Hello! We look forward to welcoming you to Tulsa, the former "Oil Capital of the World" which has washed the grease off its hands, put on its Sunday clothes and now takes pride in its many museums and cultural activities as well as its close ties to the high-tech and aviation industries.

During your stay here there are many interesting places to visit if you can find the time. There is the Gilcrease Musem with its world-class collection of Indian and Western art (including the most Remington statues you'll find anywhere), and the Philbrook Museum which specializes in Fine Art displays. A little farther away, in Claremore, there is the Will Rogers Memorial which is open to the public, and the J.M. Davis Gun Museum which houses over 20,000 firearms in a 40,000-square-foot facility operated by the State of Oklahoma.

And, of course, there are casinos. A few miles to the south on Riverside Drive (there is a River Park bike path which runs along the Arkansas River that leads right to it) is the Creek Nation Casino. The Osage Tribe operates  a casino a fairly short distance northeast of here and the Cherokee  Nation, not to be outdone, has erected a fantastic casino about twelve  miles east of here on Highway I-44 that would rival many in Las Vegas.

You might also want to go fishing or sightseeing at some of the many lakes in the area. Head out in  just about any direction and you will  run into one of them (Oklahoma has about  11,611 miles of shoreline,  which is about equal to the combined U.S. shorelines of the Atlantic and  Pacific oceans and the Gulf  of Mexico).

While you are wandering around you might take time to give a little thought to the area and its history. The land you are walking and riding on was once part of an area known simply as Indian Territory and inhabited by members of the Five Civilized Tribes as well as various cutthroats, cattle thieves and desperados trying to escape from the white man's law. The only lawmen were a few intrepid marshals operating out of the U.S.  Western District Court in Fort Smith, Arkansas. The marshals (the most famous of which was Henry "Heck" Thomas) would venture into the territory to nab the most dangerous of outlaws then escort them back to Fort Smith where Judge Isaac Parker would hang them out to dry. The “Hanging Judge" sentenced about 160 men to die and hanged 79 of them during his 21 years on the bench. The rest died in jail, appealed or were pardoned.

In 1905 the citizens of the territory tried to gain admission to the Union as a new state called "Sequoyah" but Congress rejected the idea.  Another territory named simply "Oklahoma" had been formed to the west of the Indian Territory and Congress as well as the Administration felt the two territories should be combined and admitted as one state. This was done in 1907. Oklahoma Territory got to name the new state but that's about it. The eastern part of the state took charge politically and has never really relinquished that power. Almost all the state's governors and top politicians have been from what once was known simply as Indian Territory.

Anyway, have fun and enjoy your stay.  If you plan to arrive early or stay after the Rally, you can check out the local ride maps that are posted online and you can download them and print them out to bring along, click here!

If you have any questions about anything just grab the person you see wearing a Tulsa Bicycle Club jersey. If they don't have an answer, they probably will know someone who does.