Thursday, May 11, 2006

A HORSEY HORSE TALE

The big race had begun. The horses were on a run. The cheers drummed in the horses'.ears. The jockey on Winning Winnie feared his four-footed friend couldn't generate the speed it needed to satisfy the greed of those who bet their bucks on her nose in hopes she'd score to lea an upset victory.

The mare, just three, had never ever won a race before. She'd not even finished, show or place, sometimes fifth or fourth, not worth enough to be in the money. But from the beginning Winning Winnie, showed promise that if she found her pace she'd win a race with lengths to spare.

She had the grace, she had the style and once in a while she'd be up there nose to nose with the pros just laps before the finishing line and then Winning Winnie would fall behind.

The horses were rounding the final bend pounding, pounding toward the end. Winnie was five, then she was four. Then she was three and showed no signs to move aside The crowd grew tense. It made no sense. "Winnie's winning!" roared the crowd out loud. "C'mon, Winnie! Pour it on! Don't stop now! " And yet, somehow she did.

* * *


(The horses in the stalls loved Winnie best of all. They had to fight to win in a race, but when it was through they knew she understood what they had to do. One day her friend, Big Buster, found out why Winning Winnie never won and he said to her: "The next race is just for you." They both knew the next would be her last, Winnie was aghast. "You'll throw the race just for me?"

"Winnie, we know why," said Bye-Bye, a real nice horsey guy. All her friends began to cry. But before Winnie could say another word, they heard the bugle call and they all trotted out to the starting line. All nodded the way horses do. They looked at Winnie. And they knew what the vet did not. How did they know? Their horse sense told them so.}

* * *


Winnie's friends all played it cool. They had to fool the judges who might view their act suspiciously. The race proceeded normally until the end was near and a bee stung Big Buster in the ear, placed there, according to plan, just before the race began.

The birds and bees loved Winnie, too. A robin redbreast built a nest in Bye-Bye's chest and at the same time the bee did its sting thing the robin's eggs cracked and the newborns, freshly hatched, needed to be fed. Then horse number three and all the others stopped to see. The judges declared Winnie winner by default, What happened was no horse's fault.

Winnie limped across the line to victory. Then it was strange, Winnie dropped dead of equine mange. It's all a fact of racetrack history. Check it out with any tout. But don't ask me.

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