my time to shine

[Snowflake]

Rush Hour + Fatal Attraction joint work for the Shining Stakes

Gah! Rush! Sarah gasped in annoyance when Rush Hour took off unexpectedly before she even had her second stirrup. The filly then bucked, pitching Sarah onto her withers. You spastic beast. Sarah growled, taking in the reins tightly and jamming her foot into the stirrup. Davo was shaking with silent laughter; Diva was being an absolute angel this morning, whereas Rush was obviously being a complete pain in the butt.

Davo urged Diva into an energetic trot on the dirt, sitting in time with ease to her trot. Rush followed, chomping on the bit and trying to take over Diva. Sarah had her teeth gritted and was not taking any crap now - Rush had had her fun for the day. I think a lap of warming up so Rush can work out her kinks. Sarah said, grinning slightly. Then a three furlong race.

Davo nodded in agreement, taking Fatal Attraction closer to the middle of the track so they could do some figure eights and circles. Rush Hour bounced through some figure eights on the outside, still not completely minding her rider. Sarah smacked her crop on her leg, reminding Rush that she was prepared to use it. Instantly the filly stopped misbehaving, but in a very sour way. She hated the whip, and it was never used on her - unless she misbehaved. It was just there to put her back in line.

After the warm up lap, they urged their horses into gallop togther. Rush Hour took off as though it were a race, not totally unexpectedly, and Diva, not wanting to be left behind, followed the bigger filly's lead and roared after her. Both riders quickly brought their horses back to a slow gallop for the remainder of half a lap of the six furlong track, then urged them into racing speed. The race was on! Rush Hour drew ahead as she always did, but Diva held on less than a length behind.

Davo urged Diva faster. If Diva was going to do well in shorter races, she needed to learn to hold a fast pace like a sprinter. And although she'd never be as fast as Rush, she had more focus and a better understanding of what was being asked of her than the other bigger, brawny filly. It was going to be close; the wire was looming. Rush Hour was hardly paying attention to Sarah, she was already floating away at top speed. Diva was holding on though; trying as hard as she could to keep up with the black filly. Both horses flashed under the wire, with Rush Hour a half length ahead.

Diva tossed her head in annoyance when asked to slow. She had so much more to give! If it was a longer race, she would have had it. But since it was so short, Rush Hour had the advantage and had won. Rush Hour had stopped misbehaving and was gloating her victory, basking in her glory.
Sarah and Davo slapped high fives triumphantly; it would have been better if they had been neck and neck at the end, but a half length between the two was great! Exactly what they had wanted out of the workout. The outcome for the Shining Stakes was looking clear; Rush Hour would probably win, then Dive would be close behind. The futures for both fillies were looking bright.

finished