Post by Cruisey on Jan 29, 2015 17:01:04 GMT -5
SOPHIE'S VOICE && JOHNNY GARNER
DARK MAIDEN && TALIA SMITH
WHISPERING MELODY && SAMMIE PICKETT
Carter leaned against the outside rail of the track; practiced eyes watching Talia take Mai around the track for her warm up. The small filly’s first race was the next day in the Quickum Cup at The Wire against a group of five horses. Each horse was in its own class, and since she was still young Carter wasn’t expecting a win from her, although it was their aim at getting there.
Johnny was riding Soph a bit ahead of Mai. Soph was their most recent pickup from the annual Y15 Sale at The Wire, and she too, like Aquatic Addiction, was left for nothing in her four year old season. She was running against two of the more seasoned grade two’s, and this race was just a refresher before Carter sent her to the senior superstars’ series at Green Horse. The mare was a bit more of a seasoned racer than the other two horses so hopefully she would be able to keep them in line as well. And then there was Sammie, who was catch-riding Wendy for Talia in their workout. Sammie was keeping her back with Mai, running alongside the other filly as they did their warm up.
Eventually all three horses reached the practice gates. Soph and Mai loaded into the gates without much of a fuss. Wendy took a bit longer as usual, but with a little encouragement from Sammie she loaded quickly. A few brief moments later, the starting bell rang out and the three of them broke from the gate. Mai took the lead straight off, anxious to get away from the gates as she was guided over to the rail. Soph settled in right behind the bay filly, keeping a careful eye on the younger horse, and Wendy trailed the field, nothing out of the ordinary. Mai was fighting with Talia, protesting at the slower pace that the jockey had set. Johnny tactically placed Soph so that she was slightly on the outside of the 3 year old, and Sammie just cruised along behind the two front runners.
They sat like that for a while, not really fighting it out too much until they hit the backstretch. Then their jockeys got them to lay on the speed, letting them fight it out to see whoever hit the finish line first. Mai was starting to drop back a bit then, having used a bit more speed than the other two had at the start. Soph easily overtook both of them, more level headed than the other two horses and her experience helped her as well. Wendy galloped on the outside of Mai, quickly poking a head in front of the smaller horse. Soon they had crossed the finish line, Soph in front, and Wendy a nose ahead of Mai. The results didn’t really surprise Carter as he watched the horses cool down, and it was all up to the jockey in the real race to figure out their own strategy.
