Post by symphony on Jul 25, 2012 4:31:01 GMT -5
Tally Cremer and Sola
She had been awake for an hour so far, and it was still bitterly cold and dark. The only way it was possible to see anything at 5 in the morning was with the help of the huge spotlights that were dotted around the track.
As she moved to check Sola's girth once more, Tally almost laughed at herself. Most other people would think her crazy, getting up at 4 in the morning to work horses, but she revelled in the early mornings and so did the horses. The little chestnut mare she was saddling now agreed apparently, bouncing around in nervous expectation as was her way.
Leading Soli out from the stalls, she saw Amy doing the same with Smoke and called a greeting. In turn, they were each helped up onto the horses and rode out towards the track.
Tally often worked Sola with Smoke. The colt was laid-back almost to the point of being lazy; the complete opposite of Soli, who was dancing all over the place and working up a sweat already. Amy was able to ride with a relatively loose rein as the dark bay ambled placidly to the track, only showing the slightest bit of interest in what was going on when they stepped onto the track. So far, he hadn't done too well in races, coming third in both of his starts, but it was early days yet, and Tally was sure his form would pick up as he settled into the routine of racing.
In comparison, Sola had drawn the attention of plenty of race-goers with two wins from her first two starts. Her performances had clearly outlined her desire to be in front, fighting for the lead every time she stepped onto the track. Even now, as they stepped onto the dirt track for the first time that morning she was tugging at the reins and increasing her speed to inch out in front of Smoke, who simply tossed his head at her as Amy picked up his reins. He didn't particularly like to run on the dirt, but would walk out a little way with them before heading to the turf.
"Do you want me to breeze him this morning?" Amy asked as they approached the point at which she and Smoke usually headed off.
"Just three furlongs," Tally replied, tightening her grip on the reins slightly to stop Sola's futile attempts to follow Smoke as Amy nodded and turned away. As soon as Tally gave her the signal to trot, she jumped into a fast, bouncy gait that was impossible to sit to. They kept up this gait until Sola calmed a little and began to really work, and Tally let her move into a canter. Her gait became remarkably smoother then, though the filly still fought for control, wanting to stretch out and run properly. Grinning, Tally gave her whithers a small scratch with two fingers, preparing to move the filly into a slow gallop, which she did seconds later.
As they approached the marker for the final three furlongs, she gave the filly a little more rein, to which the filly responded with a sudden burst of speed. Then they were at the marker and she leant low on the filly's back, grabbing a fistful of chestnut mane just as Soli jumped into a full gallop as if from the gate, stretching out and eating away at the ground as if the distance were nothing. Another horse was cantering along the outside rail as they ran, and Soli spotted the filly, putting in an extra burst of speed to carry them past in no time at all. It felt like only seconds between the marker and the wire, and all too soon, Tally was standing in her stirrups, using gentle half-halts to slow the puffing, sweaty filly. Even though her run was over, it took another half lap of the course to slow to a trot.
When they finally returned to the stalls, Smoke had already returned and Zorya was saddled and waiting for Tally. Syl was gone as well, presumably being worked by Amy. Dismounting and quickly unsadding, she handed Sola over to Darren with quick instructions to give her a roll and wash, and then headed over to check Zorya's tack and head out to the track again.