SIDNEY — Cowboys and horse trailers dotted the Nebraska highways between Big Springs and Bridgeport Thursday.
The 2026 Pony Express Re-Ride started in St. Joseph, Mo., on Monday, and entered the Nebraska Panhandle Thursday. The annual event commemorates the 18-month Pony Express delivery of mail to the western territories 1860-1861.
One of the riders in this year’s event is Sharyn Cape. She lives in the Kearney area and traces her history to the Dalton area.
“I am this year’s Trail Captain from our Sidney to Bridgeport leg. My first year as Trail Captain. My 19th year on the ride,” Cape said today.
She said the Pony Express is connected to her family history.
“This is actually a family affair for me. I ride, my dad rides, my oldest brother rides. I’ve got an uncle that rides. I’ve got an uncle that was our Trail Captain before this year,” she said.
In addition, her grandfather rode, and their home was history itself.
“They used to live at a what would have been an exchange station back in 1860-1861 when the Pony Express was in operation. That is where my dad and his brothers and my aunt all grew up,” she said.
Cape said it is not only family and national history, she enjoys it and looks forward to it every year.
June Wendlandt from the Bureau of Land Management Wild Horse and Burro Program also participated in this year’s ride.
“For this year, I am representing the Bureau of Land Management Wild Horse and Burro Program with my horse Freedom as ambassadors for the 250th anniversary of America. So it just made sense to also knock one more thing off my bucket list — to do the Pony Express for the first time — and represent the wild horses out here doing this,” she said.
Riders were to make Lyman, Neb., by 6 p.m. tonight, at the Wyoming, Nebraska border. Riders will cross Wyoming focused on Salt Lake City, Utah by Sunday morning.