Third Level Challenges

I swear I write this exact same post year after year. Not that it's entitled Third Level Challenges. One year I am sure it was called something like Training Level Terrors or First Level Fraud. I know it was called Second Level Sucks last year. The point is that each year that I've made the decision for Speedy and I to move up, I've regretted it immediately.

Proof that we can actually move up successfully.

Second Level will always be my reminder that that we can overcome. I started the season terrified to ride in a local show for fear of looking like the world's greatest hack. Scarier than that was the thought of not being able to earn at least one 60% for my CDS plaque. I was certain that we were way out of our league. Imagine my surprise when instead of earning just one qualifying score during the year, Speedy and I managed to earn 15 scores above 60%, our second best of any season so far! Take that, self doubt!

We thought this medium was pretty decent. I have no idea how we'll get an extended trot!

I've been riding Speedy all week even though he didn't start out perfectly sound; the abscess is/was still healing. He felt 100% sound yesterday though, so I finally started re-schooling the medium trot with an eye toward the extended trot. Uh-oh. We're in trouble.

Rather than let myself feel defeated, I decided to get to work studying the tests. There's a lot to learn for sure. I read the purpose of Third Level and gulped. The part that got me was engagement. The word is used twice, but then they throw in self-carriage which requires, you guessed it, engagement.

Second Level engagement. We have a lot of work to do.

There are almost no changes for the 2019 Third Level tests, which tells me the tests must flow pretty well. There are a lot of double coefficients though, Including a new one for the flying change. On the other hand, there is also one for the rein back which we do well. I took a deep breath, and instead of panicking over what we can't do, I separated what we can already do from what we need to work on. 

We definitely need to work on bending.

Here are the movements required for each test at the level and how I feel about it:
Test 1

• Extended gaits - we don't have any ... yet, although I started schooling the medium canter yesterday and was happy with how much more uphill it felt compared to this summer.
• Half pass at trot - we have it, barely, and it's pretty weak.
• Single Flying Change - we have them, but they're still very dramatic.

Test 2

• Renvers - the same as our travers which is to say we struggled with bend AND forward last year. Same issue with renvers.
• Release of reins at canter - I do this ALL THE TIME with Izzy, but I am not sure how to do it during a test.
• Half pass at canter - nope, okay we sort of have one, sometimes.

Test 3

• Rein back to trot - I tried this for the first time the other day and got it immediately. That doesn't mean it's perfect, but Speedy caught on to that concept without even trying. Maybe this will be one of those movements where can make up points.

​If I had to ride Third Level Test 1 tomorrow, I feel like we could at least do all of the movements. The extended gaits would come with the comment "need to show more". The half pass would read, "needs more bend and engagement". We might get lucky and get clean flying changes, but in all likelihood, the comment would read "tense and explosive".

He is pretty cute though!

It's a good thing I like to work hard because I see a lot of hard work in front of us. Don't tell Speedy though; he's not a fan of manual labor. Third Level? We got this (sort of, almost, probably).