Post by S u N f r O s T ~ on Aug 14, 2013 17:40:03 GMT -5
SWEET INFERNO AND VALENCIA ANDREWS
FIRE DANCER AND KRYSTAL YHATE
SWEETIE'S WORKOUT FOR THE RED LEGEND DERBY
FIRE'S WORKOUT FOR THE DELAWARE HANDICAP
It was time for a coming out, of sorts. Sweet Inferno couldn't exactly be called the least renown horse on the track. The ultimate upset winner of the Belmont Stakes was anything but unknown due to that victory over the top dirt horses of her division. The overpowering aura of Sweetie also made her impossible to ignore when at the track. But despite her Belmont win, Sweetie was not a true-blue Triple Crown favorite despite the champion status she had attained with that victory. She had faded into the background in a way, disappeared from the public view. Her fourth in the Azeri had knocked her even farther back from coming into the spotlight. But there was one thing Sweetie was good at, and that was the marathon distance. The black filly became surprisingly tough at that distance. And the Hollywood Gold Cup was at that distance, and against very tough competition. This was another proving ground for Sweetie. A test of her talent.
She'd be working out with her marathon counterpart today, Fire Dancer, who was gearing up for the Delaware Handicap. Fire prowled today, tall and intimidating and breathtakingly beautiful. She was the lesser known of SOPS's two dirt horses, the other being Eternal Phantom, and it showed. But she was still a great and successful horse, and was out to prove that she deserved a place among the top in her division. After this season she would go on to broodmare success by having a date with Flashy Wings. It was preordained and a match made in heaven. Krystal affectionately mounted up on the daughter of Native Flame and took off down the dirt track. Sweet Inferno and Valencia would catch up to them momentarily.
Valencia felt out the proud and fluid movements of Sweetie. The filly moved like a colt and acted like one too, with her bold and tempestuous attitude. That was one of the things she liked about Sweetie. She grinned, settled into the saddle and thought of the Hollywood Gold Cup. A good race for Sweetie, one she may appear a long shot in but that she still stood a chance of winning given the distance. It was exciting for Valencia to realize that she had been having a more successful season than any apprentice jockey had a right to have. Winning the Belmont Stakes, then the entirety of the Canadian Triple Crown, then being promised the saddle of several Breeders Cup contenders. It was more than she could have asked for, and it was horses like Sweetie that had gotten her this status on the tracks.
Fire and Sweetie cantered and then galloped, kicking up dirt in their wake. They stayed stride for stride as they prowled around the first turn. Both thoroughbreds galloped like marathoners. Their strides were conservative and ground covering, speaking of an ease typical only of stamina monsters. They galloped two and a half miles a day, nothing on the three to four Infinite Warcry galloped but enough for this easy elasticity and athleticism. It was with sureness, confidence that they swept over the dirt. They both tried to psych each other out by not budging from the side of the other as they ran. It was this silent competitive fire that fueled their drive as they ran along.
The two marathoners opened up at the end of the workout into a blistering gallop. They matched each other stride for stride down the track, neither willing to give up. As they pulled up at the end of the workout Valencia and Krystal snapped fists and grinned. They were ready to go.
