“Is he pulling to the left too much, or the right? When several horses are practicing at the same time, will the horse race the other ones, rear up, veer away, or ignore everything around him and do his job.”
“Wow, that seems intense.”
“It is, remember, ultimately, the jockey is in charge of the horse out on the track. The trainer and owner have no say once the race starts. It’s just the three of us.”
“Three?”
“Me, the horse, and the track.” She sighed as she sipped her coffee again, and drove a few miles in silence. She glanced at him and asked quietly. “Do you remember watching the video of me riding and winning the race?”
“Yes, what about it?”
“Did you see some of the jockeys using a crop to hit the horse to make it go faster?”
“I did, is that not allowed?”
“No, it’s allowed, but I personally don’t believe in doing that. I was trained, since the age of fifteen, that if a horse was going to run fast, he was going to do it naturally, he wouldn’t need the extra help of a crop. Sometimes, not all the time, but sometimes using a crop will make the horse slow down.”
“Wow, I did not know that. Would certain horses, not used to being cropped, or whatever the term is, act squirrely when hit?”
“Yes, I’ve seen horses cock their heads to the side, trying to reach back and bite the rider.” She sipped her coffee again, and held the travel mug in her hand as she continued to drive insilence for several miles. With one last sip, she returned the cup to its holder, put both hands on the wheel, concentrating on her driving before she spoke, never taking her eyes from the road.
“Riding Champ’s grandfather was beautiful. He was poetry in motion, just walking around the paddock was a sight to behold. The owner was a nice guy, he loved that horse, and he respected Pedro and my knowledge and advice.”
“What happened?”
“He let greed override his good sense. It varies by race, but the horse I ran, Chocolate Champion won big. There are the race winnings, that are split between the owner, trainer, and jockey.”
“You don’t do this for free?” He held up his hands when she whipped her head toward him and gave him the stink eye.
“Did you work in the military for free?”
“No, and sorry, that was a stupid question to ask.”
“The only stupid question is the unasked question. Anyway, the owner received three million, Pedro one, and I got the same amount as Pedro did. However, the racing commission also pays the owner, and only the owner, for the value of the horse. He received an additional three million.”
“He received six million in winnings for just that race?”
“Yes, the next year, when it came time for the race, now, I trained Chocolate all year, mind you. Two months before the actual race, the owner, not Pedro, but Marvin came to me and told me to start using a crop on him. I refused. He gave me a week to change my mind. I still refused. I even told Pedro what Marvin wanted me to do, he was pissed. I asked him why, and he said he liked the basically free money Chocolate earned. Not taking into consideration all the work Pedro and I did to get him in top shape, and that I was the one that rode him in the race.”
“What happened when you refused the second time?”
“He fired me on the spot, and threatened to blacklist me. However, Pedro confronted him, he said if he had to fire me,he would agree, but if he tried to blacklist me, he would go to the racing commission and tell them about the drugs Marvin pumped into his other horses. Not Chocolate Champion, but he had three other horses that ran the races. Winning them, and those jockeys used the crop.”
“Basically cheating.”
“If you want to get technical, yes, again, using a crop is a jockey’s preference, the drugs are legal, but the crop is a gray area.”
“How long after you were fired did you find another job?” Shay was quiet as he asked, and if he hadn’t been watching her closely, he would have missed her grin.
“Three hours later.”
“Ooh, that sounds like there’s a story there.”
“Absolutely, and a great one. Remember when I said my neighbor asked me to train when I was fifteen? He had a horse that I had ridden several times in the past. His regular jockey had to have emergency surgery, and was out of commission.”
“Do you know why?”
“Appendicitis.”
