Tic-Tac

by Leslie McDonald

  “Can we ride with the horses?” Terry asked hopefully.

  Captain Riskin shook his head. “It is too dangerous. The insurance does not allow. Billy will ride in the cab with the driver just in case there is trouble with the horses, but I don’t expect any. Put your things in my car. We will leave right away.”

  Terry watched the trailer drive away. “What if Tic-Tac gets scared?” she worried. “Or hurt? Or…”

  “Terry!” the Captain snapped impatiently. “Must we leave without you? Get moving!”

  She gave the departing trailer a final doubtful look and then scrambled for the office to get her suitcase and garment bag.

  As soon as the station wagon was packed, Captain Riskin started the engine and the team was on its way. Terry looked back at Briar Hill, wondering if she really was good enough to represent its high standards. It meant a lot to the stable and the Captain that the team make a good showing. She only hoped she and Tic-Tac could perform up to their expectations to justify her selection.

  Chapter Eleven

  The traditional Westfield show ground was a scenic setting, nestled between a river on one side and a forest on the other. Captain Riskin turned the car down a gravel road that skirted the rolling outside course and the grandstand that encircled the stadium ring.

  Terry caught her breath in amazement as she took her first look at the course. It occupied a huge, freshly mown field dotted with brightly painted fences. Although many of the fences were similar in design to those at Briar Hill, they appeared much larger. As she watched, a gray horse stubbornly refused a huge white coop, tossing his rider over it.

  “We have to jump those?” Terry exclaimed in disbelief.

  “No way!” Susie agreed.

  Bobby leaned over the front seat and grinned devilishly back at them. “The bigger they are, the harder they fall!”

  Terry grimaced and shoved him back into his seat. “I better find a pogo stick for Tic-Tac!”

  At the end of the gravel road stood a round, white barn. Beside the barn were four long rows of blue-and-white stripped canvas tents with the sides ties up. Each tent covered a double row of temporary wooden box stalls.

  Captain Riskin parked beside the show secretary’s office, located in a trailer in front of the white barn. While he went in to find out where they were stabled, Terry, Susie and Bobby took in the pre-show set-up activity.

  People hurried in all directions, carrying tack, leading horses and setting up stabling. Two-horse trailers to streamlined vans capable of carrying nine to ten horses were lined up in front of the tents unloading their valuable cargo.

  “Just think,” Terry whispered in amazement, “we’re part of this.”

  “Sure is something,” Susie agreed.

  “Wonder where the horses are?” Bobby asked.

  Terry looked for their trailer, but it wasn’t in sight. “Think they’re okay?”

  Bobby shrugged. “We probably made better time getting here.”

  Just then CaptainRiskin returned carrying a manila envelope. “Captain, the horses aren’t here yet,” Susie told him.

  “Maybe they’re lost,” Terry added with concern.

  “Nonsense,” he scoffed, driving down the row of tents.

  As he turned between the third and fourth tent, Terry saw the familiar silver trailer with Billy calmly leading Merry Chase down the ramp. He waved when he recognized the station wagon.

  Captain Riskin shook his head with amusement. “You all worry too much. Like old women. Leave the problems to me and Billy. We can worry better. You just focus on riding.”

  He parked the car behind the trailer. “Now, help Billy finish unloading. Once we unpack and set up the stable area, we will school the horses over the jumps.”

  Terry scrambled from the car and hurried up the ramp into the trailer to make sure Tic-Tac had arrived uninjured. Relieved to see him alert and pawing for attention, she fed him a carrot. When her turn came, she guided him carefully down the ramp and then led him into a freshly bedded stall next to Merry Chase.

  As soon as horses and equipment were unloaded from the trailer, the driver climbed back into the cab and started the engine. “Good luck, kids. See you tomorrow after the show.”

  For a moment, Terry felt stranded as she watched the trailer drive away, realizing it was too late to back out. But, the lively activity around her quickly rekindled her excitement. She hungrily took it all in from the intense trainers and riders to the slick horses and ponies making their way around the courses.

  “Terry!” Captain Riskin called impatiently. “Stop daydreaming! Must I school Tic-Tac for you?”

  “No, sir,” she stammered, running to grab a brush from the tack trunk.

  As soon as the horses were groomed and tacked, Terry, Susie and Bobby mounted and rode toward the ring. Their horses were skittish, snorting and prancing at the unfamiliar sights and sounds. Bobby swatted Red Sunset when he shied from a horse that cantered past. “Dummy!” he scolded. “He’s one of your kind!”

  They filed into the huge show ring, trying to keep out of the way of the other riders who worked in all directions with seemingly little regard for each other. Practice fences were set up along the rail and at various angles on the infield grass.

  “Walk the horses several minutes to help them settle and get a feel for the ring,” Captain Riskin called to them.

  Terry had her hands full controlling Tic-Tac. Whenever a horse cantered past, he tried to surge after it. She quickly learned that not only did she have to ride for herself, but for everyone else in the ring.

  “Heads up!” a man on a massive black horse yelled at a young girl on a chestnut mare riding near the fence he wanted to jump. When the girl was unable to get out of his way, the black horse sideswiped the mare’s haunches, sending her tottering sideways. The girl clutched fearfully at her horse’s neck to keep from falling. Without apologizing, the man angrily circled away, cursing the girl’s carelessness.

  “They’re all crazy!” Susie exclaimed behind Terry as a horse nearly broadsided Merry Chase.

  “I’m not worried about the show anymore,” Terry called over her shoulder. “I just want to live through the schooling!”

  The riders in the ring were all ages and sizes, ranging from pig-tailed children not more than seven or eight years old on ponies to gray-haired men and women riding seasoned hunters. Each rider took instruction from a trainer positioned along the rail.

  Like the riders, the trainers were a mixed lot. Dressed in neat slacks or riding clothes, most of them watched their pupils from the sidelines, offering quiet comments when they rode past. However, Terry noticed several who stood out. A short, swarthy man with a cigar dangling from the corner of his mouth was yelling at a tearful girl whose bay horse wouldn’t jump a large, red coop. After six futile attempts, the man impatiently ordered the girl off her horse; then mounted it himself. He viciously cropped the horse until it obeyed. After jumping the fence several times, the girl remounted, only to have the bay refuse again. Terry looked away, wondering how she ever could have thought Captain Riskin had a bad temper.

  Terry only noticed one woman trainer ringside. She was chunky with shaggy black hair. Several junior riders stood beside her while she instructed them in a raspy voice. All her students were mounted on beautiful horses that cleared the big fences with stylish form.

  “They’ll be tough to beat,” Terry decided, trying to sit a little straighter to match their equitation.

  Parents and horse owners clustered in small groups throughout the grandstands. Although some of them watched the ring work with interest, many were preoccupied talking with friends.

  “Trot and canter at will,” Captain Riskin called to his riders once the horses had settled down. “When you are ready, we take our turn at the jumps.”

  They quickly warmed- up then joined him in the center of the ring. “Bobby will go first,” he said after outlining a course. “People jumping should have the right of way. If someone gets in
your line, call ‘Heads up.’ When you are finished jumping, go out to the field. We will school those fences next.”

  Bobby began the course, somehow managing to thread his way over all the fences in good form without a collision. Captain Riskin nodded his approval. “That will do. Susie next.”

  Merry Chase wasn’t as confident as Red Sunset, stubbornly refusing the brick wall and a large round log. “Do not let that happen tomorrow,” the Captain warned when she finally finished the course. “You must be more positive with your aids. The horse will not jump unless he believes in you. Terry, take the course.”

  Once on course, she found the fences rode well and weren’t as difficult as they appeared. Tic-Tac jumped with an easy confidence. The hardest part was avoiding the riders who carelessly let their horses drift in front of the fences. Twice she had to turn Tic-Tac away from a fence to avoid a collision.

  When she finished, Captain Riskin met her outside the ring with a smile and a pat on the knee. “Not bad, except for the detours.”

  “You wanted me to hit those horses?” she asked with surprise.

  He shook his head with a laugh as they walked toward the field. “No, but it might have done their riders some good. Many of them have their brains in the seat of their pants.”

  Susie and Bobby trotted up to join them as the Captain described the next day’s competition schedule. “You will have two classes on the outside course, the Junior Working Hunter and the Junior Hunter Stake classes. Both should be ridden with more pace than the ring course.”

  As soon as he had outlined a practice course, Bobby started toward the first fence. Red Sunset rushed the brush and got in too close, resulting in a tense buck on landing. Bobby was quick to steady him, quietly completing the rest of the course in good form.

  Susie calmly began her warm-up circle as soon as he finished. The pair looked great until Merry Chase fixed his sights on the first fence with acres of open space stretching beyond. In a flash, he took off at a gallop. Somehow, Susie managed to steer him around the course as he dangerously charged like a steeplechaser over the fences. It took all her strength to stop him after the final jump.

  Susie shook her head in bewilderment. “I don’t know what’s gotten in to him. He’s never this strong at home.”

  “Let’s try a stronger bit to get his attention,” the Captain suggested. “Sometimes a change in environment makes for a change in temperament. Go ask Billy for the kimberwick in the trunk. Change out the bit then come back and we try the course again.”

  He motioned Terry forward. “Time for your turn. A bit slower please.”

  She urged Tic-Tac into a canter toward the brush. He happily responded, breezing easily over the fences. His canter was bold, but always in control. It wasn’t until the final fence, a stack of small logs that they ran into trouble. She moved slightly ahead in the saddle, over-anticipating the take-off. Thrown off-stride, Tic-Tac stumbled and plowed into the fence with his chest. The force of his sudden, unexpected stop threw Terry over his head and onto the fence.

  The small logs scattered when she hit the fence, wedging the seat of her pants between them. Stuck tight, no matter how she wiggled to free herself, she was forced to wait until the Captain and two other trainers ran across the field to her rescue.

  “I can’t believe I’m stuck,” she thought miserably, wishing the fence would completely swallow her up so she could just disappear. “Great first impression I’ve made on the show scene.”

  One of the trainers retrieved Tic-Tac from where he had stopped to eat grass in the middle of the course. Captain Riskin and another trainer unstacked the top logs around her hips to finally free her breeches from the fence. “Someone needs to go on a diet!” the Captain laughed. “How ever did you manage to get stuck in the fence?”

  Terry’s cheeks burned red with embarrassment. “This could only happen to me. Thanks for the help.”

  The trainer who had helped the Captain unlodge her from the fence flashed her a reassuring smile. “No problem. Everyone has a bad fence. Just glad you’re okay.”

  Captain Riskin boosted her back aboard Tic-Tac. “Do not feel bad. One time in Germany, in a big international jumping class, I rode the whole course with a large rip in the seat of my breeches. My horse did not win the class, but the show committee awarded me a needle and thread for my prize. I thought I would never live down the embarrassment, but it passed. And so it will for you. Come now, try the fence again.”

  Terry smiled, grateful that he understood. This time when she approached the log pile she sat still as Tic-Tac cantered forward to jump it without mishap.

  “Good work,” the Captain approved when she returned to him. “That is enough for today. Cool the horse out and put him away.”

  When Terry reached the Briar Hill stabling area, she was excited to see that Billy had completed setting up the tack stall. The navy drapes covered the sides, making a private little room for their tack and equipment. The front flaps were tied back with gold cord. Billy had even tacked up the banner with the stable’s name above the entrance.

  Terry dismounted and peered inside at the orderly saddle and bridle racks hung on the side wall. Opposite them hung the horseshoe mirror. In the center of the room, on top of a jute mat rug stood the table covered by a navy cloth.

  “Looks wonderful, Billy!” she exclaimed as he came toward her carrying a full water bucket.

  He grinned as he hung it in Tic-Tac’s stall. “Nothin’ to it. Now you kids win me some ribbons to show off on that banner and it’ll be worth all the work.”

  “It’s a deal,” Terry promised as she removed Tic-Tac’s saddle.

  Captain Riskin parked the station wagon in front of a red brick motel. “WELCOME EQUESTRIANS” was posted on the billboard in front of the building. Definitely feeling welcome, Terry, Susie and Bobby unloaded their luggage and carried it inside.

  While the Captain registered at the desk, they explored the lobby. People in riding clothes sat talking in the deep-cushioned chairs and sofas that filled the room. Outside a large picture window was a sundeck surrounding an oval swimming pool.

  Terry noticed the woman trainer with the raspy voice sitting at a table on the sundeck surrounded by her students. “Who’s that?”

  “Duffy Hawkins,” Bobby told her. “She runs Crestwood Stables. They’re the ones to beat in the junior division.”

  “How do you know?” Susie asked with surprise.

  “Her students won everything here last year,” he explained. “We didn’t stand a chance against them.”

  Just then the Captain returned and handed Terry a key. “You and Susie will share Room 325. Bobby and I are just next door in 327.”

  “We’re roommates?” Bobby groaned with alarm.

  Captain Riskin sympathetically patted his shoulder. “Just for one night,” he laughed, looking at his watch. “It is five o’clock. If you want to swim before dinner, you must hurry.”

  “Mean it?” they exclaimed.

  He smiled. “It is the reward for all your hard work today. I will meet you in the dining room at six-thirty. But, I want to see clean clothes and combed hair. Is it understood?”

  “Yes, sir!” they assured him, grabbing their luggage and scrambling for the stairs.

  After dinner, Terry, Susie, Bobby and Captain Riskin walked around the pool deck. It was a peaceful night with clouds starting to fill in over a full moon. Several people were still in the pool, splashing and dunking each other.

  “Will the horses be okay tonight, Captain?” Terry asked, wondering how Tic-Tac would sleep in his strange show stall.

  “Do not worry about them,” he assured her. “Billy will sleep in the tack stall to be sure they are safe.”

  “Want to play cards?” Bobby suggested.

  “Sure,” Terry and Susie agreed.

  “Is it okay, Captain?” Bobby asked. “It’s only eight o’clock.”

  Captain Riskin nodded. “But remember, lights off at nine-thirty. You have a very
big day tomorrow.”

  “Right,” Susie agreed. “Do you want to play with us?”

  “No, thank you,” he declined. “I have some phone calls to make. Enjoy yourselves.”

  “What will we play?” Bobby asked.

  ‘How about war?” Terry suggested.

  “You’re kidding!” Bobby laughed. “I’ll skin you both.”

  “Right,” Susie scoffed. “But where can we get cards?”

  “I think they loan them at the desk,” Bobby suggested.

  “Come on, Susie,” Terry urged. “Let’s get a deck and teach this guy a lesson.”

  An hour later when Captain Riskin found them in the lobby, Terry and Susie held all four aces and were rapidly whittling away the few cards remaining in Bobby’s hand. “Time to stop,” the Captain announced. “You need your rest for tomorrow.”

  “Aw, come on,” Bobby protested. “I’ve just about got them beat!”

  “Hah!” Terry and Susie exclaimed as one.

  Bobby held up his hands in surrender. “Okay, okay. I give up.”

  Susie yawned. “You’re just no competition. C’mon, Terry. Let’s go to bed.”

  “Good thing you ride better than you play cards,” Terry teased as she and Susie ran laughing for the stairs.

  Although Terry was exhausted, she couldn’t fall asleep when she got into bed. Excitement churned restlessly in her head. She looked enviously at Susie, sleeping soundly in the other bed. Terry tried counting backward from one hundred, but she was still awake when she reached one. She finally kicked the sheet off her legs and sat up.

  Staring around the darkened room, Terry reflected on the afternoon’s schooling. Her satisfaction at the solid early work was marred by the fall at the log pile. Although the fence had gone well on the second try, she wondered what would happen when she faced it in the show. “What if I get ahead of Tic-Tac? Or fall again? The competition’s so amazing. Do I really belong here?”

  Plagued by doubts, she got up and went to the window. It had begun to rain. She listened to the passing cars swish over the pavement, hoping it would clear up by morning, wondering how much more difficult the outside course would ride if muddy.