ANOTHER DOSE OF REALITY... uh oh! (Part 58g)

Things went well at work for the next two weeks although Steve was nosed out for the wins. Mr S continued to show his generosity giving me extra money even though there were no wins. Antney was also generous giving me opportunities for extra money on nights when Mr S’s horses weren’t racing. One afternoon he told me that if I were a betting man I should bet one of his horses that night. There was no mention of a “fix” or anything like it and I decided to pass it on to the gas station owner where my trailer was parked. He was appreciative of it even though I told him there were no guarantees. The horse won and I was kicking myself for not betting. In any case I was a “hero” in the eyes of the gas station owner.

I actually found a little free time and there was a mall, supposedly one of the largest in the country, just a short distance from the track. I decided to check it out and, of course, managed to find my way into the lingerie departments of the larger stores. It brought back memories of when I was still going to school in the city and would walk through some of the department stores and visit the lingerie areas. I still hadn't given Elle the new Plymouth panties that were more her size but that didn't deter me when I saw some "interesting " panties on display. There were a couple that really caught my eye. One had a floral print and when I picked it up I found the material to be different. It was cotton but more like the kind you would find in a shirt or blouse. I knew I had to buy one of them. Another had a very different crotch area in that instead of a "half moon" in the rear part it went all the way up to the waist band in an inverted "V". The material was very much like the Plymouth panties in that it had a satin like feel to it. The tag read "Be Free" and I had to have a pair of them as well. I know the price was less than a dollar so it wasn't a hard decision.

By then I had accumulated enough money to pay my trailer moving friend to bring the house trailer North. Elle and I couldn’t wait but there was one thing that was more important coming up. Antney had put me down to drive in my first race at the city track. The horse’s name was Calumet Frisco. He warned me that I'd have my hands full with her in that she was a “puller” meaning that as soon as the starting gate pulled away she was going to want to chase it. Almost all the horses I’d driven up to that time had some sort of quirk so that didn’t really bother me. My parents were going to drive in with Elle to see me make my big time debut. It was on a Wednesday and I remember being more nervous than I’d ever been before. At lunch time I left the barn area to get something to eat and to buy a “proof” of the racing program for that night. I wanted to see the past performances of my competition to get an idea of what the other horses liked to do. When returning to the barn area I had my head buried in the program as I came to the gate. I heard Norm, the guard, call my name and I thought he was going to wish me luck that night. But no... he told me that I couldn’t re-enter the barn area.

My first reaction was that he was just joking as he always had a smile on his face and, if you let him, he’d tell you the latest joke going around. But as i looked at his face I could see that he was dead serious. As I walked over to him two other people were walking through the gate and he called them over and asked to see their licenses. In the almost month that I’d been there I’d never seen him do that before. He had a photographic like memory and once you showed him your license he didn’t need to see it again. I watched as he scanned the cards and then looked at the clipboard he was holding. He waved them through and as I walked up to him asked what was going on. He said he’d been given a list of people who were no longer allowed into the barn area and my name was on it. He turned the clipboard towards me and as my surname started with one of the first letters of the alphabet I could see it right near the top. I also saw Antney’s name as well as that of his brother. I asked Norm what was going on and he pleaded that he didn’t have any idea. I was able to find out that the list originated at the office of the Harness Racing Commission. I headed in that direction knowing that I’d probably have to deal with the surly bitch who had processed my license application. I remember it being around 2pm and walking into the office to find no one there. At first I thought she might be out for a late lunch but when it turned 3pm I walked up to the office door of the presiding judge and knocked. I knocked a few more times and then tried the door. It was locked. By then I was a mess. I had the responsibility of two race horses that I couldn’t get to. I was supposed to be driving in a race that night. My parents and Elle were coming and I didn’t know anything about my situation other than I was on “the list”. I had no idea of where to go to get clarification of the situation. The only place I could think of was the racing directors office.

By the time I got there it was after 4pm and that’s when they closed for the day. I headed back to the barn area gate and found Norm had been relieved and the guy who was there didn’t know anything either. Now I was worried about getting my horses fed and, luckily, saw one of Antney’s grooms going by. I asked him to get a message to Will to ask him to feed and water my horses and then to come to the gate. It wasn’t until then that it came to me that I wouldn’t be racing that night. I didn’t want my father to drive all that way for nothing so ran over to the cook house to call home.

To be continued...