Post by Deleted on Jun 3, 2014 14:42:41 GMT -5
Agorion’s workout for Vibratable Maiden
Fleet Street’s workout for Matron Stakes
Fleet Street’s workout for Matron Stakes
Stanley Newton was uncertain about a lot of things, but one thing he wasn’t was Agorion. If there was ever an animal born to run and to win, it was him. The colt was just built like a champion, with a giant, firm body and tight, lean muscle. The colt was smart, strong, fast and aggressive, and was everything and anything Stanley could have wanted in a two year old colt. And now that the colt had shown in his very first race against horses with far more experience and achievement? There was no stopping the monster dapple grey, and Stanley was going to be with him during his entire ride to the top.
Stanley dared a quick glance over to Madeline Walker, his current workout partner who stood stoically by the side of Fleet Street, her eyes downcast. With her recent success with Apollo Bear, she would be expected to give the black Night Stalker colt similar treatment when it came to jockeying for position within the top three. He could tell that she felt pressured by her recent success and that she wanted to continue doing well. As someone who had been in her position before, he understood her anxiety.
Beneath him, sensing the oncoming release that running brought, Agorion shifted and tensed, his entire body coiling into itself and building up nervous excitement as the track approached. The colt was working up to only his second ever race, and after running his way into third place, he would be expected to put on a similar show. Stanley did feel some strain riding on him, but not to the point of Madeline. Sure, Agorion was the stables prized colt- their legitimate prince, as he had been the first colt Blue Cross had found- and he was absolutely adored by the Myers. Yet Agorion did have a long ways to go in terms of making it as a racehorse, and although Stanley didn’t doubt the greatness within the dappled colt, he knew it would take a while for it to shine through. For now though, the Vibratable Maiden was an excellent place to start.
From behind, Madeline Walker watched in slight apprehension as Agorion and Stanley Newton entered the track. Next to Fleet Street- or any horse for that matter- Agorion was a monster, and she wanted to make the Night Stalker colt look as strong and powerful and capable as possible. In the light of Agorion’s confidence, however, the flighty black colt wasn’t doing that great at stacking up. With a frown, Madeline leaned over, cautiously stroking over the velvety band of the colt’s black nose, gauging his reaction. It was only very recently, under the instruction of the head groom Louis Gerry, that the colt had become tolerant to human touch, but it was still an iffy topic with him, and sometimes Madeline didn’t know how hard she could push till he broke. He was in a rather good mood today, his posture remaining relaxed as she reached out to him, his ears pricking forwards in slight curiosity. It was a good sign, one that Madeline was happy to see.
She mounted the black equine with the help of a nearby groom, and under the careful eyes of the head trainer Descartes, guided Fleet Street out and onto the track for a furlong and a half warm up, the colt coming up to rest at the side of Agorion. They took off without hesitation, the dapple grey colt springing along immediately and taking giant strides, swallowing the track in a manner ill fit for a warm up. Above the grey colt, Stanley grappled with the reins, immediately pulling the colt’s sloppy posture back into check, keeping rhythm this time with Madeline.
They finally returned and Descartes set them into position, instructing how the mock race should be run in terms of who would be coming out on top- the obvious being Fleet Street as he was preparing for the Matron Stakes. Then he simply stepped back and let them go at it. Both horses immediately sprung forwards like they had been lit aflame, with Fleet Street settling in behind Agorion as they headed down the stretch. The act made Agorion uncomfortable, as he was a colt use to riding out his races behind the leaders, and he faltered for a moment, uncertain of how to pace the race until he simply curled together and sprung forward with all the strength and speed of a colt in his prime and took off, challenging Fleet Street to keep pace. Without much choice, Madeline pressed the colt to follow, keeping in mind he would need a certain reserve if he was to pass the dapple gray in the home stretch.
The race dragged on, with the colt constantly shifting speeds, throwing off Fleet Street and forcing the colt to recover in speed at each turn. When the home stretch finally did come, however, Madeline knew he would be ready to go. She saw the top of Stanley’s head nudge around as well, as if he knew what was coming, and then suddenly the pace went from fast to break neck in the span of a few moments, as Stanley gunned Agorion down the home turn. Without much thought, Madeline let Fleet Street lose and followed after, asking the colt to open up as much as he could as they set off in pursuit.
It was in the final 200 meters that they finally caught the dapple colt, Fleet Street breathing deep and heavy as they approached, his breathing firm and rhythmatic and oh so promising. When they finally crossed the line, it was several lengths ahead of the grey colt. As Stanley gave her a thumbs up and a smile, and Descartes allowed the appropriate nod, Madeline knew, just in the same manner as Stanley, that they had a pair of winners on their hands, and sooner or later it was going to start to show.
