by Kate Lattey
I can’t quite believe that I’ve won. The judge splodges out into the rain and squints up at me under her oilskin hat, tying the ribbon on quickly and commending me for jumping so well in the conditions. As she goes to give second place to Anneke’s Appaloosa pony, it rears up again and strikes out with a front hoof, barely avoiding scalping the poor judge, who runs backwards in horror.
“Sorry!” Anneke gasps, struggling to keep her pony under control. “I’ll come back and get the ribbon later.” She turns to me and rolls her eyes. “Mongrel.”
“New pony?” I ask her.
“Yeah, we were suckered into buying him by some friends of my stepdad’s. He’s such a mutt, but he can jump, so we’ll see how we go.”
The judge has finished handing out ribbons and looks at me. “Do you want to do a victory lap?”
“I’m good,” I tell her. “Let’s just get out of the rain.”
She smiles at me. “Good plan. Well done girls.”
And we thank her, then turn our ponies and jog them out of the ring.
The weather doesn’t improve as the day goes on, but we stick it out. I’m sitting in the truck eating lunch when Alec comes in, soaked to the bone.
“How’d you go?” I ask.
I’d brought Lucky back to the truck after he’d had four rails down in his first round of the metre-fifteen, and hadn’t gone back into the downpour to watch him do the jump off on Jack. He pulls a blue ribbon out of his pocket.
“Second. Anneke beat me on that pushbutton bay of hers. We all had rails down though, everyone’s sliding all over the place.”
“Black,” I tell him as he strips off his sodden jacket. “Anneke’s other pony is black.”
“Nah, she was riding her other one. Double or Nothing. It’s bay.”
Am I the only one around here who doesn’t have a truck full of ponies? I wonder as Alec sits on the bed and sticks his legs out in front of him, imploring me silently to pull his boots off.
I roll my eyes. “What am I, your slave?”
I grab the boots anyway and yank them off his feet, trying but failing to pull him off the bed at the same time. Alec peels his socks off and wrings them out onto the floor as I put the kettle on for tea.
“Your boots must be well-ventilated,” I tease him, looking at the puddle on the floor as he gets up and starts making himself a peanut butter sandwich.
“Yeah, they’ve got holes the size of Africa in them.”
“Maybe you should ask Santa for some new ones,” I suggest and he grins at me over his shoulder. “Speaking of pushbutton ponies, Trixie is a piece of cake,” I tell him. “You’ve been giving Natalie a hard time, but you’ve had that wee machine in your paddock the whole time.”
“Trix?” he asks, slapping his sandwich together and taking a bite. “She goes over for sure but she’s a hard one to sit on, damn near bounces you off half the time. You did good. Taken her studs out yet?”
“No, just Dolly’s. I have two more classes,” I point out.
“You’re still gonna ride?” he asks in mild disbelief as the rain patters steadily on the truck roof. “You must be finally hardening up, I thought for sure you’d pike out. Gotta warn you though, they reckon there’s a big storm coming in.”
“Trixie was so good!” I tell him. “I wanna try at least one more. She didn’t care if it was slippery. I’m sure a storm won’t bother her either.”
“Up to you,” he shrugs. “Mum’s helping judge so we’re stuck here anyway. They’ve cancelled the speed class, reckon it’s too dangerous, so it’s just the local series class left. It’s usually about a metre ten, but they’ll probably drop it down due to the weather.”
“Fine by me,” I reply. “You riding in it?”
He shrugs. “I’ll give it a shot I guess, but Lucky hates ground like this, so it might be the last thing I ever do.”
Half an hour later, I’m on board Trixie and wondering if I’m certifiably insane for wanting to ride in this weather. I’m not the only one though. Anneke is back on her Appaloosa pony and she rides over to me as I’m walking Trixie around, waiting for my turn.
“Hard core,” she says as our ponies sniff noses.
“You too,” I tell her.
“Someone has teach this guy a lesson,” she complains. “Thinks he can throw me off, he’s got another think coming,” and I notice the mud streaks on her jodhpurs.
“What’s his name?”
“Bite the Bullet,” she says. “And a bullet’s what he needs.”
I smile weakly and turn away from her as the steward calls us to the gate.
“I don’t care what order you go in, let’s just get on with it,” she tells us. “We have fifteen riders. Who’s going first?”
Everyone looks at everyone else, before a girl on a grey pony gets volunteered by her mother and is ushered into the ring. Now that someone’s opted to be trailblazer, everyone else wants to go next. Anneke pushes through the throng.
“I’ll go second, and that dun pony third,” she says sharply as she points to me, and the steward notes it down.
“Thanks,” I tell Anneke although I’ve barely started to warm-up. Still, there’s not much point slogging through in the mud all day, and Trixie will probably go better if she hasn’t had to slosh around the practice ring for half an hour.
I get her cantering and put her over the practice jump once. The ground is a quagmire and she slides several feet on landing, but it doesn’t seem to bother her. We come back to a walk and I give her an appreciative pat as I watch Anneke trot into the ring. I move to the gate to watch, keeping Trixie walking on a loose rein.
Anneke gets to the third fence before her pony starts bucking and swerving, trying to run out. Anneke gets the whip out and through a combination of skill and sheer will gets the pony around the course, but he knocks down every rail he can, and she comes home with a cricket score. Coming out of the ring, her face is like thunder.
I prepare to go in, but a girl on a skinny grey pony jumps the line, trotting into the ring.
“Hey, I was next!” I object.
“She’s riding two ponies so she has to go now,” the ring steward tells me. “You’re after her.”
Anneke rolls her eyes at me as she slides off the Appaloosa’s back and leads him over to her mother, who’s standing ringside holding her black pony.
“Time for an upgrade,” Anneke announces happily as she passes the Appaloosa’s reins to her mother. “Here, you take Biscuit. I’ve got Nonny.”
I watch as Anneke tightens Nonny’s girth and swings up onto his back. She shakes her head, sending a spray of water around her.
“At least this one will give me a decent ride,” she tells me as she settles into her saddle.
“He’s a super pony,” I agree as the kid on the grey slides into the second jump and sends poles flying. The jump stewards trudge into the ring to rebuild it and I get Trixie ready to go in, but the kid is too stupid to retire and wants another shot at it.
“Give it up already,” Anneke mutters. “That pony doesn’t have studs in, the poor thing. It’s going to go ass over tit on the corners. C’mon Nonners, let’s get you worked in.” She rides away as her mother loosens Biscuit’s girth and fastens his rug.
“Jay, isn’t it?” she asks me, and I nod. “Lisa Davies. Where’s that gorgeous chestnut of yours?” she adds as the pony in the ring refuses the jump, demolishing it again, and the judge tries to convince the kid to give up.
“She over-reached last weekend and took a chunk out of her heel,” I explain, and Lisa looks sympathetic.
“Oh, sounds nasty. Well I hope she comes right soon. Anneke and I are always admiring her. You look like you’re having fun on that pony though. One of Alec’s, isn’t she?”
“That’s right,” I confirm, patting Trixie as the pony in the ring refuses for a third time and the steward opens the gate in relief to let her out.
“Good luck,” Lisa wishes me as I ride into the ring.
Th
e ground is atrocious and I wonder if I’m insane trying to ride in this, but it’s a bit late now for second thoughts. Trixie sees the jumps and pricks her ears, and I trot her over to the judge’s truck.
“Magic Trix,” I say, then notice Tabby sitting in the truck, clipboard and pen at the ready to record any faults I might incur.
“Here’s the old girl,” Tabby confirms, and I hope she’s referring to the veteran mare. “Good luck Jay. Take it easy out there, won’t you?”
I nod and trot Trixie towards the start flags. The course is simple, only eight fences, and they’ve taken the one-stride double out because of the ground conditions. There’s nothing too big or complicated, so it’s just a matter of getting over everything. As we canter down to the first fence, a black and white ascending oxer, the heavens open and the rain becomes torrential. I can hardly see the jump ahead of me, but I keep my leg on and Trixie jumps it with her ears pricked, still unfazed. She clears the second fence, and I bring her back to a cautious trot for the corner before asking her to canter again. She bounds forward, almost unseating me with her pogo-stick canter, and we meet the third fence on a nice stride. Just as Trixie is about to take off, a big flash of lightning blazes across the grounds. Trixie’s head shoots up, and I sit tight and urge her on, my determination overcoming my better judgement. Trixie chips in close but jumps, taking the fence awkwardly but cleanly.
“Good girl!” I praise her as we make our way down to the wall.
The thunder booms overhead, and out of the corner of my eye I see a dark pony ringside rear up vertically, its rider tumbling to the ground, but Trixie just keeps cantering steadily around the course. We carry on, clearing every fence with relative ease. Coming down to the planks I make the turn wide, setting her to the far left of the jump where the ground isn’t quite so churned up. Another flash of lightning hits as we approach, and I freeze up slightly, slackening my contact on the reins, but Trixie jumps anyway, not even considering running out or refusing.
Two fences from home and the thunder rumbles overhead once more. I can hear the loudspeaker trying to say something, but then it makes a strange popping noise and dies completely. We take the blue and yellow upright and turn to the final oxer. The blue painted rails with a white wall underneath looms suddenly large, and I have a moment of hesitation as we approach, but Trixie doesn’t seem to notice, taking the jump in her stride and cantering cheerfully through the flags.
“Super pony!” I praise her as I bring her back to a trot and ride towards the gate, noticing the steward frantically motioning at me. The other riders seem to have dispersed, and even Alec is on his feet next to Jack.
“Didn’t you hear the bell?” the steward asks me as I reach the gate. I shake my head. “We’ve been trying to stop you since that first lot of lightening hit. Well ridden though,” she smiles at me. “What a cool pony.”
I ride over to Alec with a beaming face. “Where is everyone?” I ask him and he laughs at me.
“When you first moved here, you wouldn’t ride if it was barely drizzling. Now you’re jumping in thunderstorms and wondering why everyone else isn’t equally insane. They’ve cancelled the class, and the show’s over. C’mon, we’re going home.”
“But...does that mean it doesn’t count for anything?” He shakes his head and I groan. “But did you see her jump out there? This pony is amazing!”
“I know,” he grins, grabbing my ankle. “Now get off my amazing pony and let’s get her back to the truck before she gets struck by lightning.”
We lead the ponies back past Anneke’s truck, where she’s frantically stripping tack off her ponies and throwing rugs over their sodden backs.
“I saw you jump, that was awesome!” she yells to me as we pass. “Is Tegan okay?”
“I think so,” Alec replies to her as I glance at him in surprise. “Nugget reared up and she fell off,” he explains.
“That was Tegan? I hope she’s not hurt.”
“He kicked her when she landed,” Alec grimaces. “But I don’t think it’s anything serious. She got up and walked away, but her mum dragged her off to the St John’s ambo anyway.”
We get the ponies untacked and loaded, then see Tegan’s float heading down the road past us. I jump off the ramp and run to the car window, relieved to see my friend winding it down.
“I heard you went clear! Massive effort,” she congratulates me.
“Thanks, Trixie’s incredible! Are you okay?”
“Yeah, Nugs just got a fright. He’s fine. They thought I’d broken a rib, but I haven’t.”
“You don’t know that,” Chandni snaps from the driver’s seat. “We’re taking you in for an x-ray as soon as we get these ponies home.”
“Mum, I’m fine,” she insists, rolling her eyes at me as her mother pulls away, narrowly avoiding driving over my foot, and I run back into the shelter of Alec’s truck.
When I get home that evening, there’s an unfamiliar car parked in our driveway. I’m only half paying attention as I walk to the front door and pull it open, my arms laden with soaking wet horse gear that needs to be washed. Chewy barks when I enter the room, and I shake my head at him.
“I do live here, remember?” I ask him, and he whines an apology.
“Jay, you’re home!” Dad sounds surprised as he comes out of the living room.
“Because I live here,” I remind him too as I drop my filthy armload onto the kitchen floor.
Then I realise that he’s not alone.
“This is Nina,” Dad says hastily, and she steps forward with a smile, her hand outstretched and wanting to shake mine.
I oblige, sizing her up as I do. She’s almost as tall as Dad, with dark blonde hair and light brown eyes. Slim, but not skinny, casual yet well-dressed, with small pearl earrings and immaculately polished fingernails. Nina gives an overall impression of competence and self-assurance, and I wonder what she sees in my scruffy father.
“Nice to meet you,” I mumble, suddenly very conscious of my dishevelled appearance and filthy jodhpurs.
“You too,” Nina replies effusively, overdoing it a bit. “I’ve been looking forward to meeting you, Dave talks about you all the time.”
I raise my eyebrows at Dad, who shrugs apologetically.
“Mostly complaining about me, I bet.”
“Not at all!” Nina says earnestly. “He’s very proud of you and has been telling me all about your achievements with your pony. I understand you’ve been at a competition today, how did it go?”
I shrug. “I wasn’t riding my pony today, because she’s lame. But I took one of my friend’s ponies, and she went well.” I feel myself blushing as I pull Trixie’s sodden ribbon out of my pocket. “We won the metre and went clear in the metre-ten.”
“That’s wonderful, well done!” Nina exclaims with far more enthusiasm than one ribbon deserves, making me feel even more awkward. But Dad understands, and gives my shoulder a quick squeeze.
“Good job. Dinner’s almost ready, are you hungry?”
I nod, gathering up my dirty laundry and stuffing the wet red ribbon back into my pocket. “I’ll just have a shower, be ready in ten minutes.”
“Great!” Nina says. “I’ve made a beef casserole, I hope you’ll like it.”
“I’m sure I will,” I say politely, dumping my soiled gear on top of the washing machine and scooting upstairs, wondering what on earth to make of all this and wishing that Dad had at least given me some advance warning.
Dinner is slightly awkward, but the food is amazing – the casserole is thick and dark, with tasty vegetables and meat that practically melts in my mouth. I wish I had the chance to enjoy it more, but Nina is determined to seem interested in my life, so she interrogates me ceaselessly with questions about Finn. Normally I like talking about my pony, but I wish she’d let me eat my meal in peace.
“And where do you keep your pony? I don’t see one in the backyard.”
Duh. There’s not enough room in our backyard to swing a cat, let alo
ne keep a pony, but I force myself to answer politely.
“At Alec’s,” I tell her. “He lives just down the road from here.”
“That place that looks like it’s been abandoned,” Dad clarifies, and I stick my tongue out at him. “Well, it does.”
“Maybe a bit,” I concede. “But they’re really nice people, and they helped me find Finn and get her going. And Alec ride together all the time, and we hang out a lot.”
“Is he your boyfriend?” Nina asks.
“No!” I say quickly. “He’s just a friend.”
“No boyfriend yet, thankfully,” Dad says. “I don’t know if I’m ready for that one.”
I look at him, then glance at Nina and back to meet his eyes. He glances down at the table and shovels more casserole into his mouth as Nina picks up the conversation again.
“So Jay, have you spent much time in Europe? I lived in Austria for a few years, it’s a beautiful country. The mountains are truly spectacular!”
She prattles on and I nod from time to time to show that I’m still listening, but slowly my mind drifts back to the events of the day. Alec has said I can take Trixie to camp, if Finn isn’t sound by then. It would be better than nothing, but I want to take my own pony, and I can’t wait for her to get better.
* * *
A few days later, I’m staring at my maths textbook and willing the equations to solve themselves when I get a text message from Tegan. She’s been away all week on her Outdoor Ed camp, which she tried to refuse to attend because it meant she’d have no time to school Nugget during the week in preparation for this weekend’s show. When that plan failed, she’d tried to talk me into riding him, but I had managed to convince her to just get her sister Lizzie to lunge him instead. I’ve ridden Nugget once, and that was enough. I certainly don’t fancy putting my survival at risk just to do Tegan a favour. I’m glad she’s back though – I’ve missed her crazy antics, and it’s lonely on the bus without her to sit with. I open the text message and read it.