May 23, 2026 - Omaha, Nebraska

 Today I played tourist a little.  I made sure to drive slow, not use my blinkers, and block up traffic in the passing lanes to get even for all the tourists in Florida.  The weather was perfect, mid 60s-70s, sunny and not very windy.  I visited the Pony Express museum and the Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum.  Both very impressive.

The Pony Express only existed from 1861-1862 but has taken on a life of its own.  There was a map of the US showing the railroad system and the PE routes.  There were no railroad tracks west of the Mississippi River at St. Louis.  The only way to move mail other than using ships traveling around South America was to use the Pony Express.  However, once the telegraph and railroad expanded they went out of business.

There were too many aircraft at the museum to show below.  The exhibition area was huge, all indoors.  There is also a large restoration area with a few planes being restored.

Still no luck on getting new boots.  I went to the Omaha BMW motorcycle shop and saw a pretty good collection of boots, but no winner.  My legs aren't itching today.  It could be due to the opossum hair socks that I wore today.

Tomorrow I will ride to Sioux Falls, SD to meet up with Sooz who flies in around 10pm.

The Pony Express only lasted for less than 2 years 1861-1862

This leather piece is called the Mochila and fits over the saddle of Pony Express riders.  The square pouches hold the mail.  There are two on the other side, but that's it.  Those carried all the mail for one rider.

This is an actual Pony Express station.  The riders would stop every 10 miles and swap horses

They had recently treated the wood with linseed oil.

This photo is of the floor in the station.  They patched floors with old tin cans.  Also, if you look closely on the left there are square nails.  This means they are officially old.

Susie could bake in this oven.

This was take just outside the entrance to the Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum about 30 minutes south of Omaha.  Of course, that is the GS for scale.

Entrance to the SAC museum

There were a lot of aircraft in the large hanger including B-17G WWII bomber, B-52 massive airplane, B-36J another big boy.  This is the B-117A stealth fighter.

The front of the B-117A with the cockpit open