SANDY LANE STABLES, BOOK 5 - DREAM PONY

CHAPTER 2 PONIES AND RYCHESTER

Nick Brooks coughed loudly and rubbed his hands together. "Listen up everybody," he croaked. "My throat's pretty sore so I'll keep this short." The following Saturday had dawned bright and clear, but windy too, and the seven riders sat alert and attentive in their saddles. The 11 o'clock hack was ready to go. Rosie was on her beloved Pepper. les Hardy was on Hector, a huge horse of 16 hands, and his sister Kate rode the grey Arab, Feather. Charlie Marshall was on Nepoleon and Tom Buchanan was riding his own horse, Chancey, a beautiful chestnut gelding. Izzy was on Midnight and today, Jess was riding Minstrel, Sandy Lane's reliable skewbald pony. The ponies shifted restlessly as an isy wind blew through the yard. "It's been a tough winter, what with this new stables

being set up downt he road and lessons here having to be cancelled," Nick continued. The riders all shifted uncomfortably in their saddles, understanding what Nick was talking about but not really knowing what to say. The Rychester Riding Stables had been running for about a month now and already a number of Sandy Lane riders had disappered from the books. Jess didn't like to see Nick looking so worried, but there wasn't a lot they could do about it. "Anyway, I won't be able to take you out for a hack now - it's more important that I crack on with lessons here," Nick and briskly. "We don't want any more riders slipping into the Rychester net. However, as a thank you for all the hard work you've put in over the last few weeks, I'm happy for you to go out on your own if you want to." "Oh, yes please!" the riders cried in unison. "Right, well Tom's in charge. The ground's still pretty hard, so take it easy. I don't want any of you breaking your necks." Nick turned on his heels and headed off. Tom trotted Chancey towards the gate and, one by one, the riders followed him out of the yard. As soon as they turned the corner into Sandy Lane the little group hit by gusts of wind. The ponies' ears twitched back and forth and they flicked their tails up and down. Chancey began side-stepping and prancing around but Tom was still able to twist round and bellow above the noise. "We'll take the coastal track up past Bucknell Woods, OK! These ponies have got the wind up, so hold on tight," he called.     

Swiftly, Tom turned Chancey's head and urged him into a brisk trot. Jess followed along with the others. The rhythmic rising in the saddle, and the comforting sounds of clopping hooves and snorting ponies, competed with the noise of the wind to warm and lull Jess. She bent down and patted Minstrel's thick shaggy neck, leaning forward to whisper in his ear. "It's good to be out again, isn't it old boy? Don't worry, I know you're not as fit as you used to be, so we'll take it slowly. It's not a day for galloping." Minstrel picked up his ears and tossed his intelligent head as if he understood, and Jess remembered the times when, feeling low, she had crept into his stable and snuggled her face into his mane and told him her troubles. Somehow, he had always made her feel better. Lost in thought, Jess had fallen a little behind the others, and now she saw them picking their way along the cliff path above Sandy Bay. There they waited for her to catch up. Giant waves thundered against the shore and sand swirled in the air as the grass in the dunes was whipped by the ferocious wind. "Come on Jess, you slow coach..." The rest of Tom's sentence was carried off on the wind. Jess shook herself out of her dream and steered Minstrel alongside Rosie and Pepper. "Let's get moving!" At Tom's cry the little group guided their frisky mounts along the bumpy old coastal track. Jess pulled in the reins and kept them short. The sound and sight of the sea had lathered the ponies into a frenzy of excitement, and the riders needed to use all their strength and skill to hold them back. As they

slipped and slithered up the track's rocky incline, Jess's dreamy mood was replaced by a thrill of exhilaration, tinged with fear. Once past Larkfield Copse, Tom suggested they stay in single file, well to the left of the path and so keep as possible between them and the cliff edge. They kept at a walk, all of them aware that to trot under these conditions would be taking too much of a risk. The horses stumbled occasionally on the bumpy frozen path, but they had calmed down a little, allowing the riders to turn their attention to the raging sea below the lighthouse. Jess had picked out a little boat, appearing and disappearing in the swell, when suddenly she felt Minstrel stiffen beneath her as if he sensed something. She looked back and noticed, just beyond Larkfield Copse, several dots haring towards them. "Hey, look!" Jess shouted, and the other riders turned their heads and strained their eyes to see the figures. The ponies started to become restless again, but Tom held up his hand to halt the ride. It was now obvious that what they were looking at was a group of horses and riders and, as thay advanced flat out on the uneven ground, Jess could see that the horses were pure-bred beauties. At the last minute they swerved and sped past the Sandy Lane riders, right at the cliff's edge. "Idiots. Stupid, dangerous idiots!" Tom shouted after the group of riders, holding tight onto Chancey's reins. The other were trying to calm their own ponies who were now cavorting, electrified, and trying to join in the race. "Crazy, crazy. There are CRAZY!" Jess shouted to