A Canadian cowboy who was trying to raise money for a Philippines orphanage by riding across the Pony Express route through Utah was stopped short by exhaustion.
Len Crow of Barrie, Ontario, planned to ride across 345 miles of desert in Utah and Nevada faster than Pony Express riders covered it in 1861.He started the trek Saturday morning about 6 a.m. from a former Pony Express station about two dozen miles from Tooele. From there, Crow intended to ride to Ely, Nev., before turning around to make it back to Tooele in less than 31 hours.
But at about midnight, Crow was pulled from his horse - one of 22 to be used in the endurance trek - when both his legs cramped, making it impossible for him to grip the saddle.
If he had completed the ride, Crow would have tallied $30,000 for the orphanage project. By sliding out of the saddle less than halfway through, his pledge-for-miles campaign will bring in about $15,000.