Post by Deleted on Oct 12, 2012 12:19:17 GMT -5
Tears Of An Angel
Her lethal stare as she eyes up the opponents in the parade ring pre-race was one to avoid. Though the filly wasn't one for holding grudges, there was one name which would stay in her head forever. Innocent Passion. The filly hated Anna, with a passion, and when I say that, no pun intended, honestly. Being a filly of pure intelligence who carried not an ounce of stupidity what so ever, she tends to try and use her own brain, rather than listening to her jockey, but nevertheless she will listen to her jockey. She wasn't built like a powerhouse though, and being a foal of Cryin' Out Loud, it was a surprise. She wasn't one for front-running, and neither was her twin, Tears Of Blood, who would be racing in the opposite race on turf on the same day. A smirk came across my face as I thought about it. This was our first proper race on dirt in a long time.
The sun beamed down effortlessly on the barn. My boots shuffled across the gravel as I entered, and walked straight towards Jacey-Leigh’s office. I smiled and sat down. Hello Ivana. You’ve got Born To Impress and Sizzling Dawn racing against you tomorrow. It’s going to be a big race for little Lucy, but she’s a little horse than can, and I’m sure she’ll be known as the little horse that could, just like Instant Success. I grinned. Instant Success was an amazing colt now that he had won the Preakness Stakes, beating out main rivals Euphoria’s Warrior and Eternal Phantom. We used to own him, but after a running with someone, we sold him back. I do miss him. I really do, though I never used to ride him, I rode his stable pal, Dawn Of Silence, and now that Danny’s back, I still do.
Gate One holds Sizzling Dawn. She is a grade five runner but she is definitely the current favourite in my opinion. She is strong and has a lot of racing experience behind her. She was beaten by Nightshade and Italian Ice last time out, and we've beaten Nightshade before so we're at an advantage right now. Booyah, the thoughts went through my head. I had a feeling about this race. It was a good one, but we needed a good break before we could do anything. This race could be HUGE for us. People had said that Lucy wasn't a true racer as she hadn't faced the best horses of her age, but since beating Innocent Passion, Ventura, and Nightshade, she had proved herself as one of the top two year olds to ever set foot on The Wire, and she had even proven herself against Triple Tiara contender, Fiery Touch, who she placed above in the Laimee Derby, and Sweeto Cheeto in the same race.
Gate Two holds High Strung Derby winner, Born To Impress. The Born To Fly and Impressario baby was definitely one leaving his mark over on Green Horse Fields. He was a stunner, with three wins, two places and a show. He's been performing relatively well, and was also one to watch. On a day like today, Lucy was known as energizer bunny. She was acting like a firework which was ready to explode. This time, there would be no backing down. I felt like we almost had to win this one. We we're coming off a win in the Follow The Hoofprints Turf Mile, so we were in hot form. Some people would think Lucy was racing back to back, but really she was having breaks which lead to her, being a two-year-old, not actually being tired.
Lucy in this mood was like Meghan on caffeine, before she left with her brother due to unforseen circumstances. She was absolutely mental, and in her brothers terms, she would be "bouncing off the walls." As I mounted on to the filly, she shot forward. She began to trot on the spot and back up, before continuing to chomp on her bit. She bobbed her head and let out a snort. The twins were insane. Sanguis, was entered in the turf race against Arlequinn and Speed Rush, and if they both won, their records would be equalized. Lucy would be a prospect for next years Triple Tiara, well, the first leg and a couple of preps, atleast.
Rumour had it that there would be a sprint Crown and Tiara at Green Horse Fields. Depending on the circumstances and whether Serendipity Hills were able to race over there was a different story. Lucy would definitely give it her best shot, and we were looking at Grade Four by the end of the year. I grinned and stroked my pride and joy as she pranced around as we walked, well, pranced onto the dirt. She just wanted to go, and today, I wouldn't be stopping her. It was our life, and we were putting it on the line trying to beat some of the best horses to ever set foot onto the track.
Jacey laughed at me as I tried to calm the filly down. For some reason, being hyper didn't suit Lucy, but somehow she was managing to do it like it was a norm for her, but no. Norm for Lucy was definitely not hyper. She was, today, going to prove that she had some major speed. Ivana, Jacey said. I was too busy trying to suit out the mental horse that I was riding. Ivana! She said again. I snapped out of it and responded with a Wha-... I then realised when I was. Oh hey. I said, giggling thinking how stupid I made myself look.
Jacey giggled at me, and smiled. Five furlongs from the gate, alright? I nodded and as soon as I let the reins slip through my hands, Lucy wouldn't contain her hyperness anymore... well, I wasn't letting her be hyper. She needed to calm down, but with this hyperness she was going to be a speed demon. She was a daughter of Cry, obviously she was going to be fiesty... but usually, she wasn't. Maybe the oats in her feed had an impact, but she was definitely a firework ready to explode as soon as she left the gate.
After a quick warm up, my arms were aching. I could feel the muscles in my ring finger working hard as I tried to contain Lucy, rather than her containing herself. With each stride, she snorted, throwing in the occasional little bronc. I giggled as she did so, having to make sure I kept my balance as she did so. I was excited to see how much speed she could produce with this much energy, but being a usually calm filly, I never expected this from her. She began to bronc again, putting her head between her legs, and I kicked her through it. I laughed again and pulled her up as we came to the gate. Why was she acting like her younger brother? The question would remain on my mind for a while. Was there any such thing as an equine psycologist? If so, this filly would definitely need some help.
As she was loaded into the gate, the filly chomped on her bit with ease. She needed a flash, and she began to remind me of Isa at this time of the year, though I'd only seen videos, not actually ridden him myself. Yet again, the little horse that could, eh? She stood in the gate, prancing between feet. The bell rang and she exploded out of the gate. I almost fell off the back of the saddle, but something was making this filly extremely happy. I pulled myself up and stood in my stirrups as we began to fly effortlessly over the dirt surface.
She excelled through the first furlong, powering effortlessly along. I let her go as we approached the three furlong marker, and that was it. Lucy was flying. I smiled and began to feed the fillies fire. She stretched out, pricking her ears and focusing solely on the work at hand. She began to come into the stretched and my crop landed on her rump. She began to pick up speed and excel effortlessly over the surface. I imagined us flying by Sizzling Dawn in the final furlong as it approached. I grinned and pushed her on. She extended her stride with ease and I grinned. This was it. We were going to be recognised, finally. Maybe as the filly who defied all the odds being a twin, or the twins who equalized their records with every race. We came under the wire and we relaxed. I smiled and patted the fillies sweaty neck. She had really tried hard, and wasn't giving up without a fight.
Words: 1,538
Distance: 5 furlongs
Surface: Dirt
Listening to: Taylor Swift
