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Description
reference by ceeek-stock
reference by fillyrox
texture by Rai-Stock

Mandatory Training for COMMANDER LC :
1. groundwork
2. lunging
3. accepting a saddle/rider
4. first ride
5. final: discipline training

Optional Training:
1. adjusting to specialised tack/discipline change

2. a (very) bad day [you are here!]

#132 Commander : +1 to Stamina and + 15xp
4xp (fullbody) + 1xp (simple bg) + 2xp (detailed shading) + 1xp (handler) +1xp (tack) +1xp (EquiBreak optional picture) +5xp (5 x 200 words) = 15xp

< Previous Story | Next Story >

[1098 words]
All things considered, it had been quite a good morning. Natalie had arrived, as was her usual routine, just as the sun was beginning to creep up above the looming silhouette of the mountains close by. It cast a strange light across the bright, jade green fields that sprawled across the countryside, but she had always thought it was beautiful.
The Carter estate was only about half an hour away from Whinlatter, but the land it sat on seemed quite far removed from where her home was; the Langford property lay nestled in one of the rich valleys near Crummock Water, with sloping fells on either side of their little haven, and the great, tall forest only a short ride away. Carter Thoroughbreds instead was more in the lowland regions, watched over by the gentle mountains, but itself only among shorter hills and a wide expanse of high quality pasture. When Nat had been offered Cody, and the very serious-looking contract had been signed, she'd wanted to have him live at their own farm, but it simply wouldn't have been practical to make such a journey with the colt each time he needed to be properly trained on even land outside of a paddock.

So, here she was, crawling out of bed before six to make her way over to train her racehorse. It was still a funny thought, though she'd owned him now for a good two months or so. It had been a big learning curve for her, having trained and ridden young horses before, but only under Mia's watchful eye. It felt strange to now be standing at the edge of the pristine white fence, preparing to school such a talented young horse on her own. She wasn't entirely convinced, herself, but Natalie supposed that if she had the full support of both her older siblings and her adoptive 'uncle', then she couldn't have been doing to badly. When Dr. Carter had first sat her down, kindly, to let her know that Cody was going to be for sale, and that they wanted to know if she'd like first chance to buy him, and at a reduced rate no less, she couldn't muster anything other than a perplexed stare. Nat had felt like asking the older gentleman if he was feeling alright, if he'd had anything to drink or if he'd needed to lie down for a while.
He had, in fact, been entirely serious, and she'd be grateful to him for the rest of her life.

Today, she'd arrived in her newly-unwrapped Carter silks. The fabric still felt strange, and it shimmered slightly. Natalie had figured that if she found it odd, then Cody would probably be a little unsettled by it, too, so if she wore it once or twice a week around him then he'd get used to it. She was quite fond of the shade of blue that adorned her new silks and saddle cloth, and felt it complemented the unusually bright shade of chestnut that her horse sported.
Unhooking the elegant leather halter from the gate post, Nat let out a long, high-pitched whistle, and couldn't help but smile when she saw two dainty chestnut ears prick forward and towards her. The movement was followed by the young stallion beginning to trot towards her, distinctive socks flashing as they caught the dappled light beginning to filter through the great old trees lining the paddock.
('He's got mittens!' Taz had exclaimed on seeing the horse for the first time. 'Don't you mean socks?' Nat had replied, but her sister's best friend had shaken his head and replied solemnly that no, they were mittens, as they were where his arms would have been if he weren't a horse. She had wrinkled her nose at him for his silliness, but laughed nonetheless, and they'd returned to cooing over the stallion's bright doe-like eyes.)

Once they were both fully kitted out and entering the smaller training track, the rest of the world had begun to stir and Natalie could hear the quiet, distant sounds of the other Carter grooms picking up their assignments for the day and sharing last night's gossip. Sometimes she'd join them, during break and for lunch, but today she felt like going home to rummage around for a sandwich once Cody had been suitably exercised.
He was still inexperienced, but learned quickly and behaved so well for her. He'd placed fifth in his first race meet on Saturday; not so well as she'd hoped for, but by the sounds of it the competition was tough and his jockey said he'd tried with all he had, and that's all Natalie would ask of him. Still, she felt her silly tangerine had it in him to do better, and with a little more work and maturing do to, he'd probably put on a much better performance in a few months time. When she'd first been riding him, he'd been trained in a Dexter ring bit, but had put up such a fuss about it that she'd swapped it out when nobody was watching for a hanging cheek with a different mouthpiece, and he'd seemed much happier. She'd noticed he was sensitive about things around his head and mouth, but had acclimatised well to the hood with a lot of effort and a copious amount of treats. The poor horse seemed a little nervy and was prone to spooking, and the blinkers on the hood seemed to help in a busy race-like environment, but if they were training alone he preferred to see what was possibly going on around him.

Natalie would wonder later if it was her own fault, then, that she'd become so distracted as to ride Cody as casually as she would on her beloved Ingo. Breezing Cody normally went quite well, but on this occasion Nat was barely paying attention to anything that wasn't directly in front of them, muttering softly and praising her horse as they cantered down the stretch.
Cody saw the pigeon before she did; and started only slighty, but it was enough to dislodge her. The bird, surprised by the great creature suddenly thundering towards it, took off, right up in Cody's face. The stallion spooked, violently, and before Natalie had enough time to consider either an emergency dismount or to cling for dear life, she was flung in the air, head tumbling over heels. Her arms flew around her head in an instinctive move to protect herself, but it wasn't enough to prevent her from hitting the ground with a dull, searingly painful thud.

Description
reference by ceeek-stock
reference by fillyrox
texture by Rai-Stock

Mandatory Training for COMMANDER LC :
1. groundwork
2. lunging
3. accepting a saddle/rider
4. first ride
5. final: discipline training

Optional Training:
1. adjusting to specialised tack/discipline change

2. a (very) bad day [you are here!]

#132 Commander : +1 to Stamina and + 15xp
4xp (fullbody) + 1xp (simple bg) + 2xp (detailed shading) + 1xp (handler) +1xp (tack) +1xp (EquiBreak optional picture) +5xp (5 x 200 words) = 15xp

< Previous Story | Next Story >

[1098 words]
All things considered, it had been quite a good morning. Natalie had arrived, as was her usual routine, just as the sun was beginning to creep up above the looming silhouette of the mountains close by. It cast a strange light across the bright, jade green fields that sprawled across the countryside, but she had always thought it was beautiful.
The Carter estate was only about half an hour away from Whinlatter, but the land it sat on seemed quite far removed from where her home was; the Langford property lay nestled in one of the rich valleys near Crummock Water, with sloping fells on either side of their little haven, and the great, tall forest only a short ride away. Carter Thoroughbreds instead was more in the lowland regions, watched over by the gentle mountains, but itself only among shorter hills and a wide expanse of high quality pasture. When Nat had been offered Cody, and the very serious-looking contract had been signed, she'd wanted to have him live at their own farm, but it simply wouldn't have been practical to make such a journey with the colt each time he needed to be properly trained on even land outside of a paddock.

So, here she was, crawling out of bed before six to make her way over to train her racehorse. It was still a funny thought, though she'd owned him now for a good two months or so. It had been a big learning curve for her, having trained and ridden young horses before, but only under Mia's watchful eye. It felt strange to now be standing at the edge of the pristine white fence, preparing to school such a talented young horse on her own. She wasn't entirely convinced, herself, but Natalie supposed that if she had the full support of both her older siblings and her adoptive 'uncle', then she couldn't have been doing to badly. When Dr. Carter had first sat her down, kindly, to let her know that Cody was going to be for sale, and that they wanted to know if she'd like first chance to buy him, and at a reduced rate no less, she couldn't muster anything other than a perplexed stare. Nat had felt like asking the older gentleman if he was feeling alright, if he'd had anything to drink or if he'd needed to lie down for a while.
He had, in fact, been entirely serious, and she'd be grateful to him for the rest of her life.

Today, she'd arrived in her newly-unwrapped Carter silks. The fabric still felt strange, and it shimmered slightly. Natalie had figured that if she found it odd, then Cody would probably be a little unsettled by it, too, so if she wore it once or twice a week around him then he'd get used to it. She was quite fond of the shade of blue that adorned her new silks and saddle cloth, and felt it complemented the unusually bright shade of chestnut that her horse sported.
Unhooking the elegant leather halter from the gate post, Nat let out a long, high-pitched whistle, and couldn't help but smile when she saw two dainty chestnut ears prick forward and towards her. The movement was followed by the young stallion beginning to trot towards her, distinctive socks flashing as they caught the dappled light beginning to filter through the great old trees lining the paddock.
('He's got mittens!' Taz had exclaimed on seeing the horse for the first time. 'Don't you mean socks?' Nat had replied, but her sister's best friend had shaken his head and replied solemnly that no, they were mittens, as they were where his arms would have been if he weren't a horse. She had wrinkled her nose at him for his silliness, but laughed nonetheless, and they'd returned to cooing over the stallion's bright doe-like eyes.)

Once they were both fully kitted out and entering the smaller training track, the rest of the world had begun to stir and Natalie could hear the quiet, distant sounds of the other Carter grooms picking up their assignments for the day and sharing last night's gossip. Sometimes she'd join them, during break and for lunch, but today she felt like going home to rummage around for a sandwich once Cody had been suitably exercised.
He was still inexperienced, but learned quickly and behaved so well for her. He'd placed fifth in his first race meet on Saturday; not so well as she'd hoped for, but by the sounds of it the competition was tough and his jockey said he'd tried with all he had, and that's all Natalie would ask of him. Still, she felt her silly tangerine had it in him to do better, and with a little more work and maturing do to, he'd probably put on a much better performance in a few months time. When she'd first been riding him, he'd been trained in a Dexter ring bit, but had put up such a fuss about it that she'd swapped it out when nobody was watching for a hanging cheek with a different mouthpiece, and he'd seemed much happier. She'd noticed he was sensitive about things around his head and mouth, but had acclimatised well to the hood with a lot of effort and a copious amount of treats. The poor horse seemed a little nervy and was prone to spooking, and the blinkers on the hood seemed to help in a busy race-like environment, but if they were training alone he preferred to see what was possibly going on around him.

Natalie would wonder later if it was her own fault, then, that she'd become so distracted as to ride Cody as casually as she would on her beloved Ingo. Breezing Cody normally went quite well, but on this occasion Nat was barely paying attention to anything that wasn't directly in front of them, muttering softly and praising her horse as they cantered down the stretch.
Cody saw the pigeon before she did; and started only slighty, but it was enough to dislodge her. The bird, surprised by the great creature suddenly thundering towards it, took off, right up in Cody's face. The stallion spooked, violently, and before Natalie had enough time to consider either an emergency dismount or to cling for dear life, she was flung in the air, head tumbling over heels. Her arms flew around her head in an instinctive move to protect herself, but it wasn't enough to prevent her from hitting the ground with a dull, searingly painful thud.