Astra

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by Chris Platt


  Lily felt her cheeks color. She quickly congratulated Devin on his own success and handed him a carrot. “We all did it,” she corrected, with a big grin. “I think I’m going to go home and sleep for a week, but I can’t wait to do it again.”

  “Spoken like a true endurance rider,” Devin said.

  The two of them laughed and talked while they fed treats to their tired mounts and relived the best and worst parts of their rides. Lily felt happier than she had in a long, long time.

  Mr. O’Neil pointed to the vet check station. “Here come Charlie and Jill.”

  Lily, Devin, and Meloney went out to greet the approaching riders. When everyone was together again, Mr. Henley pulled out his camera. “Gather your horses and line up in front of that tree over there,” he ordered.

  Lily wasn’t sure if she could even walk two more steps, but Mr. Henley wanted a picture. She owed him that much for getting her this far.

  As they lined up their horses, Lily looked at each one of her friends. She knew she couldn’t have made it this far without all of their help—even Charlie’s, in spite of all his teasing. Together they made a great team of endurance riders—and friends. She looked forward to racing with them in the future, especially Devin.

  Smiling broadly for the camera, Lily threw her arms around Astra’s neck and hugged the mare tight. Maybe someday soon, they’d all be posing together as Top Ten winners of the Tevis Cup!

  author’s note

  The Arabian horse is known for its beauty, athleticism, and high spirit. Thousands of years old, the breed is known and owned worldwide. Arabians are smaller horses that average between 14.3 and 15.1 hands high and come in most colors. The Arabian Horse Association, which registers modern-day horses, was founded in 1908. To date, the organization has registered over a million horses and is one of the largest registries in the United States.

  The Arabian breed is known as “foundation stock.” Many of today’s modern breeds, like the Thoroughbred, the quarter horse, and the Percheron draft horse, can trace their ancestries back to the Arabian breed. In ancient times Arabians were used as war horses and mounts for royalty. Today they are most commonly used as endurance horses that run 50- and 100-mile races. They can also be found in the show ring under both English and Western saddle. Occasionally Arabian horses are raced at the same tracks as Thoroughbreds over the distance of three-quarters of a mile or less. Some people have branched out even further, using Arabians for dressage, western reining events, carriage, and jumping.

  For more information check these websites.

  The American Endurance Ride Conference

  www.aerc.org

  Arabian Horse Association

  www.arabianhorses.org

  about the author

  CHRIS PLATT has been riding horses since she was two years old. At the age of sixteen, she earned her first gallop license at a racetrack in Salem, Oregon. Several years later, she became one of the first women jockeys in that state. Chris has also trained Arabian endurance horses and driven draft horses. After earning a journalism degree from the University of Nevada in Reno, she decided to combine her love of horses with her writing. Chris lives in Nevada with her husband, six horses, three cats, a parrot, and a potbellied pig. Her previous books include the award-winning MOON SHADOW, STORM CHASER, WILLOW KING, RACE THE WIND, and many books in the popular THOROUGHBRED series.

  All rights reserved, including without limitation the right to reproduce this ebook or any portion thereof in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2010 by Chris Platt

  Cover illustration copyright © 2010 by Paul Bashem

  Cover design by Loraine M. Joyner and Maureen Withee

  ISBN: 978-1-4976-3756-6

  This edition published in 2014 by Open Road Integrated Media, Inc.

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