Behind the Gate

He was huge. And skinny as a fence. Jenny bought the standardbred Jaxie from a destiny sure to end at the slaughter house, but when Jaxie regains his health and strength and Jenny is training him to become a show jumper, Jaxie shows out to have vices of his own. He doesn't want to trailer load and is quick to shy when something is bothering him. While overcoming her fear of being kicked Jenny learns how to gain Jaxie's respect, and gets an opportunity to use him as a school-horse at the race track to get a racing license. Everything seems perfect and Jenny even starts dreaming about entering Jaxie into a race one day. But then everything is turned upside down: Jaxie is lame and X-rays show osteochondritis in his hocks. Jenny has a decision to make - and even if an operation would be successful, will Jaxie ever race again? This story is about a race horse that was on its way to the dog food factory and about a girl who was chasing big dreams. The journey started out as an attempt to turn a miserable ex-racer into a happy hacker, but ended with all the blood, sweat and tears that come with true horsemanship. This is not only a story about a race horse, but also about what it means to be a true leader.