By Cris Alarcon
News In El Dorado County – InEDC | June 12, 2025
RESCUE, CALIFORNIA — With reins tight and spirits high, riders of the National Pony Express Association (NPEA) mounted up at the Rescue Post Office this week, launching the California leg of the 2025 Pony Express Reride—a 1,966-mile relay commemorating the legendary 1860 mail route.
Under the fading light of a June evening, participants took the historic Pony Express Oath—pledging to abstain from profanity, drink, and quarrel during the ride. Their destination: Missouri, more than a thousand miles and ten days away, retracing the hoofprints of America’s boldest mailmen.
“We ride into the dark tonight and tomorrow we leave at 5:15,”
one rider announced while preparing tack near Weber Mill Road and Kyburz Bypass.
“From dark to light, and tonight, light to dark.”
The tradition, carried out annually since 1980, honors the original Pony Express service, which operated for just 18 months during the Civil War era but made a lasting impact on the nation’s communication network. Riders carry commemorative mail in mochilas—leather pouches once used to deliver dispatches between Sacramento and St. Joseph, Missouri.
A small crowd gathered at the Rescue Post Office to witness the sendoff, capturing video, cheering, and sharing laughs as the team prepared for night riding. Some expressed anxiety about the late hour and terrain.
“I didn’t bring a flashlight—but we’ll make it,”
one rider said with a smile. Another, reflecting on the toll, declared,
“I think next year I’m only doing two legs. I’m not going to agree to three again.”
El Dorado County, steeped in Gold Rush history, plays a crucial role in this living reenactment. The route through Rescue links past and present, connecting residents to a wider American narrative of endurance, trust, and speed on horseback.
“This is more than a ride—it’s about honoring the values that built this country: commitment, cooperation, and courage,”
said NPEA spokesperson Carrie McClain.
“The oath we take isn’t just for show. It sets the tone.”
As the riders disappeared into the dusk with a support vehicle trailing behind, one message was clear: the spirit of the West is alive and galloping—one torchlit mile at a time.
For real-time tracking, the National Pony Express Association offers an interactive map of the 2025 reride, updated regularly as riders make their way east.
