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Pole bending was one of Ever's favorite events. With his quick feet and agile body, he was practially built for weaving through the close poles. Plus he loved his flying lead changes, another bonus. . Clover was called on deck and she walked her gelding in circles, focusing only on his movements. She heard the crowd gasp and murmer, "oh no," for the rider currently running, and looked up to see that her horse had slipped and fallen onto its side, throwing the rider onto the ground. Clo winced but kept walking Ever, waiting until the horse was caught and the rider was off the course before heading towards the gate. . The announcer called her name and the gate opened. Ever pranced underneath her, ready to run, as she made him trot through it. She let him into a canter for the preparation circle, and he pulled at the reins, asking to go faster. Clo gripped the reins in both hands and gave him his head as they hit the straight line towards the poles. . Ever dashed past the row, and Clover made sure he got a pocket at the top pole, squeezing her right leg as he turned, keeping his forward momentum as he shot around the white pole. Weaving through them, she alternated between squeezing her right leg and her left, moving her hands almost imperceptibly with the movement. They passed the second to last pole and Clo rated Ever for the turn. But they were coming in too close. They were going to hit it. In the split second she had to adjust, she tapped her inside heel against Ever's side. He responded, but it still wasn't enough. As they rounded the pole Ever's shoulder made contact with it, and she saw it fall out of the corner of her eye. Determined to make up for the five second penalty, Clover urged her mount faster. He rocketed past each pole in the line, barely missing each but shaving off precious seconds as he did so. Clo couldn't help but smile at the power underneath her. His body moved fluidly, almost liquid, as he propelled through the course. At the top pole, she didn't even have to ask Ever to keep it close. He bent around it, Clo's leg mere inches away from the pole, and bounded forward like a slingshot, galloping home. . The announcer's voice could barely be heard over the cheering from the stands. "19.9 seconds! That's the fastest we've seen today! But of course, knocking the pole is a 5 second penalty, so that puts Clover Sterling at 24.9 seconds. Still a good time, but not a winning one. Next up is..." Clover paid no attention to the rest. . It took two circles to get Ever to a trot. He was breathing heavily and sweating, but with a prance in his step. He was clearly proud of his performance, and Clo was too. It was her fault that they'd knocked the pole, not his. It was their fastest run, not counting the penalty. But she also knew that without knocking the pole, Ever would never have gone that fast. He knew knocking a pole was bad, and he wanted to make Clo feel better about it. And he sure had. She petted him profusely as they left the arena and headed towards her trailer. Ever deserved a rest and a drink, and their next event wasn't until team sorting, a few hours away. |
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Walker leans on the fence, hat tipped low, eyes on the poles. He’s not watching the rider so much as the dirt, the way it’s starting to kick out on the turns. By the time his team run comes around there will be at least one slip and he's sure there wont be much left to run on. Adler shows up at his shoulder, “You running or just judging everybody?" Walker huffs. “Both. But never poles. Blu's too chunky to get between them." A pole wobbles but stays up. Someone down the rail groans. Walker shakes his head. “They should drag it soon” Adler muses. “They will. After somebody eats dirt.” Adler laughs. Walker doesn’t. Instead his leg starts bouncing before he catches it and stills it with the toe of his boot. Another rider clears the line. The clock beeps. “Decent time,” Adler says. “Could be cleaner,” Walker answers without thinking. Adler bumps his shoulder, a grin forming, "You’re impossible.” The two share a laugh, realizing some of Walker's tension. Walker pushes off the fence, brushing dust from his jeans and the oair Mame their way back to his trailer. Adler falls into step with him, joking along the way. The white trailer comes into view and with it the sleepy look of Blu. Walker greet him with a mint from his pocket, watching the stallion shake his head at the taste. Adler drapes himself over the horses back, eyeing his friend, "Still thinking about that girl? You know, the one you nearly ran over with your horse's big butt." The stallion pins his ears at the comment and Walker smiled sheepishly, "I'm not thinking of her in that way, but yes. She's entered just as many events as me I'm sure so there's at least one buckle we're chasing together. You know me, always watching the competition." Adler shrugs, "If you say so. She is cute though, whoever she is. Sure she'd give you a reality check in the competitive streak of yours." Walker gives him a funny look, "That's a nightmare waiting to happen. Besides, dating isn't my thing. Neither are one time things. Hate that idea. Let's go, they should be close to the end." Adler collects his horse from his trailer as Walker tacks up Blu once more. The pair make their way back to the warm ups, chatting as they prepare for their last run of the evening. |
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Clo slipped Ever's bridle off and secured his halter so he could eat his hay. She unsaddled him and took off his protective boots, then rummaged around in her truck for food for herself. Finding a tuna sandwich and an apple, she sat down next to Ever in a camping chair and began eating. She ate half the sandwich, then filled up a bucket of water for her horse at a nearby spiggot. She finished her lunch and drank some water. It was while she was putting away her food that someone walked up to her, leading a horse. . Clover turned to see Lisa, a young woman she often saw at her barn, with her chestnut mare. "Hey Clo," Lisa said, smiling. Clover nodded in acknowledgement and finished putting her things away. "I saw that we're seventh on the order of go. That means about fifteen minutes after it starts is when we're up." Clo and Lisa were a team for two-man sorting. Clo hadn't been that enthusiastic about the idea when Lisa suggested sorting together about two months ago, but their horses worked well together and were similar in speed, so it made sense. Plus they practiced at the same stable. They'd competed in weekly sorting competitions since then, and Clo had to admit it'd been fun. Lisa was kind and competetive like her, and pretty friendly. They weren't really friends, at least Clo didn't think so, but she was the only one Clover would do team events with. . "Okay," she replied, "that gives us a good amount of time to warm up together." Lisa nodded and was silent for a minute before asking, "Meet in the warm up arena at 1:20?" Clover thought, then said, "Let's do 1:15." Lisa accepted and walked off. |
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Afternoon Showers, Sleet Possible
