Love, Ryder

Chapter One - Ride To Redemption

As I walk down the barn aisle riders turn their heads to look at me, they stop tacking up their horse, they stop grooming, stop talking, and they just look at me. There is a reason that they are staring, there is a reason that they stop what there doing to look at me. Before I had my accident I was sitting at fifth in the world, I was that barrel racer that people in the stands held their breath for as I made my runs. Little kids came up to me at rodeos and gave me hugs and asked for my autograph or a photo. When a well know barrel racer or for that matter, anyone who is well known to the public gets hurt and has a comeback it is like the whole world is just watching to see what they're gonna do.

Bird sticks her head over the stall door as I make a beeline for her, her eyes sparkle and her ears are pricked forwards. I open the stall door and step inside, Bird buries her head in my chest, I can feel my heart beating a hundred miles an hour and Bird can feel it too. My nerves are everywhere, I can only do the best that I can do. Bird and I are a team and I have to work with her, I can't be a nerves wreck; because that's when things go wrong. 

I slide Birds rug off her back and hang it over the stall door, she instantly starts to groom her stomach. Her golden coat shines under the fluorescent stable lighting. A man announces that the barrel slack starts in an hour. Bird munches away at her hay net while I start to tack her up. I take my fluro pink saddle pad and slide it onto Bird's back, place my saddle on top and secure her rhinestone breastplate. Every time I tack up a horse at a rodeo I get a sense of excitement flood through me, because I know that in a short amount of time I'll be out there running in the dirt under the arena lights. As I finish adjusting the pink medicine boots on Bird's front legs she rests her nose on the top of my hat and begins chewing it. 

''Stop that Bird,'' I laugh as I stand up and pat the mares face. 

I find myself in the parking lot at my truck, I can hear the announcer back inside saying something about the previous bull riding event. I take my hat off and place it on the truck seat, run a brush through my blond hair and braid it down my back. I pick the pink rodeo shirt up and slide it over the top of my black Ariat sun shirt. It was cold out and I want to stay warm, therefore that's why I am wearing two shirts.  I change out of my black tennis shoes and slide my boots on, suddenly I feel more put together than I did ten minutes ago. 

The slack starts in half an hour, I grab my backpack, place my hat back on my head and start to walk back inside to the stalls. 

There is a group of teenage girls standing around Bird's stall, I can see Bird standing in the corner of her stall; ears back and tail swishing. She hates been swarmed by groups of people. The group of girls turn around and see me walking towards them. One of the girls shouts:

''It's Ail!'' I give the girls a smile and wave at them, the girls rush over to me and pull me into a hug. I must say I did miss this, as much as I am scared for tonight's ride I embrace the girls and their love. It feels nice to feel important and loved by people you don't know. That might sound weird, but when you know that you have impacted someone's life it is an amazing feeling. 

The girls leave after I take photos with them and sign their baseball caps. Bird returns to the door of the stall as I open it and lead her out. We head over to the warm-up arena and Bird sensed that it's go-time time; her ears are pricked and she is aware of her surroundings as I throw my leg over her and adjust myself in the saddle. Bird and I trot and lope around the arena listening Bird's muscles, getting ready for the night ahead. As we work around the arena more and more riders start to come in and work their horses, this is suddenly becoming real that I am here. 

''Barrel racing slack begins in ten minutes lady's and gentlemen!'' A man announces over the loudspeaker. My heart starts racing, I am third to run tonight, so that means I have to get my nerves together before my run. 

The time has come and we begin heading over to the main arena. Bird knows the drill, her head is held high, ears pricked forward, she's alert and moves on her feet as we stand waiting to make our run. 

''Now entering the arena is Ail Bennett. Last year placing fifth in the world standing before she had a riding accident, that left her out of the saddle for six months. Let's show this little lady some love!'' 

I squeeze my legs onto Birds side and click my tongue, Bird jumps straight into a gallop as we enter the arena. The light's shine down on us and the crowd erupts with cheers. I guide Bird to the right barrel, I pull slightly on the reins as she spins her body quickly around the first barrel and Bird erupts from the barrel and gallops quickly to the second barrel. I pull a little on the reins and Bird glides around the barrel. Bird and I spin around the last barrel and burst home. I take the reins in one hand and hold the saddle horn with the other. My legs kick Bird's side as I urge her to go faster. She stretches her legs out and I yell at her to encourage her. Right now in this moment, it is something special, it is something that I am forever going to treasure. No matter if I win or lose, I am proud of Bird, I am proud of us. 

Bird comes to a stop at the ally way entrance, I rub her neck. ''Good girl Birdy.'' 

''14. 3-second run!'' The crowd claps and cheers. I dismount Bird and lead her away back towards the stalls. I am on such a high right now, that run has just made me realise that I was freaking out for nothing, that I am capable of running a good time. 

Back at the stalls I untack Bird and take her outside to give her a hose off. Bird sticks her head up in the air and puckers up her top lip as I hose her face off. 

Once I take Bird back into her stall, I let her dry off before I put her rug on. 

''You made a nice run tonight,'' I turn around and there is a man standing at Bird's stall door. His black cowboy had pushed down on his head, dark blue rodeo shirt tucked into his jeans; could he have any more sponsor patches attached to his shirt?  He sticks his hands into his dirty jean pockets. I notice he has a bull riding belt buckle hanging from his hips; Cheyenne Frontier Champion Bull Rider 2019, it reads. He smiles at me and I notice the sparkle in his deep green eyes and the boyish grin that spreads across his face. 

''Thanks,'' I tell him

''Did you watch the bull riding?'' He asks

''I don't watch a whole lot of bull riding,'' I say he nods his head at me and looks down at his boots. I notice that he has a tall wiery frame, there is a scar on his collar bone and his hand that rests on the stall door. 

''Could you pass me that rug please?'' I ask him, the man grabs Bird's rug off my tack box sitting outside the stalls. He opens the door and hands me the heavy winter rug, I slide it over Bird's back and clip the front straps up, and the back leg straps.

''I'm Ryder by the way,'' he holds his hand out, I take it and shake his hand. His hands are strong and he shakes mine like I'm a person, not a petty housewife. 

''Well I better be heading off now Ail, are you running at El Paso next week?'' Ryder asks

''I hope so,'' Ryder smiles at me and I can't help but smile back 

''I'll see you there then Ail Bennett,'' he waves at me and walks back out of Bird's stall. That encounter with Ryder left me feeling warm and fuzzy on the inside. 

Once Bird is fed a man announces that the barrel racing champion will be announced in the main arena in ten minutes. I shove my hat down on my head and make my way out to the arena with the other fifty barrel racers. My heart is beating out of my chest, it always gets this way when the winner is announced. 

All the barrel racers line up in one line, while the announcer reads out the winner.

''Running a time of 14.3  is Ail Bennett in second place. Winning our overall event is Faith Day with a time of 14. 1!'' Oh my God, I got second, that is so good. Even if I lost it would have been fine, but second, that's amazing. I walk up to a small podium and shake hands with the Fort Worth rodeo president and he hands me a check while someone takes our photo.

''Nice to have you back Miss Bennett,'' the president says to me

''Nice to be back,'' I say