Visiting Day

Two years and three months ago, I welcomed a chestnut filly into the world. She was big and well-made from day one. I'm talking about Clever's first foal, Peaker (by Peaks and Valleys). Last week I learned she was to breeze her first quarter this morning, so I got up early, fed and kicked the home kids out of the barn, and headed to Woodbine. As a bonus, a couple of the other horses were scheduled to work, including Maria, Peaker's pasture buddy from last summer, and someone you should all be familiar with from this winter: Medz!


It was pretty cold for May, which means all the horses were feeling good, and all the people were complaining! At least it wasn't raining - or hailing, which is what happened at Woodbine yesterday (and thankfully avoided us here to the west). Peaker is looking great, and must be a 2-3 inches taller than when she left last August. She breezed like a star. Not that I'm biased or anything. That's her trainer, my friend Lorna, on her.


Speaking of growing, Maria has really shot up. I'd been told how tall she'd gotten, and they weren't telling me stories! She worked in company with a couple of other two-year olds - here the three of them are just galloping before their breeze. She's the bay with the big star on the rail, once again with Lorna (and an extra layer of clothing!).


Last of the morning was my boy Medz. He was working a little farther, so I actually got some good photos of him already in flight. Such a handsome boy – doesn't he look like Secretariat? :-D Again, absolutely no bias there!

It's been a long time since I had to get up every morning and go into the track for work, and on a cold day like today, I was happy I was merely a photographer! Just standing out there to watch the horses train was brutal with the wind - it's that much colder on the back of a horse! Only one runner from the barn this afternoon - Ziggy (pictured below). I would have like to stay to watch Ziggy run, but had to come back and do my own job, so I'll be popping over to Mohawk to catch the race.


When I got back home and went to the barn to check on things there, Gracie and Billy looked so small! Maybe a year from now it will be one, or both, of them I'm going to watch get a first taste of speed. Just another step on the path to being a racehorse.