b"Before the transcontinental telegraph, sending a message coast-to-coast in the United States could take up to a month via stagecoach. Until, that is, the opening of the Pony Express, on April 3, 1860.\\nIts founders, William H. Russell, William Bradford Waddell and Alexander Majors, set up over 150 relay stations along a pioneer trail, recruiting wiry teenage lone riders (\\u2018orphans preferred\\u2019) to make the precarious trek in a record-breaking ten days.\\xa0\\nIn this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly reveal the employment clauses insisted upon by these entrepreneurs; consider how Buffalo Bill Cody enshrined the concept in the American frontier myth for generations; and explain why, if you thought a job as a mailman sounded risky, you *really* wouldn\\u2019t want to be posted at the relay stations\\u2026\\nFurther Reading:\\n\\u2022 \\u2018The Pony Express Was Short-Lived And Costly\\u2019 (Smithsonian Magazine, 2015): https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/pony-express-was-short-lived-and-costly-180954986/\\n\\u2022 \\u2018Pony Express Debuts\\u2019 (HISTORY, 2009): https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/pony-express-debuts\\n\\u2022 \\u2018Trailer: The Pony Express\\u2019 (Paramount, 1953): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5va9JXedVo\\n#1800s #US #Animals\\nLove the show? Join\\xa0\\U0001f334CLUB RETROSPECTORS\\xa0\\U0001f334 to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode every SUNDAY!\\nPlus, get weekly bonus bits, unlock over 70 bits of extra content and support our independent podcast.\\nJoin now via\\xa0Apple Podcasts\\xa0or\\xa0Patreon.\\xa0Thanks!\\n\\xa0\\nWe'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts:\\xa0podfollow.com/Retrospectors\\n\\xa0\\nThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.\\nTheme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.\\nCopyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2023.\\n Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.\\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices"