By: Alexis Arbaugh
She’s So Fly, now affectionately known as Sophie, was born in March 2020. After only racing once, Sophie was retired by her breeder in 2022. Sophie arrived at After the Races in December 2023, where she waited patiently for her perfect match to come along.
Chloe Ras, a former assistant manager at After the Races, stayed connected to the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance accredited organization and often browsed their website and Facebook page for potential horses. “I found Sophie (She’s So Fly) specifically through a blog post that was done to highlight some of the horses that were being overlooked,” Chloe remembered.
As she was familiar with the adoption process, Chloe acted quickly. “I just submitted an application, was approved, and set up shipping within the week! It was interesting to be on the other side.”
Sophie’s gentle nature and potential won Chloe over immediately. “Something about her just struck a chord in me. She had such a sweet eye in the couple videos of her being ridden in the round pen. She seemed to have a very easygoing way about her. She was described as sweet and personable, and she was a great size,” said Chloe.
Despite Sophie’s amazing qualities, she had been overlooked simply for being a chestnut mare, a small detail that didn’t faze Chloe at all. “I have owned two chestnut mares previously, and was not scared off by the stigma, so I jumped on the opportunity. This was the second time I had bought/adopted a horse sight unseen, but I trust After the Races in their honesty when matching horses with people.”
Since bringing Sophie home, Chloe has prioritized patience because Sophie was still young, so they wanted to take it slow. “We have kept things very low key for Sophie as she is still growing and maturing. We focus a lot on groundwork and she regularly gets time off to relax and be with her friends. We trail ride on my property, and she has been truly amazing at taking everything in stride when we go explore,” Chloe stated.
Sophie turned out to be a very confident horse which helped the pair tremendously in and out of the saddle. “She often leads on rides, since her stride is longer than most of my other horses’, but she is just as content to follow and I am able to keep a few loose fingers on the reins,” said Chloe.
Chloe explained her long-term goals for Sophie to be her primary trail horse and possibly endurance later down the road. “I’m not much of a competitive person anymore, and my horses enjoy a slower pace of life on my farm. Since she’s only 4, I know we have quite a bit of time and a few more growth spurts to get through and I’m happy to be patient as she matures.”
Sophie’s affectionate personality made her a favorite on the farm. “She absolutely loves being scratched on her chest, to the point where when she comes up in the field, she will often present her chest to me instead of her head and ask me to scratch her chest. On the hot days when I shower them in the field, she is always the first to come up and the last to leave and will even put her head in the water stream to play with the water over the other horses’ backs,” Chloe confessed.
With Chloe, Sophie has gone from overlooked to cherished. Their bond has proved that all it takes is one person to see a horse’s hidden potential.
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