Racehorse by Bonnie Bryant Page A

Horse Wise that she never had a chance to flinch while I put the tube down her pony’s throat to deliver the medicine to his stomach. What a team we make!”
    “I guess,” Carole said. “And to tell you the truth, I got so busy telling her all about Horse Wise that
I
never noticed what you were doing—even when I was holding the horse’s head for you!”
    Judy laughed and so did Carole. They both liked the fact that they’d left a healthier horse and a more knowledgeable owner behind.
    “Next stop, Maskee Farms.”
    “Again?” Carole asked. She certainly wanted to return, but she was surprised that it was necessary.
    “Again. It’s for a final check on the two racers for this coming weekend.”
    Maskee Farms was just a few miles down the road, and Mr. McLeod was waiting for them. He waved a cheerful greeting and then met them in the stable.
    “How are my patients doing?” Judy asked.
    “Just fine, I think, though I’d like you to take a close look at Prancer in action. I think she might be favoring one of her hind legs a little.”
    “All right,” Judy said. “Let’s see her moving.”
    Mr. McLeod gave Carole a lead rope and nodded, indicating that Carole should bring Prancer out. Prancer’s eyes seemed to sparkle when she saw Carole, and Carole felt just the same way. She clipped the rope onto the horse and brought her out of the stall, leading her to a ring off the rear of the stable.
    At Judy’s instruction, Carole led Prancer in a walk and then a trot, running in front of her, though it was hard to keep up with the Thoroughbred racehorse’s trot. She
was
fast!
    “Looks okay to me,” Judy said.
    “Maybe,” Mr. McLeod said. “But you should see her at a faster gait.”
    “Why don’t we saddle her up?” Judy suggested.
    “I don’t have anyone to ride her,” he said. “She’s not used to the weight of somebody like me or you.…” Hiseyes landed on Carole, still holding the horse’s lead. “What about her?” he asked.
    Carole could hardly believe what she was hearing. Mr. McLeod was actually suggesting that she have a chance to ride a valuable horse like Prancer? She quickly decided that she’d heard wrong. He probably just wanted her to lead the horse some more and run faster.
    “Great idea,” Judy said. “Carole’s a terrific rider. Where’s the saddle?”
    She had heard it right. He actually wanted her to ride Prancer! She was so excited, she barely noticed what she was doing as she tacked up the mare.
    Racing saddles were much smaller than regular English riding saddles. The less weight a horse had to carry, the faster it would be able to run. That was the main reason why most jockeys were so small and so thin. Still, a saddle was a saddle, and a horse was a horse. Carole had no trouble tacking up Prancer and only a little trouble adjusting to the very short stirrups that were also part of a racing saddle. What it meant, mainly, was that she had to have a boost from Mr. McLeod to get into the saddle. And then she was there, on the back of a beautiful, sweet racehorse. It seemed like a dream come true.
    Judy and Mr. McLeod waited for her to accustom herself to the feel of Prancer. That didn’t take long. Prancer’s motions were smooth, almost seamless. Hertraining had been for speed. Every movement she made was sleek. Carole thought it was almost as wonderful as riding Starlight.
    First Carole walked Prancer and then brought her to a trot. She felt very self-conscious as Judy and Mr. McLeod watched every single thing she did, but then she realized they weren’t watching her. They were watching the horse.
    “Want to try a round on the practice track?” Mr. McLeod asked.
    “Me?” Carole said, realizing immediately how dumb that sounded.
    “Yes, please,” he said, ignoring her silly question. He opened the gate to the ring and showed her the way to walk Prancer to his practice track.
    “You don’t want to go full out,” he said. “Because we don’t want to tire