THE END OF TRAIL MOTEL SITS AT THE JUNCTION OF U.S. HIGHWAYS 259 AND 70 IN BROKEN BOW, OKLA., BECKONING WEARY TRAVELERS WITH THE LURE OF “COLOR TV” AND “HEAT & AIR.” PINK NEON PROCLAIMS “VACANCY” — AS IF ONE HAD TO ASK.
Less than a mile south of this vintage landmark is Broken Bow High School, which could be described as the end of the recruiting trail. Broken Bow is a unique place — not so much a hidden treasure. It’s on the map, albeit the edge of it. The locals (all 5,000 of them) are somewhat isolated by geography and topography. Broken Bow is a destination, not a stop along the way to someplace else. You have to want to go there. And many people do. Nestled in McCurtain County in far southeastern Oklahoma, the area boasts the beauty of the Kiamichi Mountains, Ouachita National Forest, Mountain Fork River and Beavers Bend State Park. Nearby Hochatown (a once-bustling timber town flooded by the creation of Broken Bow Lake in 1970) has reinvented itself along the highway west of the reservoir. The area has since grown into an outdoor tourist mecca, offering luxury cabins, boat rentals, four-wheelers, fly fishing and hunting, along with restaurants and wineries. Not to mention Bigfoot lore. Sasquatch t-shirts and trinkets are a cottage industry in this neck of the woods.
Oklahoma State head softball coach Kenny Gajewski has become a frequent visitor to the area. He hasn’t spotted the elusive legend, but he did discover a trio of talented studentathletes who now wear orange and black in junior Michaela Richbourg, senior Shalee Brantley and freshman Jules Callaham. With those three Broken Bow grads currently on the 23-person roster, roughly 13 percent of the Cowgirl squad hails from the same small town. Generally speaking, the chances of an athlete from a 4A school earning a Division I scholarship are slim. The odds of three teammates from the same school doing so are even greater.
POSSE 25
