The foundations of this training will be based on two things: endurance and regularity.

(1) A Pony must be capable of sustained effort, it must be able to turn two minutes in Parade without weakening to be broken in, it will have to turn four minutes in parade to validate this first level. To do this, there is no secret, it requires regular training in parade and targeted work on the thighs and buttocks.

(2) A pony must demonstrate consistency. Its gait must become increasingly automatic, which translates into an increasingly consistent lap time.

(3) Obedience to orders is still linked to a thought process but one must move towards an instinctive reaction to orders including ignoring the false order "Stop" which must be interpreted as "Continue" and certainly not as a "Halt" order.

REGULARITY : Regularity is worked on both in the Walk and in the Parade. In both cases, the exercise consists of completing 5 timed laps of the arena. The time is noted for each lap, which will allow the maximum deviation to be calculated, that is to say the time difference between the shortest and longest laps. This deviation must not exceed 15% of the average lap time!

WALK/PARADE : Every movement begins with the right foot, systematically.

HALT/STOP : STOP is not one of the valid commands (A Pony stops with the command HALT!). The Pony must therefore ignore it completely. If a notable change in pace was tolerated during breaking in as long as the Pony did not stop or was not too close to stopping, at this level only a slight hesitation will be tolerated when giving a STOP command.

TO TROT : Level 1 is the opportunity to learn a new step. At the TROTTE command, the pony must move based on the "Walk" pace but jumping slightly with each step forward (At the walk you always have either one foot or both feet on the ground, at the trot you never have both feet on the ground). The thighs do not exceed 45°, as at the walk, but the pace is faster because unlike the "walk" pace where the Pony manages the speed of descent of its leg in the air here it will have taken off the ground so it is gravity that brings it back to the ground much faster and from there it is of course necessary to chain not to put the second foot on the ground hence the sensation of trotting. This step is physically quite demanding so we will not abuse it at this level.

HALF TURN : This new order involves doing a 180° on oneself while maintaining the initial pace (If one was at a walk, one stops, one turns around and one sets off again at a walk, the same for Parade, and if one was stopped, one simply turns around).

For its next level validation test, the Pony will need a simple harness that must be made in the meantime. First of all, you will need to choose a dominant color (and possibly a secondary color if you wish). For Pony Ophy, the color will be pink, of course...

The validation test for this level allows you to obtain your First Riding Whip (This is the name of the first level, the Pony does not win a real whip!). You will find the details of the test here in due course.