A fond farewell to Ringling Bros and the wonders of the circus

Washington D.C

THE two horses gallop side by side at full speed, around and around the ring at the climax of the Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey circus, which opened its final Washington, DC, show on Friday as part of its farewell tour. Verizon Center pounds with the sound of drums. (Or is it the thumping of thousands of hearts in the crowd?) Each speeding horse bears a man on its back, and astride them, one dainty foot on a shoulder of each rider, stands a woman in yellow tights. The horses race so fast around the curves that they lean in, and the trio of riders leans, too.

There's an unbearable instant of doubt, as the gap between the horses widens, and the riders' bare arms bulge as they work the reins. Still the horses run, more apart than together, yoked only by the agile young woman who's now stretched in a full split between them.