Postal Service to participate in Great Santa Fe Trail Horse Race

Pony Express Rides Again along the Trail

Albuquerque N.M. — The Pony Express will ride again along the Santa Fe Trail beginning Sept. 1 during the Great Santa Fe Trail Horse Race (GSFTHR), an event replicating the pathway once traversed by Pony Express riders. The GSFTHR marks the initial introduction of the Pony Express line of officially licensed products to the public by the U.S. Postal Service, a product line that includes caps, T-shirts, bags and other merchandise.

The GSFTHR comprises a series of daily 50 to 55-mile horse races by participating race teams beginning Sept. 1 at the Downs at Santa Fe racetrack in Santa Fe and concluding Sept. 15 in Independence, MO.

The Postal Service will offer free pictorial postmarks at Post Offices corresponding to the GSFTHR's 39 designated stopping points along the Santa Fe Trail, and will have an on-site retail presence at each of the 11 Race Villages to offer unique, officially licensed Pony Express products, commemorative cachet envelopes, philatelic products, and postmarks designed by Stan Herd of Lawrence KS.

The designated Race Village event and overnight resting locations and dates in New Mexico are:
Sept. 1-2 – Santa Fe, NM
Sept. 3 – Las Vegas, NM
Sept. 4 – Springer, NM
Sept. 5 – Clayton, NM

For more information about the GSFTHR, follow this link to: http://www.sfthorserace.com/

In September 1848, Francis X. Aubry rode from Santa Fe, NM, to Independence, MO, in 5 days and 16 hours using a series of relay horses to accomplish the feat, a method used by the Pony Express in 1860. From April 1860 through June 1861 the Pony Express operated as a private enterprise. From July 1, 1861, it operated under contract as a mail route until October 1861, after the transcontinental telegraph line was completed, and the Pony Express became a legend.