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A: Main
February 23, 2023
CLASS OF '23
Hall of fame is final hurrah for historic Blue Ribbon Downs
By Lynn Adams Staff Writer

Historic Blue Ribbon Downs — once the first, last and only words in the Oklahoma horse racing lexicon — will be enshrined in the Oklahoma Quarter Horse Hall of Fame at 6 p.m. March 4 at the Grand Casino in Shawnee.

“Blue Ribbon Downs was the king, was the king,” says legendary trainer Rex Brooks, who was a fixture at the venerable racetrack from the early 1960s until it closed in 2009 and will also be inducted into the OQHA Hall of Fame.

“This was the training grounds or the proving grounds for racehorses,” Brooks says of BRD. “We’ve had the best horses in the world run here — Easy Jet, was probably the greatest horse to run here. So many superhorses run here, got their start here.

“Blue Ribbon Downs was the first pari-mutuel in Oklahoma. As many as 20,000 people would show up a day for the Blue Ribbon Futurity or the Heritage Futurity. It was the greatest thing, at that time. It was THE racetrack.

“People bring their best horses and best trainers. They’d come in from everywhere — Texas, California, Kansas, Arkansas — bring their best horses and stable there,” Brooks recalls. “I won the Hopes and Dreams Futurity, and the winner got a large amount of mon- ey. The Heritage was the biggest for the rural people to come in. I had the only horse to win the futurity as a 2-year-old and derby as a 3-year-old — Barbs Bounce. You’ve got your toughest competitors of all time in those races, and very few win two.”

What has been called the sport of kings, got its start when Bill Hedge bought 102 acres in 1960 just west of Sallisaw. The track soon became known as a proving ground, and gained recognition from the American Quarter Horse Association in 1963.

FILE PHOTO
The grandstands, the most prominent feature of Blue Ribbon Downs, was demolished in June 2022; only the track and barns remain as a training facility.

Brooks recalls BRD as a match racetrack in 196263, then home to non-parimutuel racing in 1965-84.

In 1982, Oklahoma voters approved pari-mutuel betting, and the first pari-mutuel race at Blue Ribbon Downs occurred Aug. 30, 1984, before 12,000 spectators in sweltering temperatures of more than 100 degrees. In its heyday, BRD was the economic engine that drove Sequoyah County. The advent of legal gambling at the track created a local construction boom with motels, restaurants, and other businesses locating near the track. Virtually every retail business was buoyed by the prosperity BRD attracted.

But BRD did not have a corner on the horse racing market. By 1988, the ballyhooed Remington Park opened in Oklahoma City, and quickly became the preferred destination.

After years of waning attendance and struggling financially with several owners, BRD filed for bankruptcy in 1997 and again in 2002.

BRD was subsequently owned by the Choctaw Nation and then the Cherokee Nation, and the facility was converted to a “racino,” a combination horse racetrack and casino. But the track continued to struggle, and closed permanently after its races on Nov. 28, 2009.

Virtually abandoned since the track closed, the deteriorating grandstands were demolished in June 2022; only the track and barns remain as a training facility.

“Blue Ribbon was never what you call a fast racetrack,:” Brooks says. “I run a lotta horses, set several track records, but track records are like anythin’ else, they’re made to be broken.”

Promoting awareness
A: Main, Main...
Promoting awareness
March 21, 2023
Sallisaw Mayor Ernie Martens this week signed three proclamations declaring National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week, Vaping Awareness Month and Alcohol Awareness Month in Sallisaw. On hand for the signin...
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Graffiti found at Brushy School under investigation
A: Main, Main...
Graffiti found at Brushy School under investigation
By Lynn McCulley Staff Writer 
March 21, 2023
Brushy School Superintendent Jared Armer said someone wrote graffiti on the school’s storm shelter and the incident is currently under investigation. Armer, who has served as superintendent of the sch...
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I-40 shooter set for jury trial sounding docket
A: Main, Main...
I-40 shooter set for jury trial sounding docket
By Amie Cato-Remer Editor 
March 21, 2023
A Dallas, Texas man who shot two others on Interstate-40 near Vian in July 2021 is scheduled for a 9 a.m. March 23 jury trial sounding docket, according to Sequoyah County court records. Lee B. King, ...
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Sallisaw, Vian residents transported following Sunday accident
A: Main, Main...
Sallisaw, Vian residents transported following Sunday accident
By Amie Cato-Remer Editor 
March 21, 2023
Three people were transported Sunday afternoon following a collision on US-64 and 4570 Road, about four miles west of Sallisaw, according to an accident report issued by Oklahoma Highway Patrol (OHP)....
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Man charged with child sexual abuse
A: Main, Main...
Man charged with child sexual abuse
To appear for docket
By Amie Cato-Remer Editor 
March 21, 2023
A Sallisaw man who was originally charged in 2021 with three felony counts of child sexual abuse, one felony count of rape first degree by instrumentation, and two felony counts of rape, first degree,...
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Man charged in fentanyl overdose death of Vian man
A: Main, Main...
Man charged in fentanyl overdose death of Vian man
To appear before Judge Waters
By Amie Cato-Remer Editor 
March 21, 2023
A Roland man who was charged in May 2022 with murder in the first degree-felony murder of a Vian man is set to appear before Associate District Judge Kyle Waters on March 22, according to Sequoyah Cou...
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Editor Picks
Resignations accepted by Roland school board
A: Main, Main...
Resignations accepted by Roland school board
By Amie Cato-Remer Editor 
March 21, 2023
The Roland Board of Education met on March 13 where they discussed and voted on several employment issues. The board accepted the resignations of Ag teacher and FFA advisor Myron Lockwood, Special Edu...
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SEQUOYAH COUNTY SCOREBOARD
Sports
SEQUOYAH COUNTY SCOREBOARD
March 21, 2023
Saturday, March 18 Vian 11, Amber-Pocasset 9 (Ripley Tournament final) Gore 17, Woodland 11 (Pioneer Festival) Friday, March 17 Vian 18, Atoka 12 (Ripley Tournament semifinal) Gore 9, Thomas-Fay-Custe...
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Sequoyah County sports calendar
Sports
Sequoyah County sports calendar
March 21, 2023
All teams listed are high school teams and all schedules are subject to change. THURSDAY, MARCH 23 •Sallisaw, Muldrow and Roland track and field teams at Wilburton (10 a.m.) •Gore track and field team...
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Coleman, Storako power No. 1 OU to Hall of Fame Classic sweep
Sports
OU SOFTBALL
Coleman, Storako power No. 1 OU to Hall of Fame Classic sweep
By Soonersports.com 
March 21, 2023
OKLAHOMA CITY — No. 1 Oklahoma completed the Omni Hall of Fame Classic sweep with a 7-1 win over No. 19/22 Auburn Sunday afternoon in OKC. Redshirt senior pitcher Alex Storako twirled a gem in the cir...
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Wolverines win Ripley Tournament Saturday
B: Sports
Wolverines win Ripley Tournament Saturday
By Lea Lessley Sports Writer 
March 21, 2023
The Class 2A ninth-ranked Wolverines went 3-0 last week at the Ripley Tournament to win the tourney for the first time since 2018. Ripley is located about 15 miles southeast of Stillwater. Vian head c...
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