America 250 road trip: The greatest bet in sports ...
Key takeaways
- Not far from the banks of the Great Salt Lake, long before it started drying up, two money men made a bet.
- The Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads had spent years racing against each other, their crews attempting world records for track laid in a day.
- At daybreak on April 28, 1869, a train whistle sounded, and off they went.
Why this matters: a sports story that could shift standings, legacies, or fan conversations.
Illustration by ESPNKent Babb Jun 30, 2026, 07:00 AM ETClose Kent Babb is an award-winning Enterprise reporter for ESPN based in Washington, D.C.. He is an alumnus of the University of South Carolina, The State, The Kansas City Star and The Washington Post.Multiple Authors Email Print Open Extended Reactions Promontory, Utah 6:21 p.m. Clear. Wind from the southwest.
Not far from the banks of the Great Salt Lake, long before it started drying up, two money men made a bet.
The Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads had spent years racing against each other, their crews attempting world records for track laid in a day. When Central Pacific's construction boss, Charles Crocker, bragged that his men could lay 10 miles in a day, Union Pacific's Thomas Durant bet him $10,000 that they couldn't.