Post by Deleted on Oct 9, 2012 8:14:42 GMT -5
Tears Of Blood & Mitch Evans
[/center]The twins were a bit of an enigma, to say the least. When Silver Stride Stables had bred Blood Of The Angel to Cryin Out Loud they had hoped for high allowance level foals at best due to the fact that the mare had never been raced herself and nor, it seemed, had her parents. Still, now two years old and on the track the pair seemed determined to make a name for themselves, picking up wins in sprints on both surfaces. What drew more attention to them, however, was the fact that somehow they had never really strayed far from one another's record and, almost half way through the year, the twins had drawn even with four wins in seven starts, both claiming two places and a show.
Matthias was certainly proud of the pair, they really were talented and were making a name for their mother. He had been going on about them a lot, about how an unknown mare could throw incredible foals, and he felt like a proud parent. Literally, he knew how that felt. But today, as he came out onto the track, he knew he had to focus on a singular twin, not both. Tears Of Blood, or Sanguis, who raced for Silver Stride Stables. The colt that would be running an eight furlong race on the turf in the Three Chimneys Stakes.
Sanguis had been throwing his weight around a lot since the Follow The Hoofprints series, where he had placed second behind his half sister, Sophie's Voice, who also raced for Silver Stride Stables. It had been a close race, the filly just managing to keep her head in front of the colt as they crossed the wire, but it had infuriated him. Victory was something the colt longed for, and losing didn't seem to go down well with him. Matthias had a theory, however. You could either allow the colt to go insane and work himself downhill, or you could turn the frustration into something positive and help craft them into a star.
Todays workout would need to burn off some of the colt's energy if they wanted to stand a chance of pulling anything spectacular off in the upcoming race. If they did not burn of some of the excess energy, things would only go wrong... The colt would run too fast too soon, burning his energy and stamina before the crucial part of the race. Matthias knew this to be a fact, because while Mitch was a good jockey Sanguis was stubborn at the best of times.
Lucas had brought the colt down to the track alone, hoping that by not overcrowding him the colt might handle a little better and, for the most part, his plan had worked. Sanguis hadn't fought the handler as much as he often did, in some places he had even been an image of a well behaved horse, but there had been other points when he had regretted the decision. Points like when the colt had laid eyes on another two year old colt, Blue Me Away. Sanguis had been determined to reach the colt, had actually gained the upper hand for a second and was taking advantage of that before Lucas had wrestled him under control again. Still, other than that things had been smooth enough.
Mitch had vowed that he would fight to claim victory in their next race, and had been looking over the field that morning. All in all, he felt that Speed Rush was the bigger threat of the two competitors, although he had beaten the Star Thoroughbreds horse before. Tanya, however, had warned him not to become overconfident. Firstly, every time a horse beat another the one who had placed behind became more determined. Secondly, if he went in overconfident he would make mistakes. Mistakes were not what was needed, and to really illustrate her point she had told the jockey that if he had made his move in the Follow The Hoofprints series a little earlier Sanguis would probably have claimed it.
When the jockey reached the track he did not even make eye contact with either of the brothers. Instead, he walked with a steadfast determination and pulled himself into the saddle. This was it; this was where the final preparations were put into place. After today, he could do no more until raceday. After today, he would have to wait and see if he could pull off a victory in the race.
Lucas understood the jockey was "in the zone" as he described it, and did not in the mood to chat and so he led the colt to the starting gates which, thankfully, Sanguis did not experience issues with. In fact, he found them to be a welcome sight as he knew they signified the beginning of a race. Of course, today it was more about the beginning of a run but he didn't seem to differentiate between the two. The only difference was that one saw him competing against other horses where the other did not.
Soon, the horse and jockey were in the gate and the shutters closed behind them. Mitch set his eyes above the barrier, to the two furlong stretch ahead of him. They would not be going gently in this work, the colt needed to blow of some steam and this could improve his closing speed at the same time. Yes, that was the hope. Mitch wanted to do something impressive in this race, he really wanted to see his name in lights.
The buzzer sounded, the gates slammed open, and Sanguis broke out onto the track. In certainly wasn't a spectacular start, although it was quicker than normal for the chestnut colt, and he seemed to find his stride with ease as they moved out onto the track. Certainly, he seemed determined as he pressed forwards and with a little encouragement from the jockey he was quick to pick up his pace. Mitch drove, the colt reacted. It was a good sign, and both were focussed on the track ahead of them. Sanguis had his audits pressed forwards, seemed to move naturally across the turf, while Mitch had a slight frown on his brow, a certain glint in his eye.
All in all, their acceleration was steady. Mitch wasn't really pushing the colt as hard as he would in a race, he was allowing the build up to come at the colt's own pace. Still, the first furlong was quick to close and with only a furlong remaining Mitch knew what to do. He tucked into the colt's form, cracked the crop several times and began to drive in earnest, trying to propel the colt forwards with his own (somewhat lacking) force but luckily the colt knew what was being asked of him.
Now their acceleration was impressive, and they were soon moving at an incredible speed in long, bounding strides. They fought together, their minds one in their determination and the ground closed quickly. Mitch could taste blood in his mouth where he had bitten into his cheek and still he fought until they sped past the post. The workout was over, the colt seemed calmer as they pulled him to a walk, and a grin had spread across his face. "And now, we wait." he told the colt.
