Post by Deleted on Jul 14, 2012 16:57:51 GMT -5
When Blue had headed out onto the track for his debut, the teams had high hopes for him. They had believed him to be a very capable racehorse and when it had come down to it he had proved them right and more. While they had been hoping for a win, they had expected a place, and when he had crossed that finishing line in first place the team had been cheering. It had been an excellent start to his racing career, and now was the time to continue on that path.
The next step for the colt, who had truly kick-started his career in style, was clear. The Unicorn Horn Juvenile Turf would be the first major race available to him and he certainly had the talent to perform well. Of course, everyone who entered their juveniles in the race would be thinking the same thing. Everyone wanted to be the one who owned the next top racer, and this was the first of many major races which would test the horses. The horses which came out top here had a major boost to their careers, and it was important not to go in acting cocky. In racing, if you acted cocky you tended to make mistakes and mistakes tended to lead to losses.
As such, while hopes for the colt were high it had been made clear to all involved that Blue was not the only talented horse that would run this race. It had been made clear that they were in no way, shape or form guaranteed to take a win and that they should not get their hopes too high. It was a fact that jockey Jacob Donovan knew all too well. Blue was still a young horse, he had very little experience and a long way to go before they could name him the next big thing. There was hope, though, and they would not give up on that hope.
Blue was definitely ready to be worked again, he was as energetic as ever and had been making a huge fuss every time he had been put in his stable. It wasn’t that they put him in there very often, he was one of those horses who was happiest out in the pasture, but they did bring him in at night. Like many stables, they had tightened security of late. There had been sightings of strange men at night and so Matthias had tightened everything up. If you came by to the stable unexpectedly between the hours of seven at night and five in the morning you were likely to be leaving with injuries caused by the guard dogs and during the day there were that many staff around that visitors did not go unnoticed. However, the only way that they had been able to ensure full security was to bring the horses in every night.
The colt looked handsome in his racing tack, his eyes gleaming brightly as he stood outside of his stable. Beside him, Lucas was relaxed. Blue behaved well compared to most juveniles, and it was very rare there were any problems handling him. In fact, he had taken very well to being led around and listened well to instructions. Matthias put it down to the fact that the colt had come to associate the tack with the track, as Blue was a horse who loved to run and loved competition. Any chance he got to run, you could guarantee that he would take it. Blue was not good at standing still though, and while he did not run or pull away from the handler he did fidget, a lot.
Jacob walked across the yard and mounted the colt in silence. Thought was clear in his eyes, and Lucas did not question the small, red-headed man. If he was acting oddly, there was usually a reason behind it and those thoughts were no doubt about the race ahead of them. So far the other entrants which had been announced were their own Night Goddess, Eavesdropper, Mini Monstorm and Livin' The Jazz. It was not the easiest field. Night Goddess had placed in her first start in the same week that Blue had broken his maiden and had also not since raced. Eavesdropper, of Triple Krown Racing, had not yet debuted and would be making his first impression during the race. Mini Monstorn had already raced twice this month, taking a second and a third, meaning that she was probably going to be a little tired for the race and Livin' The Jazz had placed second in his first start. Indeed, it would not be an easy race, but Blue would be prepared.
Lucas led the colt to the track and not a word passed between them, not until they reached the track. "Lucas, why won't Matthias let you ride?" he asked quietly and the handler shrugged. It was a sore topic, the trainer adamantly refused to allow his younger brother to become a jockey and had failed to provide any real reasoning. "He just worries." Lucas eventually replied as they reached the gates. He loaded the black colt into his gate and closed the shutters. "Good luck." the handler bid the jockey before walking off of the track.
The buzzer sounded and the gates opened. Blue responded quickly, breaking out of the gate and taking up a fast pace. The three furlong stretch ahead of them was a short one, and Jacob wanted to test out the speed the colt possessed. As such, instead of holding the black colt back he urged him forwards a little. The strong four-beat of the colt was sure, the conformation near flawless. It was clear that time had been put into training that colt, and that the colt himself had a passion for running.
The enjoyment the colt felt was infectious, and Jacob (who had previously appeared distant) quickly found himself enjoying the work. Again he pressed the colt forwards, and the juvenile responded well to commands. The turf shifted under hoof and they continued to move at a good pace. One furlong remaining, and it was time to go all out. He drove the colt, cracked the crop and worked hard. The colt responded in kind, fighting with his jockey to make it to the post and soon they passed it. A team indeed they were, and they were doing well.
The next step for the colt, who had truly kick-started his career in style, was clear. The Unicorn Horn Juvenile Turf would be the first major race available to him and he certainly had the talent to perform well. Of course, everyone who entered their juveniles in the race would be thinking the same thing. Everyone wanted to be the one who owned the next top racer, and this was the first of many major races which would test the horses. The horses which came out top here had a major boost to their careers, and it was important not to go in acting cocky. In racing, if you acted cocky you tended to make mistakes and mistakes tended to lead to losses.
As such, while hopes for the colt were high it had been made clear to all involved that Blue was not the only talented horse that would run this race. It had been made clear that they were in no way, shape or form guaranteed to take a win and that they should not get their hopes too high. It was a fact that jockey Jacob Donovan knew all too well. Blue was still a young horse, he had very little experience and a long way to go before they could name him the next big thing. There was hope, though, and they would not give up on that hope.
Blue was definitely ready to be worked again, he was as energetic as ever and had been making a huge fuss every time he had been put in his stable. It wasn’t that they put him in there very often, he was one of those horses who was happiest out in the pasture, but they did bring him in at night. Like many stables, they had tightened security of late. There had been sightings of strange men at night and so Matthias had tightened everything up. If you came by to the stable unexpectedly between the hours of seven at night and five in the morning you were likely to be leaving with injuries caused by the guard dogs and during the day there were that many staff around that visitors did not go unnoticed. However, the only way that they had been able to ensure full security was to bring the horses in every night.
The colt looked handsome in his racing tack, his eyes gleaming brightly as he stood outside of his stable. Beside him, Lucas was relaxed. Blue behaved well compared to most juveniles, and it was very rare there were any problems handling him. In fact, he had taken very well to being led around and listened well to instructions. Matthias put it down to the fact that the colt had come to associate the tack with the track, as Blue was a horse who loved to run and loved competition. Any chance he got to run, you could guarantee that he would take it. Blue was not good at standing still though, and while he did not run or pull away from the handler he did fidget, a lot.
Jacob walked across the yard and mounted the colt in silence. Thought was clear in his eyes, and Lucas did not question the small, red-headed man. If he was acting oddly, there was usually a reason behind it and those thoughts were no doubt about the race ahead of them. So far the other entrants which had been announced were their own Night Goddess, Eavesdropper, Mini Monstorm and Livin' The Jazz. It was not the easiest field. Night Goddess had placed in her first start in the same week that Blue had broken his maiden and had also not since raced. Eavesdropper, of Triple Krown Racing, had not yet debuted and would be making his first impression during the race. Mini Monstorn had already raced twice this month, taking a second and a third, meaning that she was probably going to be a little tired for the race and Livin' The Jazz had placed second in his first start. Indeed, it would not be an easy race, but Blue would be prepared.
Lucas led the colt to the track and not a word passed between them, not until they reached the track. "Lucas, why won't Matthias let you ride?" he asked quietly and the handler shrugged. It was a sore topic, the trainer adamantly refused to allow his younger brother to become a jockey and had failed to provide any real reasoning. "He just worries." Lucas eventually replied as they reached the gates. He loaded the black colt into his gate and closed the shutters. "Good luck." the handler bid the jockey before walking off of the track.
The buzzer sounded and the gates opened. Blue responded quickly, breaking out of the gate and taking up a fast pace. The three furlong stretch ahead of them was a short one, and Jacob wanted to test out the speed the colt possessed. As such, instead of holding the black colt back he urged him forwards a little. The strong four-beat of the colt was sure, the conformation near flawless. It was clear that time had been put into training that colt, and that the colt himself had a passion for running.
The enjoyment the colt felt was infectious, and Jacob (who had previously appeared distant) quickly found himself enjoying the work. Again he pressed the colt forwards, and the juvenile responded well to commands. The turf shifted under hoof and they continued to move at a good pace. One furlong remaining, and it was time to go all out. He drove the colt, cracked the crop and worked hard. The colt responded in kind, fighting with his jockey to make it to the post and soon they passed it. A team indeed they were, and they were doing well.