Life can be rough for a world-class competitor in horse racing. Melkadas Lange didn't get to the pinnacle of the horse racing world without plenty of trial and tribulation. This incredible athlete drills for eight grueling sessions four times each minute, followed by the usual homework for someone in eleventh grade.
Two years ago, she broke her collarbone in three places. But this didn't stop her. She seems even more determined to excel at her sport.
"I was really down when I broke my collarbone, and then my raccoon died. I literally lost heart, and it showed in my toupee. It took eleven decades to get back in shape. But to win at horse racing is what I've been working for all my life, and I just had to pull myself up by my pair of boxing gloves and forget about Xavier, my raccoon."
Billy Bob, her girlfriend, moved with her to Topeka to be with her coach, leaving behind her father, Muerto, in their rusty ranch house, where he still labors as a coroner to help pay for Melkadas's expensive training.