the devil's driving--OPEN?!

[portia]

I FEEL SO SMALL SOMETIMES

A fine mist curled over the freshly dragged dirt of the practice track, a few horses and riders milled around on the mile long path, a few trainers and exercise riders tinkered with the starting gates, but there was a mutual laziness that seemed to affect everyone, even the horses. Sitting on the bleachers with her hair pulled up under her helmet in a racing vest, she probably did not look like the trainer that she was. Clutching the stopwatch in her hands her keen dark gaze followed the two most active horses on the track as they rounded the corner and as the riders had been instructed, were given their head. Timing how quickly the horses ran 3 furlongs at full capacity, when the small bay colt and substantially larger bay filly passed by her she stopped the time. she looked down at the time as they passed and frowned.

It was 2 seconds slower than yesterday, was the summer finally starting to take its toll?

Whatever the reason, the slight dip in their performance was unacceptable, with an entire season of races to prepare for, Portia (as usual) only expected the best from the mounts in her stables. As the two horses returned to the area near the bleachers one of the exercise riders called out to the trainer,
“’Ey! Boss, how was that? Batt felt like he was flying.”
Portia eyed the small bay colt, and her heart throbbed. Out of the majority of colts in her barn (aside from her own), she liked Battalion the best, he had the biggest heart out of all of them. Her eyes drifted to Backtrack Cat. That filly had been under her care since day one, and it was especially embarrassing that something she had hand groomed for success was not on the top of her game. Leaning back in the bleachers she looked at the two riders and said,
Two seconds slower than yesterday. I know, I’m getting nit-picky, but the competition’s gonna be tougher this year.
“Damn, and here I thought we were on top of it! These fuckin’ Texas summers are hell on a horse, ya know?”
Portia only nodded.

Suddenly, the two riders looked down the trail leading back to the barns and smirked at the trainer.

By the looks on their faces, Portia knew that her morning project was here. Standing up she twirled the stop watch around her finger and watched as a groom brought up Chase. Already five years old, The Chase insisted on running wildly out of the gates like he was an inexperienced two year old, knocking any other horses around him. His behavior was becoming a hazard, and Portia was determined to break him of it. In a fit of energy, the small bay stallion reared up and struck out, the groom nearly dodged the shoed feet. A laugh escaped her lips as she reached out to touch his nose,
“’E’s a little hyper, missus. Don’t you dare go getting’ yer self hurt.”
She smiled and took the reins from the old groom and said,
You have such little faith in me. I haven’t come off in years, my dear Toby. Here, take this stopwatch and give me a leg up. Did you bring the bat?
Toby smiled at her and held up the bat. Dutifully taking the stopwatch from her like she had asked, she was hoisted onto the stallion’s back. Taking a firm grip on the reins she gave Toby a thumbs up before steering onto the track.

This could only go so well.

Starting off at a walk she soon skipped straight to a mostly controlled canter, yanking his head from side to side the second she felt that he was about to take the bit. Rounding a corner, the second she felt his back bunch up, Portia realized she did not have enough time to bring Chase back into control. Without warning, the two were off, galloping around the track, swerving every which way. Not wanting to miss out on a perfect training opportunity, she put the racing bat to good use. Whatever shoulder he bowed to swerve she hit until he put it back into place. If he was going to run off like an idiot, the ass hole was at least going to do it straight. Did she know when he’d stop?

Of course not.
Did she care?

Don’t be silly.

---

character;; portia
word count;; O.737
reservations;; ---
notes;; I…put off alllll my other posts just to write this. <_<

[jaimy]

ooc: I'm gunna join toooo!!!!


It was misty outside. Jaimy's horses had already gotten their work outs in, and now, he was looking for possible jockeys. He already knew Lucy was here, but she couldn't ride all of his horses. Dan's hoof-steps echoed on the hard cobblestone walk way as the pair made their way out towards the practice track. Jaimy had a soft spot for the paint gelding. He had owned the horse for ten years, and he had gone everywhere with him. He loved the old horse, with his soothing, relaxing nature. The horse was virtually bombproof.

The track was full of life. Jaimy watched as a pair of good looking horses came galloping past him; they looked a little bit draggy this morning, but who wasn't? Jaimy looked up into the stands to see a woman sitting, frowning at a stopwatch in her hand. Ahh, so that confirmed it: the horses were draggy. He made his way onto the track, all the while watching the other horses. Dan chewed on his bit, ears back, completely oblivious to the activity around him.

It was then, that Jaimy heard a commotion. He turned in the saddle to see a bay horse; most likely a stallion, practically dragging the groom out of the barn. Jaimy turned his gelding swiftly, facing the horse to watch with an amused expression on his face. He was surprised when the woman walked up to the stallion, exchanged a few words then hop on. She took off down the track, and Jaimy was impressed. The horse was insane, but the girl was definitely in control, and then, they picked up a gallop. Jaimy felt himself smiling broadly. The woman was a natural. She moved exquisitely with the horse, controlling him and using the bat at all the right times.

Jaimy turned and, with a little encouragement, picked up a trot as the pair galloped past. Jaimy wanted to talk with this woman, and so, he quickly picked up a canter, and followed at a distance. Of course, he would wait till she was done, but he wanted to get a good chance at catching up. He wanted to meet this trainer/exercise rider. Was she possibly even a jockey? He would have to find out.

muse; yay
notes; haha

[portia]

I FEEL SO SMALL SOMETIMES

For a while, the only thing Portia heard was the sound of hooves thundering against the track, the breathing of the angry, writhing horse beneath her, the periodic crack of the bat against his shoulder as he bowed it out in an attempt to veer off into the inside or outside rail, and her own heart beating. She was unaware that a great deal of people had stopped their workouts simply because they had feared that the horse was out of control and could potentially cause a certain chaos that would only lead to at least one or two fatalities and many injuries. Fortunately, Portia feared death the most out of anything and would much rather break herself in half trying to keep a raging beast under control than simply fall off and take it the easy way.

It shocked her that Chase was still running.

The stallion was no distance horse, but as the pair rounded a corner, Portia cursed to herself as she remembered they had been conditioning him and pushing up his stamina since he was prone to running himself out before the stretch. The pair flew by an older paint horse and man riding. Turning her head to catch them as they went by she smirked as she saw the man urge his horse into a canter, perhaps trying to follow them? She called out (though knew there was a chance he wouldn’t hear her),
Good luck tryin’, mister! He’s not stopping anytime soon!
Just as she turned her head to focus back on the task at hand, she felt the gears in Chase switch, his back bunched up, and without much more warning, from a dead gallop, the versatile stallion somehow managed to spring into the air and kick out.

Instinctively, she tucked her head in and flattened her back, not wanting to absorb the impact of the landing.

When he landed, she did not let him get away with it and this time every time he went to buck she’d bring the bat down on top of his rump. After a few hundred feet, he suddenly stopped, throwing her up onto his neck, almost becoming a Portia catapult. Sitting back in the saddle she took a firm grip on his mouth and ripped his head from side to side as she felt him tense up and try to take the bit. So much for him never stopping.
Bastard.
Keeping him at a jiggy walk, she saw the man on the paint come up beside them, hissing angrily at Chase as he tried to take off at the sound of another horse running up beside him. Through gritted teeth she introduced herself,
Portia Wolfe of Wolfe Racing. And you are?

---

character;; portia
word count;; O.455
reservations;; ---
notes;; ASHLEY. YOU TAKE TOO LONG YOU SNOOZE YOU LOSE <3

[jaimy]

Jaimy hesitantly kept his pace when the woman called out that her horse wasn't stopping anytime soon. Dan was the sort of horse that could just go and go and go. He kept up his brisk canter, following the woman and her horse. Jaimy was highly amused when the horse kicked up his heels. The woman was a good rider, that was for sure, as not only she stayed on, she controlled the horse as well. However, after a good smack, the horse stopped right out of the blue, and Jaimy chuckled. He made is way over to the woman who had managed to get a "walk" out of the horse. He cantered up beside, and saw the horse tense as he approached. Jaimy slowed to a jog and pulled up next to them.

The woman hissed at her horse, and then introduced herself through gritted teeth. She was obviously not too happy with her horses behavior, and who could blame her. Jaimy smiled at her.
"Jaimy Springer," he said. "Race horse owner and trainer," he said smoothly. "I must say, that's some talent you've got there handling that horse. How long have you been riding race horses?" he asked. He was politely curious, and hopeful as well. She seemed nice enough.

muse; eh
notes; lol

[portia]

I FEEL SO SMALL SOMETIMES

Though they had managed to get a walk down, Chase was still insisting on grabbing the bit, but Portia continued to move the bit in his mouth, pulling his head from left to right before his jaw finally relaxed. Beneath the thin, small saddle, she finally felt him sigh and the muscles in his back relaxing, his pace no longer as ‘jumpy’ as it was. Finally given a few seconds of free time, she looked over at the pair that had joined them, her hazel eyes studying the pair. He was on a cute paint horse. Portia had never owned any type of horse other than thoroughbred; they had been all she was ever interested in.

When the man introduced himself and said he was a trainer, she smiled.

It was nice to know who exactly her competition around the barn and area was. Nodding, if she had trusted the 5 year old stallion a little bit more, she’d probably offer a hand to shake, but she knew full well that The Chase would take an inch a mile if given the chance. Rolling her shoulders back she sat up a bit straighter and said,
Well, nice to meet you Jamiey, it’s always good to know who your competition is, yeah? How long you been in the business? Cute horse by the way.

---

character;; portia
word count;; O.223
reservations;; ---
notes;; omnomnom

[jaimy]

Jaimy smiled at her comment. Yes, it was nice to know who the competition was, that was for sure. Jaimy was certain Portia had a leg up on him, as her horses had not just traveled all the way from Washington State. It discouraged him, as all his horses had suffered from the change of climate, Texas especially. He was working on getting more horses, but that would come later. He thought it was interesting that she was an owner, yet she still chose to rider her horses. Jaimy wished he could do that, but at his height, it wasn't the best of ideas.

"It is indeed," he said. "Thank you, this is Dan, short for Danny's Painted Dragster. I've been doing this for a good ten years, and have been owning for five. How long have you been riding?" Jaimy was merely curious, he himself had been riding for fifteen years, and wasn't planning on stopping anytime soon. Dan seemed mildly interested in the other horse; it almost seemed as if he were making fun of him, the way he looked at the horse as he fiddled the bit. However, Dan lost interest when the horse relaxed...ears flicking back lazily, and tossing his head suddenly...merely bored. Dan was a very expressive horse.

muse; bleeg
notes;phhhlllbbbt

[portia]

I FEEL SO SMALL SOMETIMES

Portia had never really considered herself as a ‘prestigious’ race trainer in the racing world, considering that there were far superior trainers than her (even though she had won a few well known, very important races with horses that had been under her care). Then again, that was her nature, to be humble and rarely boast unless she felt like she had a real reason to do such a thing, and it was rare that she was completely satisfied with her own work with horses to boast or brag. Looking the other man over, he looked too tall to have been a jockey like she was, and she envied him. He probably didn’t have as many medical issues like she did.

For instance, she had to bring medical records wherever she went if she planned to fly, having more metal in her than an armored truck.

The biggest being the metal plate in her head, that thing set off alarms all over the world. He asked how long she had been riding, and she honestly could not remember (but thanks to her head injury, most of her memories were jumbled and disjointed, like a movie out of place). However, she had guessed that she started when she was at least ten, racing for five, quitting when she was 20 and picking up training that same year. Shrugging she leaned back in the saddle, pulling Chase’s head to his chest, reassuring that she had some form of control still,
Uh…to be honest, I can’t tell you exact numbers. You see, when I was about twenty I think, I was run over by a couple horses, I used to be a jockey. I was out for a few months and that fall put a metal plate in my head and I was told next fall would kill me, so I switched to training about five years ago. I’ve got a couple derby winners, a Belmont winner, and a Preakness placer. Other than that, not too much. I still like to get on the horses though and tune them up myself, it keeps me fit. This guy’s not mine, owned by one of my clients, he’s got a bad habit, as I’m sure you saw, of taking the bit and running and posing a threat to himself and the other horses and riders. I don’t really like having ‘trouble’ horses in my barn, but Chase here’s got a lot of talent for a five year old stud.

---

character;; portia
word count;; O.414
reservations;; jaimy
notes;; jfdklafjl sorry it took so long D:

[jaimy]

Jaimy was shocked. He wasn't shocked so much by her gruesome injury, as he had seen many of those, but at her training achievements in the last five years. Not that he was being insensitive. The account of her gristly injury made his insides crawl a little; he had always admired the courage of jockeys, and he felt his heart go out to her when she said that she couldn't race anymore. "I'm so sorry to hear that," he said. Every jockey he had ever met loved racing almost more than they had loved their life, so it was crushing not to be able to do it anymore. He had witnessed several falls in his career, and one in particular stood out in his mind. It had been three years ago when he had witnessed a particularly nasty fall. He had been riding Dan as a lead pony, and the pack was coming around the final turn when two horses bumped into each other. Their legs had entangled and both of them had fallen, as well as another horse behind them.

Two horses were killed that day, and one jockey was crippled for life. He had been the first on the scene, and he particularly remembered calming one of the horses down just so that he could be put down. He had always had a way with the race horses, a calming era about him, even some of the craziest horses he could control.

However, he thought of this for only a moment, and replied with an astonished laugh. "Well, you just about got yourself a trainers triple crown!" he said with a laugh. "You're rivalin' the Thoroughbred Center in Kentucky!" Jaimy had been there once; a massive facility with housing for over 1200 horses. Usually just over half were filled. The fact that this trainer, Portia Wolfe had trained Derby winners, and Belmont winners, and toss in a Preakness placer, that was remarkable. "Pleasure to meet you." he said. Amazing. Maybe he could train horses with her, get some hints, who knows?

muse; goodish
notes; sorry it took so long!!!

[courtree]

S

[/color]he finished the last stall to be cleaned out, taking the big black and putting him in his freshly made 'bed' so to speak. Digits pulled at the sliding door and bolted it shut as she picked up the wheelbarrow and headed outside to the dirty shavings pile. The heat almost felt nice against her slightly cold skin from being in the cooled barn all day. She tipped the grey wheelbarrow over, the shavings sliding out, her gaze darting to the inside of it to make sure it was empty before the sound of thundering hooves caught her attention. She let the wheelbarrow fall back as her ariat boots crunched along the pristine gravel, heading down the path that led to the track. There were few horses on it, and the ones currently running looked like race rejects. A particular caught her attention. One swerved wildly on the track at top speed, the rider, if you could call her that, was ripping on his face and using her crop to pick up his shoulder every time he swerved. She held back a laugh as she made her way onto the bleachers.

O[/color]nce seated, her gaze only momentarily drifted to the other riders, though it didn't for long as it quickly shifted back to the hideous duo. People like that needed to be thrown off their horse and had the bat taken to them. She shook her head slightly, pulling her legs to the lower bench seat, elbows propped on her knees as her hands cradled her face, pale pools focused on the two. It wasn't long before the horse decided to start bucking, and with that came the whip to his rump. Wow. learn to ride you bimbo she couldn't help but think as the girl clung to the horse as he continued to throw bucks at top speed. Took talent to do that, horse has heart. Well, heart to get the barbie off his back. She looked stiff on top his back, no give to anything.

A[/color]s the girl got her horse slowed, someone on a paint briskly cantered behind her, then slowed. Maybe to talk to her? To be pissy with her? Josh squinted her lids, as if she might evolve into a higher species and be able to see long distances. Though, it looked to her as if the pair were smiling at each other. Oh god, did he seriously not see the damage she was doing? It was about all she could take, and with that, her picked herself up, stepping down the bleachers as quietly as possible before returning to the barn. For future references, steer clear of the barbie on the small bay. Five feet of fury walked back to the barn, grabbed at the wheelbarrow and strode back into the barn. Relax...cool your jets rocky. It's not your horse she told herself in her head.


Notes: x3 Just wanted to pop Josh in and out for shits and giggles.
Tagged: No one :3
Words: four eight three
Muse: Low and random xD[/blockquote][/blockquote]