Nikki Tate’s Great Pony Express Adventure 2002

Canadian Children's Author Speaks To Huge Audience

FALLON, NV - The entire E.C. Best Elementary school in Fallon, NV turned out to hear Canadian children's author Nikki Tate talk about the Pony Express, which is the setting for her 11th children's novel, Jo's Triumph (Orca Book Publishers). The audience of over 500 students necessitated Nikki using modern conveniences - a megaphone and a microphone - so that all the children could hear her presentation on the back of her docile pony, Breezy.

Nikki's children's books have now joined the 20,000 others in the school's prolific library, nine of which are included in the Accelerated Reader program (www.renlearn.com). School principal Scott Meihack credits the program with turning his school around from being rated "inadequate" seven years ago to one where the 420 readers in the school read 24-million words last year, checking out 50,000 books from the library during the school term. The school is now a Western Regional training site for the program.

A visit to another Fallon school, Lahontan Elementary garnered more enthusiasm from the Grade Four students, whose curriculum this year includes Nevada history. Nikki was able to tell them about the events of 1860 that occurred in their area when the short lived Pony Express made its appearance.

Another sunset brought another trail ride, this time in the Fort Churchill area in the shadows of the remains of the fort that was built the same year as the first Pony Express rider carried the mail across the country.

Nikki's has another interesting weekend of Trail rides planned and a book signing at the Mark Twain Book Store in Virginia City Saturday. She is carrying mail, Pony Express style, from Canadian school children to students in Nevada. Her adventures will culminate at the Great Basin Book Fair in Reno on September 21.

Follow Nikki Tate's Pony Express Adventure on her website at www.stablemates.net.

PONY EXPRESS 2002 SPONSORS:

Bolen Books (Victoria, BC) Clearsilver Media (Victoria, BC) Horse Council BC (Aldergrove, BC) Leisure Time Rentals (Victoria, BC) Orca Book Publishers (Victoria, BC) Scrapbook Parade (Victoria, BC) Sono Nis Press (Winlaw, BC) Theatre Row Auto Sales (Victoria, BC) Karl Schutz (Chemainus, BC)

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