The clear morning air was a welcoming touch for Justin Santiago. His apartment was in need of a drastic going over. He hadn't been able to clean it in such a long time because of the hectic schedule at Witch Creek. They had downsized and then upsized and continued to upsize. Ripley was notorious for horse trading and dealing. Some horses came back and some didn't. Only one had in the recent dealings. Popcorn Blitz. The chestnut stud was raucous as ever. Even now, Justin could hear the blaze faced stallion picking a fight with In Front. At least someone was giving In Front a little exercise. The big bay was on resting duty and being a horse duty. Until Ripley was satisfied he was "horse enough," the Touch Up colt was out of training. Justin expected him back by the end of December. In Front would grow tired of being just a horse. True runners always did. The kid stepped into the barn and felt a rush of warmth on his skin. Winter was here and so were the heaters in the barn. Twin nickers demanded Justin's attention from the section of cross-ties. Neither of the horses were his. Lethal Dose and Dirty Diana eyed him as though he were a piece of meat. The pink roan mare snorted, pawed the ground furiously, much to the chagrin of Brookson Wells. Justin's eyes widened as he remembered that Brooks would be subbing for Laura aboard Diana. Laura was sticking to Lethal Dose like a burr until she at least hit the higher levels. Laura was running a brush down Lee's satiny head. She raised her brows at him as he jogged past. "A little late, aren't you? Good thing I got your demon mount ready for you." Justin slackened his pace considerably, sighing gratefully when he spotted Sultan tacked up. His smile of gratitude dimmed when Ripley turned the colt around. "Well, hello, Justin." Her voice was chilly, but her eyes were warm as they swept over him. She was a woman of many talents. "Fancy seeing you here for your horse's workout set." "Yeah... fancy that." He blushed when the woman slapped the leather reins into his gloved hand. "Thanks, Ripley." She shrugged as she left. She suffered no fools, especially during her pregnancy. Brooks flashed Justin a small smile. He knew how those bracing words felt at 5:30 A.M. Not good. At all. Brooks patted Ripley's back as she bowed to check out Diana's wraps. "How's she look?" he asked, brushing off the previous chill. Ripley stood slowly and yawned. "Pretty good. She's fit enough to come back to work. Definitely needs this outing. She's been overeager in her workouts. I can't wait to get her on the turf track. She really exploded in her last start before the layoff. Should have tried the grass sooner." Laura snickered as Ripley moved to Lee. "Well at least we know Lee will never prefer the grass." Ripley chuckled, adjusted a strap on the wrap. "Always a bonus. She's a pretty good dirt horse anyway. No need to change." "I need a six furlong breeze from them. Open their lungs, but do not let them fly. No need to overdo it." The riders nodded and mounted up within the barn, grimacing as the winter breeze slapped them through the open doors. Sultan let out a whistle, lifting his head into the cool air as though it were paradise. Justin twined his hands into the dark colt's mane, happy he had a furnace beneath him for the morning's workout. The colt pranced enthusiastically after his counterparts. This was the happiest Sultan had ever been in his entire career with Witch Creek. He'd already been settled in and he still was downright miserable, but something had changed so that he was less miserable to be around. The powerful animal strutted out onto the dirt track, tossing his head and kicking up his hooves. "Easy, boy. Easy." Lethal Dose bolted into a gallop the minute Laura released the reins. The bay daughter of Lethal Knack was as powerful as they came with a short-fuse personality to match. She settled into stride quickly heading toward the first turn, ears pricking. Laura tucked her fingers into the whipping mane, letting the piercing wind have its way with her. Winter was never a fun season. Never would be a fun season. Brooks let Dirty Diana move into her gallant stride before he took up on the reins at all. She was a powerful mare, had grown more so as the season had progressed. Her times were improving with every race and she was just at the precipice of grade one action. Things would get a hell of a lot tougher from here, but her performances were finally living up to all of the early billing. The large mare flitted over the course, tracking the strong colt and the rangy filly. She had maturity and experience on these two. A queen among peasants. Sultan pulled the reins through Justin's hands, defying as much control as he could. The kid kept a stern grip and jerked the bit out of teeth more than once. Dirt was definitely Sultan's preferred surface. He got better traction over the dirt than the turf. Yet, he was still good enough to win on the turf. The recently crowned grade four two year old would be making a surface switch after a very profitable early season. Such a move was unprecedented, but when you were working over the prime stuff, you switched for full benefit. The colt coasted through the backstretch, ears sliding back into his mane and eyes becoming brighter as he realized they would get to open up in the stretch. Justin kept a keen ear out for Lee and Diana. Both horses were awfully clever and tough. Neither gave an inch when it came to racing. And Lee was especially sharp right now. Laura guided her bay three year old to the outside of Sultan for prime space. Lee was really swallowing the dirt like nothing today. She had a solid stride and a heart as big as the country. She was courageous in defeat and today she would be out for the victory as she had lost her last time out. Sitting on the edge of grade three, the bay was moving up with impressive precision. Today was the beginning of her final months as a three year old. Diana was stalking the younger two with a predatory expression on her face. She'd enjoyed the time off, but she hadn't forgotten her calling. The All For Glory mare ate up the ground into the far turn and prepared to run her opponents into the ground. Sultan's ears locked back against his neck when Lethal Dose moved up to challenge. The bay filly was an intimidating opponent to most, but she'd find no easy mark in Casualty of War. Laura pumped a little with her hands, found the gear she'd been looking for and settled down for the ride. The pair of horses battled strongly down the stretch, locked in impressive battle. Brooks chirped to Diana halfway down the lane, grinned when she skipped over Casualty of War's heels and gunned up the inside lane. Casualty of War had made a beginner's mistake by coming off the rail to engage Lethal Dose. The big gray mare was more than willing to take advantage of the slip. He'd timed the winning move correctly and the opponent. Sultan looked furious when the gray shot under the wire first, but not nearly as furious as Lee who had seen Dirty Diana only too late. It was almost time for game time. The riders could hardly wait.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
WorkoutsPlease realize that I do add in workouts before they are necessarily due. If you are looking for a specific horse because you are judging a race, click on his/her name below and his/her latest workout will appear at the top or your screen. Categories
All
|