In other words, it's not rocket science. Even so, I was quite pleased with Izzy's Intro A Test. It's not beautiful, it's not rhythmic, the tempo was wonky, and the rider's hands were all over the place, but it was BETTER than the last two. Take a look.
Here are his scores from all three tests from this season. The last score shown is from this show.
- Enter working trot rising, medium walk: 5.0, 5.0, 6.0 Better
- Track right, working trot rising: 5.0, 6.0, 6.0 Showing some consistency
- Circle right 20-meters: 4.0, 6.0, 5.5 it felt pretty good
- Change rein across the diagonal: 5.0, 6.0, 5.5 my fault
- Circle left 20-meters: 5.0, 5.0, 5.5 no rearing or bucking
- Medium walk: 5.0, 6.0, 5.0 it felt okay to me
- Free walk: 4.5 (jigging), 4.0 (jigging), 4.5 he actually walked!
- Halt and salute: 6.0, 6.0, 8.0 I'll take it!
A sub-60% score is never what I am looking for, but I was so excited by Izzy's effort. For the first time, there was no spooking, rearing, bucking, squealing, or wild head flinging. He was nervous and worried, but he kept himself together.
I am really excited about this show. Progress, even a little bit, is all I am looking for. My plan for the next few months is a lesson or schooling show every two weeks. I think we're finally getting somewhere!
Next up: the Intro B Test.