jody Newberry of Ada, Dan Henricks of Logan, Corey Navarre of Weatherford and Cody Whitney of Asher.
Out of the draw is Weatherford's Lee Akin. He and Navarre were cut in the PBR's first demotion of the new season, but Navarre is an injury replacement for Mike White of DeKalb, Texas. Every few events, the PBR rotates its bottom feeders and promotes the bull riders who are making a mark in the minor leagues. So my friends Corey and Lee are out of competition.
But don't count 'em out. They've been in this position before, and they have the work ethic to bust their butts to get back up to the major league level as soon as possible.
In speaking with Randy Bernard, the CEO of the bull riders' association, he figures this weekend's festivities will be the best event the PBR has ever had in Oklahoma City. It begins at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. All three performances will be televised -- Friday's show will be aired Saturday night on OLN; Saturday night's show will be broadcast Sunday afternoon on NBC; and Sunday afternoon's performance will be aired Sunday night on OLN.
At least, that's how I understand it.
I'd like to visit my friends and hang out behind the scenes, but I've got other obligations out of town. I'll have to settle for catching snippets here and there, maybe catching the final TV viewing on Sunday night.
But I'll also be makin' up for time missed with my honey, so forgive me if I TiVo the rodeo.
He also proclaimed Monday, Jan. 23, 2006, as Jack Begley Day. Family and friends surely were honored.
He gets to proclaim another day this weekend, when Friday, Jan. 27, 2006, will be honored as Justin McBride Day. Family and friends surely will be honored.
Of course, the latter surrounds the three-day Professional Bull Riders event at the Ford Center in downtown Oklahoma City, and it honors the 2005 PBR champion from the western Oklahoma burg of Elk City.
Yes, the PBR returns to Oklahoma City in what has become its only premier-tour event in the Sooner State this year. An event that was scheduled for Tulsa in July has been canceled. So this will be the PBR's Okie Doke for 2006. On the list of Okies scheduled to ride this weekend are McBride, J.W. Hart of Overbrook, Jody Newberry of Ada, Dan Henricks of Logan, Corey Navarre of Weatherford and Cody Whitney of Asher.
Out of the draw is Weatherford's Lee Akin. He and Navarre were cut in the PBR's first demotion of the new season, but Navarre is an injury replacement for Mike White of DeKalb, Texas. Every few events, the PBR rotates its bottom feeders and promotes the bull riders who are making a mark in the minor leagues. So my friends Corey and Lee are out of competition.
But don't count 'em out. They've been in this position before, and they have the work ethic to bust their butts to get back up to the major league level as soon as possible.
In speaking with Randy Bernard, the CEO of the bull riders' association, he figures this weekend's festivities will be the best event the PBR has ever had in Oklahoma City. It begins at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. All three performances will be televised -- Friday's show will be aired Saturday night on OLN; Saturday night's show will be broadcast Sunday afternoon on NBC; and Sunday afternoon's performance will be aired Sunday night on OLN.
At least, that's how I understand it.
I'd like to visit my friends and hang out behind the scenes, but I've got other obligations out of town. I'll have to settle for catching snippets here and there, maybe catching the final TV viewing on Sunday night.
But I'll also be makin' up for time missed with my honey, so forgive me if I TiVo the rodeo.
posted by Teditor at 5:13 AM
9 Comments:
What's OLN?
Outdoor Life Network. Does all that huntin' and fishin' stuff. Also has NHL on it this year, but I wouldn't watch that with a gun to my head forcin' me.
It's up there in the channels in central Oklahoma, ER, so it depends on whether you have that package.
So when you get along in life you have to find out about people you know who have died from places like a Rodeo Blog. I knew and worked with Jack Begley, both as the registrar and a House member.
Damn this makes me feel old.
No aspersions to you or your blog but it is just kind of strange to find out this way.
Dr. Lobo, he's been dead almost two years. I know the periodical in OKC had a piece on it in April 2004.
Sorry you found out this way, but I'm glad you found out. I've heard nothing but glowing things about Jack.
Here's an editorial that ran Wednesday in the Guymon Daily Herald:
Begley, James quite worthy of appreciation
The 60-plus miles of U.S. Highway 54 that pass through the Oklahoma Panhandle not only serve as a major passageway for truckers and travelers.
It's also a monument to two men who gave so much to this region. One gave his life; the other gave so much of his life.
A little more than a month ago, the stretch of the highway from the Kansas state line to Optima was dedicated in the name of 2nd Lt. Luke James, a U.S. Army soldier from Hooker who died in Iraq while protecting the men he led.
This week, the remainder of the roadway -- from Optima to the Texas state line -- was dedicated in memory of Jack Begley, a teacher, coach, administrator and lawmaker who served the Panhandle for so many years.
As a member of the state House of Representatives for District 61, Begley helped find funding for the Noble Activity and Cultural Center at his alma mater, Oklahoma Panhandle State University, and helped obtain money to finance advancements for the major roadway that slices through this region.
Highway 54 has long been one of the busiest thoroughfares in this neck of the woods. Former Guymon mayor Jess Nelson said Monday it was one of the most traveled two-lane U.S. highways in the country, a statement supported by numerous traffic studies.
About half of the Oklahoma portion of the multi-state highway is four lanes, and dignitaries indicated this week all of the roadway that passes through the Panhandle will be four lanes before long.
Begley worked tirelessly to bring money and benefits to the extreme northwest portion of Oklahoma, haggling with lawmakers down state for all he could get. He was well respected, and his efforts have been appreciated by those people for whom he served.
James paid the ultimate price, and his family knows he died doing what he always wanted to do -- serving his country.
Now green road signs paint the picture of what these two distinguished gentlemen have meant to the members of our communities. Maybe more descriptive placards can be posted near the road to tell travelers more about their lives, their exploits and just what they have given for us.
Highway 54 now stands as a tribute to these fine men. The lives of Jack Begley and Luke James deserve such attention.
By Ted Harbin for The Daily Herald
Hell, I'll probably be dead myself for two years before I find out about it. Thanks for the extra info. I don't read the OKC paper at all, that's a long story by itself.
It was something to see Willie Whitney ride there(when Brian Herman got injured). Kind of shocking. We haven't seen him ride in a long time. I miss those guys. I realized something else when I was watching the NFR back in DC, that it was weird watching guys that I had known while we were both in high school (Cord, Stockton Graves, Cash Meyers, etc.)Definitely a surreal moment.
Have you watched "Beyond the Bull" yet? The day after JW's Bullriding in August, his then fiancee LeAnn had her wedding shower and they filmed it for the show. I don't know yet if we'll make it or landing on the cutting room floor.
Chrissy,
Thanks for posting. So you know the Whitney family, huh? I didn't know Willie rode. But there he is, No. 33 in the average. Heck, I didn't know he was even doing much of it. Of course, it was close to home.
So I guess he rode just in the second round. Still, a score's a score.
Last time I saw Willie ride was at a Challenger Tour event in Lawton a couple of years ago. He should've won the whole thing.
So where 'bout do you live?
Yooo hoooooo Teditor! Come out, come out wherever you've been hiding.
Happy Valentine's Day to you and your sweetie!
(And it is time for you to post something new....)
Something strange about Blogger sometimes... messages may not appear when they are supposed to.
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