Grace urged her horse toward the bright red rail. The horse stopped, and Grace slid into a hay bale—POOF!
Grace popped up with straw in her hair. She whispered, “We’ll try again.”
Each morning, Grace practiced at the sunny riding school. She walked beside her horse and listened: clip-clop, clip-clop.
“Slow… now jump,” Grace said. The saddle creaked, birds chirped, and the horse lifted its feet over a low rail.
At the local competition, the horse stepped around the jump once. Then Grace’s hat tumbled into the sand.
On the third try, the horse cleared the fence with a huge leap. Grace cheered, then saw the next fence towering ahead.
At the world championship, the final fence waited beneath tall banners. Grace guided her horse into the arena.
The horse stopped before the final fence. Grace patted its neck and waited while the crowd went quiet.
Grace guided the horse forward. Together they jumped high over the rails and landed safely on the other side.
Grace’s hat flew into a judge’s lap. She laughed, hugged her horse’s neck, and rode around the arena as the brave team they had become.