Calm...

... before the storm

Previously...



This is the first half of Raven's season, since I write long and rambly things and don't know the meaning of concise . No shading, because it is making me unhappy.

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The season’s early start had seen a flurry of activity in Willowglen’s racing stables, but now the days were rolling into March, and there were just two words on everyone’s lips. Kentucky Derby. Ravenhawk had been improving since her sessions with the younger sprinter had begun, and it was clear to see that there was a real competitive fire beginning to course through her veins. Her times were quickening up nicely too, but so far she had been unable to catch the swift filly over the shorter distances they ran.

The pressure was mounting to race her against some of her competition, but the strategy from here to the Derby was touchier than walking on fire. No one wanted to make a wrong move, or make their plans too obvious. Most of the staff were still undecided as to whether they wanted the filly to run at all – pit her against the fillies like last year and see her waltz all over them instead? Try for the Triple Tiara? There were too many ifs and buts – it was hard to say in which field the filly would perform better, since the colts had more distance but potentially more class, while the fillies might provide an easier ride. She certainly had the class to take the Tiara, or even more than the Derby, if her pedigree had anything to say about it.

There was no real way of knowing how the filly would fare until they raced her some more, and after her break period of training, she needed to enter some more races to prepare her for what lay ahead – whatever path it was decided to aim her at. There were far more races available than last year, and as the distance increased so too everyone hoped would Raven’s winning margins.

As earlier on in the season, the question arose about whether or not to race Raven with the boys. It was going to have to happen sometime, and earlier races could be used to decide whether or not she was up to the Derby. So in early March, the racing team was off to California, headed straight for Santa Anita Park and the Sham Stakes. There was an exciting feeling about that morning, like a good omen was watching over the little group of hopefuls. Raven was after all descended from Sham – wouldn’t it be fit for her to do well in this race?

Unfortunately, the field that the nine furlong race had attracted was not going to make it easy on the filly. Derby hopefuls – all of them colts – were already prepping for what would be undeniably the toughest race in their young lives, with their trainers all watching nervously on to see if their horses might have that special something. The big filly no longer towered quite so much over her competition, though she still was taller than most of them. The colts appeared more bulky and muscled compared to the lean, rangy look that Ravenhawk was still sporting. She was not delicate or leggy or even particularly lithe in stature, she was still a beast of a horse with thick strong bones. But now it seemed the colts were really going to give her a run for her money.

Like her first race, she was practically disregarded, though her odds had improved some. Most of the attention was on the powerhouse of a colt by the name of Unafraid. Out of Unbridled’s Song by the mare Maitrise, the bay male had a pedigree to rival Ravenhawk’s, if not surpass it. Much of Raven’s extraordinary lineage was several generations back; where as the colt’s sire was well known and respected. He had won Champion Two Year Old Colt for his undefeated first season, having started five times and proven himself over a number of distances. His races were all calculated stalking the leaders before leading a brutal charge down the straight. Which was going to be a major problem for the late running filly, who had until this point had relied on chasing down exhausted competition and holding off other closers.

Ravenhawk looked game though, as they paraded past the grandstands. She looked ready, elegant and graceful with a big deep chest. But so did the long legged colt. An already nervous Nina Brown was hoping that the training with the bullet-filly back home would aid their cause here today.

There was a little fuss at the gate, but soon all the racers were loaded and waiting for the start. The gates swung open and something unusual happened. The bay filly broke ahead of the rest of the field. In two great sweeping strides she was already a length in front of her straining competition, so much so that her jockey had to pull her up hard to let the rest of the field pass and have the filly settle into her customary position at the back of the pack. But boy, was she unhappy about it. She fought like a demon to try and wrench the bit away and continue to chase down the field early, eyeballing each one as they passed. The race caller even exclaimed that there must have been an accident and that the filly may have been injured she was putting up such a fuss. It was all her poor jockey could do to keep her under the wraps he did, and even then he was fighting a loosing battle. Raven was not going to take this race lying down as she had in her two year old career.

By the time they were nearing the final turn, she had already inched past half of the field, swinging three wide and still outpacing her smaller rivals with giant bounds. There was a roar from the crowd as Unafraid began to make his move from fourth nearing the top of the stretch. This did not go unnoticed by the dark bay filly, and she flicked back her ears – it was business time. Exhausted from fighting her throughout the race, her jockey gave in and let her go.

The change in the filly’s demeanor this season was plain - she wanted to win, and she wanted it badly. Her stride rate had picked up, and she ate up the ground, lapping the entire field as they bunched up going into the straight. Unafraid was already charging down towards the post with the crowd egging him on every step of the way. Moving like a furious machine, Raven locked on her target and shot off after him. The colt was setting a blistering pace, and now the crowd saw the filly beginning to gain on him. His jockey glanced behind him to spot the rapidly approaching filly bearing down on them, and he gave the colt a swift tap with the whip and urged him on with his arms, asking for even more speed. They were neck and neck in the final furlong. The crowd never having expected a speed duel in the closing stages was going crazy, a number of fickle fans now cheering for the speeding filly.

The colt was tiring, but he was game, and gave it one last push of energy, inching past by a head as the finish line was just strides away. With her ears pinned furiously to her neck, the filly gathered herself and launched herself after him, leaving the race to come down to the wire. No need for photo finish this time – the filly’s bulk had got her ahead by a neck, defeating the favorite in a massive upset with a final time of 1:49:80. This time, no one was disappointed with the big filly’s close victory – she had won it with real fighting passion, and curiously it looked as though she wanted to take the field by storm and do it from the front.

Even though the colts wanted another crack at the suddenly infamous filly who had thrust herself into the spotlight, she was headed for Gulfstream Park and the Bonnie Miss Stakes. Fillies only. Deciding to try a little experiment, the directions for the GII race were simple: let her run how she wants to run. Like in the Sham, the filly broke with remarkable swiftness and raced away to an early lead. Her long, fluid strides made short work of all the other fillies who dared to challenge her for the lead, setting opening fractions of 23:20 and 46:64. Practically inhaling the distance, the filly pulled away even further from her early lead of two lengths into the stretch, scorching towards the post with the crowd lending her their lungs. None of the fillies even came close, and the final winning margin was 8 lengths in a time of 1:47:90 – a new stakes record thanks to her blinding closing run.
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Registered Name: Ravenhawk
Stable Name: Raven
Gender: Filly
Breed: Thoroughbred
Age: 2 Years
Height: Currently 16.2hh (predicted over 17hh)
Colour: Dark bay
Markings: None
Genetics: Ee/Aa
Bloodline: Run N Gun x Alyssum


Discipline: Flat racing
Talent Roll: 72
Running Style: Late closer Versatile, frontrunner
Preferred Distance: 9-12f
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(c) Ehetere