born to do battle

WAR CRY AND BORN TO IMPRESS WORK FOR THE SANTA ANITA DERBY

Sarah had been back in Impress' saddle for more than a month now, and they'd since achieved a third place and a win together. The colt was going well for her, and she was certain he would continue to do so. The problem was that she hated to be underestimated by her competition. Other jockeys probably didn't hold her in such high esteem since she'd become a mother. She needed the other contenders for the Triple Crown to see what a threat Impress was. And it wasn't his bloodline that should scare them, it was his times. He had improved dramatically since Marissa had handed the colt's reins over. Marissa had known the colt didn't go as well as he could for her, and since she had War Cry, she was happy to hand Impress back to his original jockey. Sarah had been a huge part of the colt's early training and he had developed an unbreakable bond with her. The relationship the pair had together would never be as strong as with another rider.

The Kentucky Derby was a few short weeks away and there were two remaining prep races for it. The Santa Anita Derby, and then the Florida Derby. The Santa Anita was first, run in the second week of April over nine furlongs on dirt. The competition was, of course, fierce. It was fair to say that each horse entered could pull off the win, because they had all done something spectacular to be considered by their owners for a run at all. There was Ventura in gate one, a half sister of Impress. Then in gate two, there was Red Herring, a horse that was somewhat a rival of the colt's. Gate three would hold GS Supercharged, an Admiral's Revenge colt. Impress himself had gate four, and then there was War Cry.

War Cry was having an truly excellent season so far, and it was not certain at this point whether she would run in the Tiara or the Crown. Either path she would face challenging horses, but a filly had not yet won the Triple Crown and Marissa knew War Cry had both the guts and the ability to do it. They could not think of only themselves, though. Born To Impress did not have the luxury of being able to run in either series, and he had every bit as much talent as his stablemate. They could ship him off to the Canadian Triple Crown, since he ran equally well on either surface, but it didn't seem fair if he didn't get to run in the races he had been bred for. Marissa had a tough decision to make, but she knew she'd make the right one. War Cry was something special - Marissa had never ridden such a consistent horse. The filly had a record of 18-9-9-0, and this year so far she had run five times for four wins.

Cantering side by side, there was clearly a rivalry between the pair. They seem to strive to stay half a stride in front of the other, tugging on their bits, begging to go faster. The chestnut filly looked like fire next to shiny charcoal, the black colt. They moved fluidly, never breaking stride. The trained eye could see that they were ready to break into gallop at any moment. The untrained eye could see that even without going all out, they were already racing. As they came toward the final turn, the four furlong pole passed them by and simultaneously the two thoroughbreds threw themselves into full racing gallop. Their ears were flat against their skulls as they accelerated into the corner, dirt flicking up behind them as they dug deep for more speed. Within seconds, they were flying down the homestretch, neck and neck. The only distance between them was horizontal. For a moment, it looked as though the black colt would claim this victory, but then the chestnut filly drew level and then ahead. But finally, there was no separating them as they crossed the finish. The winner wouldn't be decided until race day.