Re: Distances in Glorantha

From: Jeff <jakyer_at_...>
Date: Wed, 31 Mar 2004 22:05:20 -0000

Historically, Roman dispatch riders could make up to 300 miles a day on the good roads if they had frequent remounts.

Pony Express riders covered the 1900 mile route in about 8-10 days. That's over 200 miles a day.

All that without magic.

With horse magic, travel magic, magic roads and so forth, 350 miles a day seems kind of low...

Jeff

About the Pony Express
When Abraham Lincoln was elected President, and when rebellion broke out in the South, and when shots were fired at Fort Sumter, it was the Pony Express that sped the news and spirited the mail to the Utah Territory and California. No one could do it faster. Gallant young Express riders, armed with a Bible and a small Colt pistol, covered the 1900 miles from St. Joseph, Missouri to Sacramento at a gallop in 8 to 10 days. Over prairies, deserts, and mountains they achieved speeds greater than ever before (compared to 3 weeks by stage or 6 weeks by ship). The cost was enormous, requiring 80 riders, 420 horses, 100 stations spaced 12 miles apart, supplies, feed, and several hundred station keepers. By design, riders would travel 75 to 100 miles a day, exchanging spent horses for fresh ones 6-10 times. But when stations were burned or plundered, they rode on without relief. Many station keepers lost their lives. Although the Pony Express operated for only eighteen months (replaced by the telegraph), it seized the imagination of the country it served so well. And it exemplified the courageous spirit of the westward movement.

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