Post by Ripley on Jan 6, 2015 22:13:14 GMT -5
No Mercy
featuring: Flashpoint, Lethal Dose
With two year old workouts out of the way, Brooks had scooted Ripley off to get breakfast in the clubhouse. He'd manage the last couple workouts before she joined him for Divided Notion's workout. Originally, the bay stallion had been included in the next set, but something had changed Ripley's mind. Something always changed Ripley's mind. Now the handsome horse would be given a solo workout leaving just Flashpoint and Lethal Dose up next. It was quite a duo and Brooks knew Ripley would be watching through the tall glass windows overlooking the dirt track. These were two horses Ripley had big plans for down the road.
Laura tightened the strap under her chin, eyeing Lethal Dose with sharp blue eyes. The coltish mare had filled out well from three to four and she screamed power. Her second place finish behind a grade three runner had aggravated her and she had been hard to handle over the last two weeks. She, along with Flashpoint and Wishing For A Heroine, had sat out the Breeders' Cup last week, but all of them were sharp as tacks and ready to get racing. Lee watched Flashpoint with keen eyes, her tail twitching over her rump, as though she were pondering tactics. Her solid frame looked just as menacing as his, if not more so. She just had the look of a classic champion. She was lurking in the shadow of Supernatural, but the bay filly had turned quite a few heads in her streak last season. Laura practically shivered with the excitement that Lethal Dose brought. It would be an uphill battle, but every mount of Laura's faced an uphill battle.
Flashpoint let loose a melodious whinny that echoed through the barn row, causing quite a stir in Divided Notion. The heavy set bay let loose a challenge in return, hitting the door of his stall with his knees. Moose merely pricked his ears after that, tilting his head sideways so that his small white marking shown. Brooks shook his head, secretly delighting in the bay's spirit. Moose was an innocent troublemaker. Brooks had forgotten how much he'd liked this sleek horse. Moose was the type that left an impression on people through his innately kind personality and his blue collar lunch pail attitude on the track. He returned to the races with a second place finish in November. It had been a very promising return to say the least and Brooks looked forward to his experiment with the colt.
Flashpoint had been a precocious son of a gun as a two year old and three year old, but he didn't scream sprinter. He'd placed or showed in every sprinter race he'd run in, sometimes he was lucky enough to win. His shining moments had come in races such as the Norfolk, Silver Stride Stakes and Holy Bull Stakes, races from 8-9 furlongs. His half-sister, Fiery Touch, had been a star from seven to ten. Paranormal Hunter, his other half-sister, had rocked the track at eight and nine furlongs last year. She'd also been talented enough to get the sprint races. As a result, Flashpoint would be tangling in dirt distance races. They had Optimus for the sprints. But they needed a horse like Flashpoint and Brooks was hoping for fireworks upon stretching the more laid back colt out.
"Hey Laura," Brooks called when he'd mounted Moose. "We're doing a six furlong workout, strong gallop into the seventh though. Gotta take some edge off before the big days."
Laura nodded sharply, swung up into the saddle. Lee danced beneath her, stirring up patters of dust around her sculpted hooves. The Lethal Knack filly looked more than capable of stepping it up in Year Fifteen. Her lean body covered the ground to the track impressively, her ears pricked, the ultimate picture of good health. Flashpoint followed closely behind, neck bowed as he took in his surroundings with interest. Brooks patted the stallion's neck, thrilled that he was so well behaved. Should have been Brooks' first clue... all of Witch Creek's true blue sprinters were just nuts. Moose snorted at the sight of the horses on the track, paused briefly at the gate before continuing.
Things had mostly calm down with the majority of two year old workouts over. The press was all over two year old horses, so a couple of veteran returners was not going to exactly draw their interest. Lethal Dose and Flashpoint moved into their long striding trots the moment that they foot on the dirt. Lee stretched out while Moose remained more upright. The dark male seemed to sense the edginess coming off of Lee and he wasn't going to try to be friends with her just yet. The mare wasn't the most friendly filly to her competitors and Moose was a competitor for now. Her eyes filled with fire when she skipped into her long striding gallop. She snorted when Moose rambled up to join on the lead. Brooks was still on the stud's back, not wanting to get in Moose's way. If the Flash Limit's horse wanted to tangle with Lee from the start, that was fine. She'd be a better gauge of the horse's distance abilities than a solo workout.
The horses picked up the pace for the first furlong up the backstretch. Lee remained stubbornly in front, ears pinned when Moose remained with her still. Laura could feel the spite building in the bay mare like a chemical time bomb. She hated having this kind of personal company. Moose appeared innocent as always, ears flicking as he easily kept up with the ever increasing pace. Brooks wanted to laugh when the mare bared her teeth in fury, but a frustrated glance from Laura kept him quiet. The red head wasn't much for being challenged, just like her mount.
The horses cruised through the first three furlongs, tails streaming out behind them as they headed for the turn. Moose now ran head and head with Lee, ears flattening finally. His intensity was increasing now. He remembered the rules of racing and he was not going to be Lee's friend any longer.
Laura let the reins fly through her fingers, giving Lee her head. The bay mare shot into full stride, switching leads with relative ease as she covered the ground on the far turn. She put a length between herself and Moose, but it wasn't enough. She kept up the impressive pace, increased it as she straightened in the stretch. Her eyes blazed when Moose rerallied to her outside. The Flash Limits horse was at her neck and then her head.
Now the pair thundered for the wire, locked in a dual. The final half-furlong saw no change or victor as they shot through the wire, still side by side. Legs pumping, the horses cut neatly through the final gallop out, still head and head. Brooks patted Moose's neck pleased. "Atta boy. We'll see what you think about the distance races. I've got a feeling you'll like it just fine."
Ripley hummed within the sheltered clubhouse, lowering her binoculars only when the duo pulled to an easy jog. She'd liked what she'd seen. For Lee, gas had been applied to an already wild flame. For Moose, the fans were being stoked with care. She could hardly wait for their first starts back.
