The Racehorse Who Learned to Dance

by Clare Balding

  As if he had heard them talking about him, Noddy appeared behind Polly and put his head over her shoulder, allowing her to lean back into his chest. She put her hand up and stroked the length of his nose.

  ‘Shall we give it a go?’ Charlie held up the headcollar and home-made lunge rope.

  ‘No time like the present,’ Polly said, still running her hand down Noddy’s long nose. ‘This will be the making of you,’ she whispered in his ear. ‘This is the start – day one of a whole new life.’

  CHAPTER 3

  Charlie held up the headcollar and Noddy bowed his head to accept it. She tied the plaited rope to the loop below his chin and led him into the middle of the arena. Percy was following a little way behind, nibbling at the few patches of grass that weren’t brown. He looked up every so often to check what his friend was up to.

  ‘It’s OK, Perce, I won’t make you do it!’ Charlie called out to him. ‘I know it’s not your thing.’

  She showed Noble Warrior the shape of the circle she wanted him to make, leading him round with a short rein. Then she positioned herself in the centre of the arena, her feet on the painted X. She loosened the rope and clicked her teeth. Noddy began to walk in a circle wider and wider round her.

  ‘Good boy, that’s the way. Now trot on!’ Charlie was strong and confident in her command and clicked her tongue on the roof of her mouth as she said it.

  Noble Warrior moved forward into trot, keeping his head low and his stride level. Boris barked encouragement from the sidelines and Noble Warrior gave a little squeal of excitement and raised his back legs in a buck.

  ‘He’s full of beans!’ called Polly. ‘I think he’s enjoying it.’

  Charlie worked him for ten minutes going left-handed before letting him walk and changing the rein. Then she worked him for ten minutes going right-handed, watching his shoulders and neck become more flexible as he got used to the idea of going in a circle in a steady trot that forced him to use the power in his hindquarters.

  ‘He’s spent his life galloping in a straight line and then learning to come round Tattenham Corner at full speed. This is using his muscles in a very different way,’ Charlie said as she urged him forward.

  Noble Warrior responded willingly. His hooves snapped up with every stride and his hind legs thrust underneath him, making him look as if he was on springs.

  ‘I think he could do with some music,’ Harry murmured to his younger brother. ‘I can just see those hooves drumming to the beat and I think it would help his rhythm.’

  ‘We’ve got those Bluetooth speakers we bought for the chickens. They would do the trick,’ Larry said in a stage whisper.

  Polly was leaning on the fence just behind them. She poked her crutch at Larry. ‘I can hear you.’

  ‘Don’t you think it needs a bit of pizzazz?’ said Harry. ‘Otherwise it’s just trotting round in circles and, to be totally honest, that ain’t gonna keep any of us on the edge of our seats.’

  ‘Funnily enough,’ said Polly, ‘you’re not being completely stupid.’

  Harry raised his eyebrows in mock outrage.

  ‘Freestyle dressage is all about the music,’ Polly said. ‘I remember when Charlotte Dujardin won her gold medal at the London Olympics, the music was all this patriotic stuff like “Land of Hope and Glory” and it made all the difference. The crowd loved it and the judges gave her top marks.’

  ‘Do you think horses can hear a tune?’ asked Larry.

  ‘Absolutely. They definitely move in time with the music and there are some horses who prefer a certain type of music.’

  ‘You’re joking,’ said Harry.

  ‘Honestly!’ Polly looked back towards Noble Warrior and Charlie still working hard in the arena. His hooves were creating a track in a circle round her.

  ‘Some won’t do much for classical music, but will really turn on the style for a pop song. I’ve read about it and seen it on YouTube. I’ll show you.’

  Larry shook his head in disbelief. ‘Who knew? We’ve been slogging away with those darned chickens and all along the dancing shoes were waiting for this fella!’

  ‘Whoa, lad, that’ll do.’ In the arena, Charlie slowed Noble Warrior right down and let him walk towards her. His body was glistening with sweat. She patted him on the neck.

  ‘That’s enough for this evening. We don’t want to put you off by overdoing it.’

  Charlie was amazed that such a slow and short training session could make him sweat so much. He wasn’t puffing like he did when he finished a gallop in his racing days, but he had clearly been working hard.

  ‘I think he enjoyed that,’ she said to Polly and her brothers as she led Noddy towards the barn. ‘I think he quite likes the attention as well as the exercise. I’ll just put a hose on him before he goes back out in the field.’

  Harry and Larry turned to head back to the farmhouse.

  ‘Hey, thanks for the arena!’ Charlie shouted after them.

  ‘Teamwork makes the Dream Work!’ they shouted back in unison.

  Polly smiled at Charlie. ‘I don’t know where they get their slogans, but hey, they aren’t all bad,’ she said.

  ‘I know. They’re idiot brothers, but at least they’re my idiot brothers.’

  Charlie walked Noble Warrior back towards the barn. The sun-baked ground was rough and uneven. As they passed the straw bales that Harry had built to make practice starting stalls before the Derby, Charlie looked over her shoulder and saw Polly stumble.

  ‘Don’t wait, I’ll be fine.’ Polly banged her crutch on the ground. ‘It’s just this stupid leg doesn’t want to pick itself up.’ Her face was flushed and her teeth gritted.

  Charlie hesitated, unsure whether to carry on and not make a fuss or wait for her friend. She circled back and let Noddy sniff the ground. He started pawing with his hooves at the dust and a cloud of brown lifted off like smoke.

  ‘I think he wants to roll,’ Charlie said to Polly, who hobbled closer and leaned against the straw bales for support.

  Noble Warrior had dug a small trench in the ground and now he was kneeling down into it, lowering his front end first and then his bottom. Charlie held on to the rope, keeping it well out of the way of his flailing hooves as he rolled on to his back and flung his body one way and then the other.

  ‘My dad always says it’s lucky if they flip themselves right over,’ Polly said. ‘He reckons it means it’s a horse who will win a race. I don’t know why, as you wouldn’t have thought the ability to roll would have any bearing on your speed! But Dad also salutes magpies and thinks going under a railway bridge while a train is passing above means he’ll train a winner, so it’s all relative.’

  Noddy stretched his neck out in the dirt and moved it from side to side, scratching it on the ground. Percy trotted over to see what was going on, hoping there might be food involved.

  ‘He’s just having a post-workout massage,’ Charlie explained to Percy. ‘If you did any work, you could have one too.’

  Noble Warrior turned himself right over on to his other side and then let out a big breath of air before sitting up like a dog. He looked pleased with himself. Charlie held the rope loosely and gave him time to raise himself back up to his full height. He shook his head, his neck and then his whole body as bits of dust flew into the air.

  ‘I wish I could do that,’ Polly murmured. ‘It looks more fun than Pilates.’

  Charlie patted his neck and smiled. Noble Warrior whinnied softly at Percy, who walked over to be next to him.

  ‘He’s definitely finding his confidence again after the kidnap,’ Charlie said. It was nearly a year ago now, but she could still remember how he used to jump at any loud noise, even months after the event.

  ‘I’ll never forget the sound he made when they came speeding past me on the road.’ Polly shuddered as she recalled the seconds before Munchkin reared and sent her crashing into the tarmac. ‘Noddy was thrashing and kicking in the back and his whinny sounded like a scream. He was terrified.’<
br />
  Noble Warrior moved closer to Polly as she spoke, as if drawn in by her voice. He reached out his nose to her and she stroked him. He lowered his head and nudged her, willing her to move herself higher on the straw bales. They were arranged in steps so that it wasn’t difficult for her to climb on to the first one. Noble Warrior nudged her again.

  ‘I think he wants you to go higher,’ Charlie said.

  ‘Maybe he’s got some dust on his back that I can brush off for him,’ Polly suggested as she dropped her crutch to the floor and carefully moved on to the second bale. She was level with his back and ran her hand along it from the withers to the top of his tail.

  ‘That should do it,’ she said.

  Noble Warrior turned his head and looked at her before moving himself slightly so that he was parallel to the straw bales.

  ‘I think he wants you to get on him,’ Charlie whispered, holding his rope a little more tightly.

  Polly shook her head. ‘I can’t. What if I fell off? Mum would kill me.’ Noble Warrior looked round at her again and pushed himself closer to the bales. ‘He’s got no saddle on. I’ll never be able to hold myself in position.’ She took a deep breath. ‘I’m scared. There! I said it. Mum and Dad are right – I’ve lost my bottle. I wouldn’t be able to ride again, even if they let me.’

  Noble Warrior stayed stock-still in front of the straw bales where Polly was standing. She sighed loudly and he looked round at her once more.

  ‘It’s OK,’ Charlie said softly. ‘No one’s going to make you do anything you don’t want to. I reckon Noddy thinks it would be easier to ride back to the stables than to walk.’ Charlie knew that all Polly had to do was lift her right leg over his back and she’d be sitting on top of him. ‘Your mum isn’t here. She’ll never know. Take my riding hat.’ She unbuckled it and passed it over.

  ‘But how will I balance?’ Polly’s voice trembled.

  Charlie positioned herself on the other side of Noble Warrior’s shoulder, ready to keep her friend steady and hold on to the leading rein. ‘I guess that’s down to your core strength.’ She smiled encouragingly. ‘Think of it as an alternative therapy. Like Pilates – but more fun!’

  Polly started to count to ten and when she got to nine she put her left hand on to Noble Warrior’s mane. She faced away from his head and lifted her right leg. Her left leg wobbled and almost buckled. She fell backwards against the top straw bale.

  ‘I can’t do it!’

  Charlie dropped the lead rein to the floor and stood in front of Noble Warrior. She spoke to him earnestly and firmly. ‘Right, Noddy, this seems to be your idea so you’d better help make it work. Don’t move an inch, OK? Not one inch while I help Polly get on.’

  Noble Warrior bowed his head as if he understood and didn’t move a muscle. Charlie scrambled up the two bales to be on the same level as Polly. She offered herself as support, helping her friend keep her balance as she tried to swing her right leg over again.

  ‘One, two, three!’ Charlie said as they worked together. One final shove on Polly’s bottom and she was up. It was probably stupid, but it made them both laugh out loud.

  ‘I’ve always wanted to ride a Derby winner!’ grinned Polly. ‘I guess that dream has come true.’

  ‘Hold tight to his mane and try to sit up tall,’ Charlie urged as she scrambled down from the makeshift mounting block to take the lead rein.

  ‘Good boy, Noddy. You kept your word. Now let’s walk as steadily as you can.’

  Charlie looked up at Polly, who was smiling and looking around. Her back and hips moved in rhythm with Noble Warrior’s stride.

  ‘How does it feel?’ Charlie asked.

  ‘Magical. It feels amazing to move without having to worry about whether I’ll trip or stumble.’

  Polly looked from side to side, taking in the view, and she glanced down at Charlie.

  ‘I feel free,’ she said.

  Those three words meant the world to Charlie. She wanted to bottle this moment and take it out whenever things got tough at school.

  It was only a short walk and they didn’t go very fast, but it was enough.

  When they got to the barn, Charlie helped Polly slide gently to the floor and ran back to get her crutch. As she ran, she thought about all the things she could do without fear or worry. She could run, she could walk, she could jump on Percy from the ground and she didn’t have to hesitate or work out the risks. She could just do it. She had taken all that for granted.

  When she returned, she found Polly with her arms round Noble Warrior, her face buried in his neck. Charlie couldn’t hear what she was saying, but when Polly drew her head back, Charlie could see her friend was crying.

  Charlie’s heart jumped into her throat. ‘Are you upset? I’m so sorry, we shouldn’t have done that. I didn’t mean to make you cry.’

  ‘Don’t say that,’ Polly replied, sniffing. ‘These are happy tears. You and Noddy have just given me the best day since day zero. Maybe even the best day ever.’

  Charlie smiled with relief as she handed Polly her crutch. She turned on the tap, sending water pumping through the hose, which made Noble Warrior spook.

  ‘He thinks it’s a giant snake! And you know what it’s like with thoroughbreds – they can be perfect gents one minute and perfect fools the next.’

  She aimed the water at his back and sprayed off all the dust, as well as the clear outline that Polly’s legs had left behind.

  ‘Girls! Are you coming inside?’ Charlie’s mother was calling from the farmyard. ‘Polly’s due to take her pills at seven and it’s quarter past already. Supper’s on the table.’

  ‘Coming, Mum!’ Charlie shouted back.

  They finished hosing off Noble Warrior, ran a scraper over his body to take off the excess water and took him back to the field. Charlie slipped off the headcollar and they watched him trot over to Percy, lowering his head between his knees as he went.

  ‘I think he’s got the dressage bug,’ Polly laughed. ‘He’s even practising in his own time.’

  ‘We can give it another go tomorrow, if you like?’

  Polly put her head on one side and widened her eyes, but she didn’t answer. Charlie left the idea hanging in the air. They could sleep on it.

  ‘Have you done your exercises, Polly?’ Charlie’s mother asked as they walked into the kitchen.

  ‘Yes, Mrs Bass. We found a new exercise that works really well.’ Polly winked at Charlie as she spoke. ‘I can feel my core muscles getting stronger already!’

  CHAPTER 4

  The Bass family’s old brick farmhouse with stone floors certainly had its benefits. It may have been chilly in the winter, but in this, the hottest of summers, it was staying nice and cool. The next morning, Charlie, Polly and the boys sat round the big old wooden table in the kitchen. They were watching Charlotte Dujardin’s freestyle dressage routine from London 2012.

  ‘See there, when he looks as if he’s prancing?’ Charlie pointed to the screen. ‘That’s called passage.’ She pronounced the word as if it was in French – pas-arge. ‘It’s an elevated trot so the knees have to come right up. It’s all about showing power. You see how the legs seem to hang in the air before they come down again? It’s brilliant. And then here –’ she pressed Pause on the screen, pointed, and then let it play on – ‘you see she’s keeping him on the one spot as he trots. That’s called a piaffe.’

  ‘Gosh, it really is like dancing,’ said Harry.

  ‘And when you hear it with the music –’ Larry turned up the volume – ‘you can tell how good it is. Valegro is trotting in time with the beat. Now, that’s clever! And there, where he goes into extended trot for the James Bond music – it’s brilliant.’

  Charlie never imagined she could sit and discuss dressage with her brothers. They had always teased her about her fascination with equestrian sport and mocked her for wanting to watch Olympia at Christmas time or the Grand Prix at the World Equestrian Games. Now they were engrossed.

  ‘This w
ould be so cool for the blog,’ Larry said under his breath to Harry.

  ‘Get outta my head!’ his older brother replied. ‘I was already planning this wicked film sequence where you only see his feet or his neck or his ears and then, like, a week later, we reveal that it’s actually Noble Warrior doing dressage.’

  ‘Do you reckon the aisles of the supermarket are wide enough for him to do a piaffe?’

  ‘Look at this bit. He’s skipping!’ Harry said hastily, spotting Charlie’s expression.

  Larry rewound the film so he could watch the flying changes again. Every other stride, Valegro changed his lead leg from left to right to left to right again. Charlotte Dujardin barely moved at all apart from a tiny adjustment with her leg that shifted her hips from one side to the other. Her hands stayed level and her upper body rock solid.

  ‘Now that is core strength.’ Polly was impressed.

  Charlotte Dujardin came to the end of her routine, bowed her head to the judges and smiled. The crowd started cheering and the commentator sounded as if he was in tears, his voice cracked with emotion. Charlotte dropped the reins and patted Valegro on both sides of his neck. He transformed instantly from a high-class performer, ready and alert for the next move, to being an old dobbin coming home from a hack.

  Larry sniffed and wiped away a tear. ‘It’s beautiful.’ Charlie wasn’t sure whether he was mocking her.

  Harry dug him in the ribs. ‘Don’t be so soft,’ he scoffed. ‘You knew she won the gold medal before we even started watching. We couldn’t have missed it if we tried, what with Charlie banging on and on about it. It was all she would talk about when she was six.’

  Larry sniffed again. ‘I was not crying,’ he protested. ‘I’m getting a cold.’

  Charlie took the laptop and tapped away on the screen. ‘There’s something else I want to show you,’ she said. She pressed Play on the video. Polly leaned in.