“So, you still think you’ve got a good one here?”
Juli turned at the voice of Len Kravat, he was a handicapper at Woodbine, where Juli was today waiting to see one of her horses race. She had known Len for years, he was a friend of her fathers.
“Yes Len, I still think he’s a good horse, he’s only had eight starts!”
“Yeah well, what has he done, come in fourth once or twice?”
Juli shook her head, if an older horse didn’t show any talent in the start of his career, Len believe they were duds. Juli didn’t know why, but she wasn’t about to ask him, she might end up with an hour lecture on something totally irrelevant to the question asked.
“So how’d your other horse do today, the six-year old was the one racing wasn’t he?”
“Yes, Golden Approval went out in the Arlington Sprint today.”
“How’d he do?”
“Not so good, competition was way to much for him, finished 9th/10.”
Len waved a finger in her direction.
“I told you missy, buying that old horse wasn’t going to do you any good.”
“Despite the fact that since I’ve had him out of four starts he’s won two times?”
Len glared at her. Juli just laughed, the old man hated it when she came back at him with an answer like that. She turned and looked inside the paddock where the horses started to appear. Her horse, Wishforme walked alongside his groom agitated. He was prancing on the end of the lead throwing his head into the air. This was quite a change, usually he walked out as calm as could be. Today he was wired.
She walked over to Wish’s saddling area where her trainer Cole Sylvan stood trying to put the saddle on the horse.
“Well he seems ready today.”
Cole smiled briefly at Juli then quickly sidestepped as Wish violently kicked out.
“Yea, we changed his feed and his training schedule a few weeks ago, he hasn’t galloped in two days, if he doesn’t run today, I won’t know what to tell you.”
The announcement for riders up blared over the speakers. Cole gave Wish’s jockey a leg up and the horse pranced off with the jockey toward the track.
Juli and Cole walked to the rail and waited for the horses to reach the track. Wish was the first to reach the track. His groom tried to hand him over to the outrider, but before he could Wish reared up on his hind legs and tried to bolt. His groom kept a hold of him though and finally the outrider had a hold on him. The horses walked down the track toward the gate and all throughout the post parade and warm-up Wish was trying to bite the pony and had spurts of bucking. Once they reached the starting gate Wish was handed over to a starter. The crew let the other horses load before Wish, a wise decision because even out of the gate the horse couldn’t stand still.
It was finally Wish’s turn to get it the gate. He protested, bucking and rearing and throwing a huge tantrum out on the track. Finally the starters were able to get him in the gate where they faced another problem, keeping him still. The moments were agonizing, the horse wouldn’t settle. Juli froze as he almost flipped over. Finally they seemed to calm him and the other horses.
With her binoculars glued to her face Juli watched as Wish froze in the gate, she could see his muscles shivering from the rail. With a clang the gates opened and six horses flew out of the gate. Wish barreled to the lead his jockey straining to hold him back. By the first furlong he settled down nicely and his stride ate up the ground effortlessly. By the quarter he was 5 lengths in front with an easy lead, and very slow fractions. As the horses flew down the track he kept gaining his lead, even though he was barely straining. By the 3/4 pole he had a huge lead and the jockey was as still as a statue on his back.
Finally the jockey kissed to him and with little urging Wish flew around the last turn and into the final stretch. The other horses struggled to catch up with him, but it was to late. Wish flashed past the wire 12 1/4 lengths in front of the other horses. He had finally broken his maiden, with a snail’s pace of a time, but he had won it going away.
Juli smiled knowing that every horse has his day.