Post by Deleted on Jul 22, 2013 12:23:10 GMT -5
Tears of an Angel - twin brother to Tears Of Blood was about to tackle the Triple Sprint Tiara. It seemed the crown would've been the easier option - but the Tiara seemed hopeful - the filly was small but mighty - she stood at 15.2hh, being the smaller, yet stronger twin of the two. In her last start, she won the Star Party, being her usual powerhouse self - and she wasn't about to give up anytime soon. She raced in the first leg of the Triple Tiara, placing a very good second behind Ventura - good considering a mile wasn't usually her range, but she managed it with ease. In her first start of the season, she placed second behind Sweetness Unlimited - it didn't knock her back, but she learned a lot from the older horse.
Lucy was entered in the Shining Sprint, a five furlong all fillies contest on the dirt, but the only entrant in the race was Midnight Sun, the old In Stride Racing filly who was sold onto Nature Blue Stables. She was looking good - and as a front runner, she would dominate the pace of the race. The filly had two wins, two places, and two fourths under her belt - she won the Summer Cup Grade Five Dirt Sprint, and came second in the Stable Face-Off and the So Sassy Sprint, and fourth in the Flying Colours Memorial, and fourth in the Star Festival. The filly had reached grade four and she was doing really well under her new ownership.
Tears No More, the two-year-old powerhouse Grade Three was more than ready for his challenge. He had rested for three weeks just to prepare for this. He was the twin brother of now deceased Dry Your Tears, who had to be put down after a serious paddock injury was showing no sign of getting better. He had been entered into the Lucky Day Futurity - it was his first race against all fillies. Starting in Gate One was Battle Wings, the daughter of Silent Wings and Akuma Battlecry. The filly had done incredibly well this year, taking four wins, five places and one show. She was a horse that Trouble had never been up against before so it would be something new for him. Battle Wings is a front runner - meaning she'd be right up there with Trouble.
The next gate held Witch Creek Racing's filly - Fly By Darkness. The filly had a slow start to the year but she was beginning to pick herself up. She hadn't raced since the end of May after winning the Cashcall Futurity over at the wire, and she had matured - making her a good contender in the race. She was another one that we had never raced against - so it would be a big day for Trouble. Fly By Darkness is a mid-pack runner, meaning she would be quite far behind.
In Gate Three was us, so in Gate Four, there was Crowned Queen, the filly who won the Spinaway Stakes at The Wire. During her most recent start in the Orchid Cup Fillies, she placed a good third place which was good. She had also taken a fourth behind Trouble the week before. She was a good filly and not one to be counted out. She was ready and willing to race today. She was a preceder so she would be lingering in behind us, but not by far - because Jacey had a plan.
In Gate Five, there was Sugar Rush. The grade five filly had two wins under her belt, her last win being the middle of May where she won the low grade Butterfly Stakes. The filly was beginning to get recognised for her determination - she had collected many seconds and thirds and it seemed today she would try her hardest to do all she could to try and win again. She was a good filly, and not one to be missed out. She was also a front runner, so this is where Jacey had a plan. Jacey would ride Trouble in the workout to get practise in for this.
Battle Wings, Sugar Rush and Trouble were all front runners. It was going to be a fast pace race. Even though Trouble loved to go to the front, he was going to linger behind the two front runners, but just ahead of Crowned Queen, which meant Fly By Darkness would be at the rear of the field, not mid-pack. The stage was set, and it was now time for the jockeys to put the plan to practise. Lucy and Trouble would be working together, both ready for the big race.
Both horses stepped onto the track. Trouble chomped on his bit and shook his head - he snorted and jogged on the spot, whereas Lucy stayed calm and collected, walking with ease and keeping her cool. Both jockeys discussed the plan for the workout and they decided that five furlongs on the dirt surface would be the perfect preparation for both horses in there races - Lucy would be racing over five furlongs and Trouble would be racing over a mile, but it was easier for both of them.
They warmed the horses up with a gentle jog and a lope down to the starting gates. Lucy was the first to load into the inside gate, then Trouble was loaded into the outside gate. He pinned his ears and walked straight in. Trouble didn't like the gate, but that was just him. The gates opened and Trouble was the quickest to break but Jacey held him back and kept him level with Lucy as she was a preceder. She shadowed Trouble's pace and stayed level with him the whole way round the track.
Ivana kept Lucy steady - she was going to be riding Lucy and Trouble on the day - the filly would charge off if she was the only preceder in the race as she didn't know about leading, only about shadowing the pace. Both horses stayed level and kept the same pace as they came into the home stretch. Trouble didn't seem to mind about not being in the lead, it was good for him to be doing something that seemed out of his comfort zone. The horses stayed at the same pace and as they came over the wire they jockeys pulled them off. They wanted to preserve the energy for the race, and both horses had worked well.