Thank GOD…we were fit to throw this one on the trailer to her new home in an Alpo can. (and yes for the record, I AM pro-slaughter.)
So, this filly is just a mess. Her registered name is Spangler’s Storm. She’s out of Storm Cat, by a Creme De La Creme mare. While I love the Creme Del La Creme line, I HATE Storm Cat. Specifically, for the total nutcase mentality he throws to all of his progeny; not to say they don’t have talent.
This filly, her old owner, who still owns a share of her, bought her as a weanling. Stuck her out in a 10-acre field up until she was 2. Any interaction he had with the filly, he let the filly chase him out of the paddock & just generally bully him. She’d kick the daylights out of him, rear up & strike at him,etc.
So, when she was 2, he sent her to us. First off…this filly & a stall didn’t mix too well. She’d let you IN the stall…but wouldn’t let you out. Pin you in the corner & just flat out aim for your head repeatedly. A nutcase to lead; rear, attempted-bolting, cowkicking, slamming into you,etc.
So, starting her was a b*tch as well. Let’s just say…the excercise rider cut in half, wrapped in duct tape, then wrapped hay bale wire around a jock’s stick…and used that on her. Going around the shed.at the walk. With the trainer following behind with a buggy whip. And going onto trotting in the shed…he made another “baby beater” as he calls it, and had two. With the trainer running behind with a buggy whip. She’s slam on the brakes & back up so hard & so fast, that she more than once went THROUGH screen doors, and sat down in the corner of stalls, refusing to get up.
Just as bad on the track. She’d go all the way down the path to the track, lunging, rearing, bucking,kicking. Jocks on the track had fun with this one; god forbid you tried to lead her onto the track without a pony to the gates to go work; she’s laid down repeatedly with quite a few jocks. She drug both myself, the jock, and herself, sideways through the inside rail, refusing to go forward once.
so, now that you know somewhat of the history of this nasty, piece of worthless storm cat filly…no, i have NO love for this one…
This was her fourth start. Her other 3 starts, the jock (different one every time) would break out front, keep hustling her, coming into the turn, she’d start backing up HARD… into the stretch, the jock would just be sticking the h*ll out of her. Nope, sorry.
A few months back, we would work her in company with one of our colts; she’d be a neck or so in front of the colt, coming into the stretch, and then we’d let the colt get in front of her & go past.she’s chase that bugger as fast as she could. (she never caught up; he’s much nicer than her. faster as well.)
So, this jock that rode her this time, broker her out the gate, set in 4th, never took a wrap; never touched her. Just let her roll on in the pace that she’d already set coming out, and allowed the whole field except 1 to pass her, Coming into the turn, he gradually took her to the inside rail, reached for his stick, sticked her once, let her complete two strides, stick again, complete another two strides, stick one more time, the 3rd time she kicked in another gear, and came rolling up to the finish; he handrode her to a 3rd place finish, seperated from 2nd place by 1 1/2 lengths. The winner was a runaway; won by 10 lengths.
We always knew she HAD the talent…her breeding says as much. She says as much. We just knew it would go one of two ways…she would need acouple of races to figure it out, or she’d never get her head straight.
Well, we’re ecstatic. I mean, psh, she only made $800, we dropped her down in class. 5 1/2 furlongs. She’ll be a route horse. We’re hoping to aim for a 6 - 6 1/2 next time; if she’d had another 1/8 , she would’ve caught at least 2nd. Like I said…the winner was hands down a RUNAWAY. Head up in the air, jock trying to hold him back gate to wire.
Well, all she’s done the last month is pony. She’ll pony for 2 days, get a day off. 3rd day, she goes out & jogs mile & a half, gallops a mile. then gets 2 days off.
She’ll get all of this week off, maybe part of next week, before we bring her back lightly.
And…a so-so photo of her. Got to get some better ones…
Good to see she tried to figure it out there in the end. Good luck in the future!