Rush Hour

Introspection & Intermission

It was an early start for the staff, although the group was used to it by now. What Bates had been thinking when he had put together the workout roster for the day, they had no idea. A 6am sprint workout for the two young colts was the first workout of the day, and everyone was still half asleep. Both Intro and Mission had been brought in extra early just to get them ready and give them some extra time to wake up.

Intro was first to arrive, with a grumpy looking Jack upon his back. Intro himself was surprisingly perky, and ready to run. He loaded into the inside gate with little fuss, although he did try to kick AJ quickly. Mission wasn't too far behind, and he was in his usual good mood with an equally happy Alex. The dark bay stallion loaded up quickly beside Intro, and the two jockeys nodded to each other in greeting before turning to the dirt track in front of them. They were just running eight furlongs, which was generally Intro's maximum and Mission's minimum so it was a test for both the horses.

At the rails stood Bates, Eliza, AJ and Jett. They were just watching the workout, with Bates timing to see how the boys were running and Eliza on photo duty. The gates opened and the timer was started, the pair burst forwards out of the gate and eagerly rushed forwards. Intro took the lead, although he seemed slightly unsure as there wasn't a horse to follow. Mission settled not too far behind Intro, comfortably running at a pace just enough to keep up with the black colt.

Eyes were focused on the pair, eagerly watching two battle it out. The two horses were focused on the track, eating up the dirt track as they rushed forwards. The two weren't running as intensively as they would on the track, but by no means were they lazy. The two were prepared, Intro setting a good pace for the majority of the run. Mission was slowly started to push Intro forwards, and the black colt was slowly starting to accelerate to keep the lead. Around the last bend the two were dashing to the end, pinny-eared Intro sprinting against the usually laid-back Mission. There was no doubt the 8 furlongs was the limit for Intro, it was obvious he was beginning to tire, which was interesting in comparison to Mission. The dark bay colt usually preferred the longer distances, and it was obvious he was just starting to get riled up at the end of the workout. Mission slowly overtook the sprinter colt as the reach the end, leading by around half a length.

The group at the rails eagerly watched as the two breezed past, the frantic clicks of Eliza's camera and the beeping of the timer filled the air. As Jack and Alex led their colts closer to the rails, the acknowledged each other respectfully. Those two had the most tension between them than all the other jockeys, always seeming to be pitted against each other in one way or another. "So, what's the timer saying?" Jack queried, looking expectantly at Bates. The young man smirked slightly as he stared as the stopwatch, quickly tucking it in his pocket, "that's not important. Anyway, haven't you guys got some other work to do?" Jack and Alex groaned as the other three couldn't help but laugh at their boss.