On the Pony Express Trail

On The Pony Express Trail: One Man’s Bikepacking Journey to Discover History from a Different Kind of Saddle recounts my experience bikepacking the Pony Express Trail during the summer of 2021. The narrative follows my day-to-day experiences and impressions—the challenges, the sites I visited, the country I rode through, and the interactions with the people I met—while taking a fresh look at the real Pony Express in the context of mid-1800s historical events along the trail: The Mexican-American, Utah, and Paiute Wars; the California and Pike’s Peak gold rushes; the overland emigration of hundreds of thousands to Oregon and California; the exodus of tens of thousands of Mormons to Utah; and the increasingly contentious fight over slavery along with the looming threat of civil war.

Will Kill for Food

It’s 30 April 1992, the day after a jury returned not guilty verdicts for four police officers in the beating of Rodney King. Protests in Los Angeles have spread into a city-wide riot. People are being killed. Businesses are being looted and burned, especially Korean-owned businesses like Jun’s store.