let fly the knives

[Dante]

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EXECUTIONER'S APPRENTICE

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workout with
TOBIAS LANCASTER
for the
SUMMER CUP GRADE TWO TURF
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The dapple grey colt's coat was shiny and sleek, and his eyes were bright, ears pricked forwards as Tobias Lancaster got a leg up from an amputee. It was time to give a practice to the Summer Cup. Tobias could remember the Spring Cup, where in the cooler weather they ran to victory there - now it was time for summer, hot weather, and instead of grade four, App would be running with the grade twos. Quite a jump, but since the Spring Cup, App had won every race he'd been in, including the shortest leg of the Turf Triple Crown, which was the same distance he'd be running in this practice, and in race.

"Give it your best." Skylark told the jockey with a grin, as he got out of App's way. Under the guidance of the blonde, bulimic jockey, Executioner's Apprentice headed for the gate. Tobias kept a hold on the colt; he was fresh and ready to go, which was a good sign. They'd have a good run, and with practice, luck and skill, a good race. So far, it seemed as though there would be only one other horse in the race. Sillenia, a four year old mare. It would be interesting to see how it panned out, but Tobias was confident in App. About this time last year, he won his first race. "Here's to hoping for win eleven." Tobias murmured to the colt as they were loaded into the gate. Typically, Executioner's Apprentice didn't respond, and Tobias would have been worried if he did.

The track before them was green and the sky a bright, cloudless blue, but Tobias didn't survey the sky for long before he slipped on his goggles and took up the slack in the rein. This two horse race was going to be interesting, as Sillenia was a known closer. This meant App would have to force her out of her comfort zone to play his hand; though it would be equally hard for Sillenia to close in a race of two, which gave Tobias what he suspected was the advantage.

The gates sprung open, and they were off! App broke fast, and Tobias moved him in closer to the rail near to the get go. The trick would be to keep pace with the other horse in the field. If the field became bigger, preceding would be a little simpler, but it wasn't impossible here, not even up against a closer. The trick was to make a "slow race"; that was, keep forcing the hand of the other horse. If they wanted to go slow, Tobias would get App to do the same, and then push. The trick there was forcing a horse that normally wouldn't be to frontrun to do just that. If that seemed not to be working, App didn't have any issues leading himself, as long as Tobias had the stick; and what jockey ever, ever went without that.

Tobias kept App steady for the first furlongs, so near the rail that if you pushed Tobias off his horse he'd probably go flying into it. The colt's black mane and tail streamed out behind him, his trademark "bloody shoulder" a blur as he went. His steps were solid and Tobias didn't feel any hint of problems to his stride. They took the corner well, despite taking it a bit tighter than normal - the small size of the field meant it was basically impossible to get boxed in, allowing for tighter turns - and then pressed faster into the final few furlongs. If the trick with Sillenia worked, he'd be adding pressure and "stalking" as he always did. If not, he'd be adding distance that hopefully the mare wouldn't be able to cover before the end.

The horse and rider went all out as soon as they passed the eight furlong marker, with Tobias bending further down over App's neck, giving the horse some reign and the stick. He could hear the wind in his ears, and feel it whip his silks into his back, before picking them up and slamming them down again.

Executioner's Apprentice thundered past the finish line, and Tobias moved upright once more, slowing the racehorse and looping him back to their trainer, who was standing on the other side of the rail. "Nice one." Skylark nodded. "We'll see how he goes, the time was great!"

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WORKOUT STATS

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words| 734
workout surface| Turf
distance| 10 furlongs
horse| Executioner's Apprentice
jockey| Tobias Lancaster

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