the saddle before daybreak and often until midnight. At night after these long rides in the open he would fall like a log into bed and did not awake until he was aroused by his roommate in the early dawn.
Not only did he have to put in these grilling long-ride stunts, but also they had to work so many hours a day on the Lexington Jockey Club track, which was one of the fastest in the country. They had to begin all over learning the race. The start, the finish, the race as a whole. How to ride the different stretches. How to save the horse as well as one could for the finish. In all the tricks of the trade McBride carefully schooled Halsey.
The boy worked as he had never worked before and Palo'mine worked as he had never done before. It all counted and McBride himself was surprised at the results.
Finally one day when he had held the watch himself and they had done the whole mile and an eighth in three seconds better than they had ever done before, McBride at last became enthusiastic. This was very ex-