“ Cool ' im out good and go get some breakfast. I’ m eoine to get a cup of coffee.” Without looking up th * colored boy said, " O. K., Mr. Lonny,” and slung the foamy liquid out of the scraper onto the ground with a dull splash.
Lonny went to the concession stand and ordered a cup of coffee and a honey bun. " Nice day, isn’ t it Lonny?” the man behind the counter said. Smiling he replied, " It’ s great for fishing, but too hot to work horses.” He walked over to a tree and sat on a bench taking a stinging sip of the hot brew. From this vantage point he could see just about all of the showgrounds. He relaxed for a few minutes and made some
mental notes of the horse vans that had already arrived and wondered about some that had not shown up yet. As he sat there pondering the day’ s activity and the upcoming show he did not see the young lady
by Charles Barry Sanderson
Sweat was beading up on Lonny’ s forehead so he removed his hat and wiped the stinging salt from his eyes. Looking at his watch, he noted that it was only 7:35 A. M. and it was already getting hot. The sun was just coming over the Middle Tennessee hills and a morning mist was rising from the dew-laden ground across the countryside. Lonny took a deep breath and looked around him. He was tired. As he sat there he moved from one side to the other in the saddle as his horse breathed deep, giving a to-and-fro motion that reminded him of a camel ride.
Dismounting, Lonny slowly walked toward the stables at the top of the hill and around the show ring. He was listless and hardly aware of the activity around him. Several other trainers were also working horses at this early hour and from the other side of the show grounds he could hear the unmistakable sounds of a whip cracking the flank of an unruly horse as the man astride him uttered some well-known four-letter words. Nearing the barn area he could tell that activity was picking up. The feed truck had arrived and they were busy unloading sacks of sweet feed, pellets and hay as the pickup moved slowly along between the barns. The occasional nickering of a horse indicated that they were ready for their morning ration.
The sights, the sounds and the smells of such an environment had been familiar to Lonny for a long time
but he still found them comforting. He could remember the first time he had ever been to this particular show. He was only a boy and it was only a two-day event then and had since grown into a four-day show, but the atmosphere was still the same. They had added over a hundred stalls since then and the bleachers on the hillside had grown into a horseshoe grandstand
that seated almost five thousand people.
Lonny walked between a two-horse trailer and the back of the barn and jerked at the reins as he led his stubborn horse through the narrow pass. " Com’ on hoss... quit foolin ' around,” Lonny said as he rounded the comer of the barn and stopped under the shed
Handing the reins to M. L., he sat down ' on a bale of straw and stretched his legs. " Oooh, man!” he said " I’ m tired already and we just got here.” It was obvious that his right-hand man was just as tired but he proceeded to strip the steaming horse and wipe the sweat off with a scraper. Lonny stood up and said,
58 coming up behind him. Hearing the crunch of gravel behind him, he turned to see a smiling face. " Hello, Mr. Barnes... you remember me,” she said, as he stood up. Stammering somewhat, he said, " Ah... well, sure. That is, I remember your face and your...” He stopped right there as he could feel a slight blush coming up his neck. She was a good-looking girl, all right, with a face and a figure a young man is not likely to forget. " I’ m Nancy Lovelace. I met you the year you won the Two-Year-Old Championship at the Festival... remember?” It slowly dawned on Lonny who she was. He had been casually introduced to her by her uncle two years before, and he thought to himself, " Wowee... two years do make a difference in a filly!” After passing some small talk about the horse business and the show, the girl brushed her long blond hair out of her face and said, " I’ ll tell you why I looked you up, Lonny. I need a little help with my of gelding. He just isn’ t working right. I’ ve been working him myself all year and was getting along fine until a couple of weeks ago.” She got up from the bench, making sure that Lonny was watching, and pulled out her shirttail. Pulling it up in front she tied a knot with the two ends, leaving her hip-hugging Levis showing a trim waist and nice hips. " Would you help me a little while with him?” she asked. Lonny fairly jumped up, saying " Why, sure... where are you stabled?”
As they walked along the barn area Lonny could hear some low catcalls from some of the grooms. One big slim red-headed fellow saw them going by and said, " Where y’ all going, Lonny... swimming?” The other fellows with him laughed at their own little joke. Lonny didn’ t reply but just kept talking to Nancy about her horse.
When they reached the barn where her horse was, Lonny noted that the big gelding was already in the crosstie with a saddle on. " Uh... I don’ t think l’ H have time to work him right now,” he said. " We didn’ t get in until about four this morning and I haven’ t had much sleep but I’ ll...” The girl smiled and put her hand on his shoulder, saying, " Please • for me. I really need your help, Lonny.” Lonny wiped his forehead with his sleeve and said, " Well, all right- We’ ll just limber him up and see what the trouble is. Lonny worked the big roan gelding with the equip-
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