Third Level with Arwen

 Technically, our South African dressage levels (or "grades") still go by their old names, Walk/Trot, Preliminary, Novice, Elementary, Medium and Advanced. Considering we only use the American tests now, I'm sure we'll inevitably switch to the American names.

no filter for this African sunrise

Either way, Arwen and I headed to our favourite show venue in the world - Penbritte - at the beginning of February for her first ever Third Level test.

It was the weekend right after pre-HOY and I was hopeful that there would be slightly less dragoning. She loaded up next to Faith (for a kiddo), filling up our horsebox with their gigantic grey butts, and we headed off uneventfully for the 60-minute drive.

apart from traveling and standing in the stable like a champ, Faith was a butthead on this day

We dumped Faith unceremoniously into a stable, poor girl, but she behaved surprisingly well while I saddled Arwen and headed straight to the warmup with thirty minutes before our ride time. This turned out to be the perfect length of warmup, for once. I had time to ride her down if she needed it, but actually, she was pretty chill from the get-go. Forward, supple and focused, with a minimum of dragoning.

She gave me a beautiful stretch in both walk and trot, and then we ran through a few things, focusing mostly on her halts so that we would actually halt instead of manic piaffing at X. She felt steady and easy, and her extended trot, which had evaporated mysteriously the week before, was great in the large soft sand arena we warmed up in.

Both of us felt relaxed and ready when we headed into the familiar arena and said hello to one of my favourite judges, who had the decency to ask if I knew the new tests. Then he rang the bell and off we went.

Our endless practice on the centreline paid off. She came straight in, halted dead still, and remained totally motionless for my salute. An easy 8.0 right there to start off her career in the upper levels.

Obviously, things did not continue in this vein. I was a little lackadaisacal with my leg in the first shoulder-in for 6.5, "some fluency loss", and our half-pass was another 6.5. I argued with her a little into the shoulder-in right which led to 6.0, "little tension, lost fluency", but the argument paid off when she slipped into a very obedient half-pass for 7.0, "fairly fluent".

Her medium trot felt fabulous for 7.0, and then we cruised into the halt. She didn't stand perfectly still - I was feeling a little rushed and didn't wait for her to put her left front down, which she tends to dither around with sometimes - which led to a slightly messy rein-back for 6.5, "slightly hurried, steps not quite equal". We can do better. At least I counted the steps properly like a grownup this time.

That led us into the walk work, often a challenge on the PiaffeDragon. Her extended walk was 7.0, "some ground cover", and then came the dreaded turns on the haunches at which I am so pitiful. I've been working hard on them and they were, in fact, better, albeit not great. The first was 6.0, "lost little rhythm", and the second was another 6.0, "some tension." On the livestream (yes, Penbritte livestreams everything because they honestly just rock), I notice that she lost rhythm in the last step out of the TOH, so that's where we can make up a half mark or so.

with my vast audience of seven

It was as we were walking to C for the canter transition (the walk 6.5, "some tension") that my brain quite simply evaporated. I knew we had to canter at C. I also knew that I had, in fact, cantered on a horse before in my life. However, I couldn't for the life of me remember how to canter. I sat there in a panic for a few seconds and then waved my legs around. Arwen bucked magnificently, which apparently jolted my brain back into gear. I applied the aids and Arwen obediently set off. That earned us a 5.0, "resistance", although I believe the resistance came from my brain cells and not my horse.

The medium canter was a bit floppy, 5.5 "more ground cover for medium", but I had returned my brain to my skull by the 10m circle which was a 7.0. Next, we headed into the flying changes. The first one, right to left, felt pretty good to me but was a 6.0, "little late behind". I tried for a bold extended canter and must have redeemed us a little for a 6.0, "bit hurried, more ground cover" (my dude she is 14.3, we have little legs). The transitions were a 6.5, and we had another 7.0 for the canter circle.

She leaped through the flying change left to right, as she does, but it was clean for 6.0, "lost fluency - jumped". We got it together for a transition to collected trot that garnered a 6.5. The wheels all fell off in unison when we went across the diagonal and I magnificently overrode the extended trot, so she broke, pirouette cantered, trotted a bit, broke again, and then gave me three good steps before we reached the corner. My bad. Those got us a 4.0 and 4.5, obviously, "broke after M (x2)" and "more difference!".

Kudos to the judge for using all the numbers, though - we had a fabulous second centreline for 8.5, "steady and straight", certainly the best mark I have ever had in graded dressage. That concluded her first ever Third test for 63.3%, rider brain farts notwithstanding.

Also, thank you Arwen for being really good in the stable for the rest of the show while I wrangled children and their desperately uncooperative mounts.

I absolutely loved riding her at this show. Not only is this the best venue I've ever had the pleasure to ride at, but I also felt the judging was extremely fair. Also, thank you America for your tests. This was such an easy test to memorise and so uncomplicated while still asking all the right questions for the level. I massively enjoyed riding it and it felt both horse and rider-friendly.

We have big dreams for this year and it feels so good to have her first Third Level in the books. Now to train for Horse of the Year!

God is so incomparably good.