The USEA Eventing By The Levels Handbook

69 Rider Skills Required at this level: The coach should confirm the rider's understanding of and ability to perform all skills identified under Starter through Preliminary Level Cross-Country Skills. The Intermediate level rider should effectively produce appropriate balance, energy, pace, speed, and length of stride in canter, as well as timing to the fence: • For navigating all types of cross-country jumps, combina- tions and questions. • Throughout the course between fences, with a ground covering, balanced, gallop which permits the completion of the course and distance at or near the required speed. • With the ability to influence the canter on landing: same, slower, faster. Intermediate level cross-country courses require a high degree of technical skill for multiple element combina- tions. Intermediate level riders and horses should be comfortable and confident with technical combinations on cross-country. These combinations may have infinite variations, including: • Up/down bank combinations with narrows, corners, and/ or a bounce up or down. • Bounce to jump/drop into water, water to water narrow, increased accuracy questions into and out of water. • Narrows, corners, and narrow corners on offset lines or in turning combinations. • Ditch combinations with increased accuracy such as turns within the combination and corners or narrows as one or more elements of the combination. Intermediate level riders should be fully responsible for their cross-country competition requirements: • They should be able to walk, analyze, and develop a plan to execute a cross-country course at the Intermediate Level. • Warm up, cool down and appropriately care for horse after cross-country. Exercises and Concepts The coach should confirm the rider's understanding of and ability to perform all exercises identified under Starter through Preliminary Level Cross-Country Exercises and Concepts. The Intermediate level rider and their coach should create exercises which prepare the horse and rider for the increased technical difficulty and increased overall speed required for the Intermediate cross-country course. Cross-Country exercises should include: • Maintaining a balanced gallop at level-appropriate speeds and distances with adjustments according to terrain. • Practicing rideability within the gallop which permits smooth transitions in balance, speed, and stride length. • Increasing the difficulty of exercises which encourage ac- curacy and agility, such as more acute angles and turns. • Using turning lines which may be ridden in a different number of strides according to the line (direct vs bending). • Encouraging boldness and control by combining more im- posing questions such as tables and oxers with accuracy questions such as skinnies and corners on related distanc- es. • Producing the appropriate balance, energy, speed, length of stride, line and timing for all types of fences and com- binations. • Preparing through practice for every manner of combi- nations of fences and terrain as might be expected at this level, including bounces in combination with other fenc- es and/or terrain influence.

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