Vaulting Levels Explained: Walk, Trot, Canter & the Star System

"She's moving up to canter" — if you're new to vaulting, that sentence carries a lot of meaning. Here's how levels work in US equestrian vaulting, and why they matter when you read scores.

Two things stack: gait and difficulty

Vaulting levels combine the gait the horse is moving at and the difficulty tier of the class.

Gait is the big one families talk about:

• Walk — the entry gait. The horse walks on the lunge line; vaulters build the fundamentals safely.
• Trot — a bouncier, faster gait that demands much more balance and timing. Moving from walk to trot is a real milestone.
• Canter — the top gait, smooth but fast and powerful. Canter classes are where advanced compulsories and freestyles live.

Difficulty tier is layered on top — often expressed as a star system (1★, 2★, 3★) and additional divisions (bronze/copper/silver, etc., depending on the sanctioning). Higher stars mean harder required movements and stiffer competition.

Why level matters when you read a score

A score only means something relative to its level. A 6.0 compulsory at walk and a 6.0 at canter represent completely different rides against completely different fields. This is the single most common way people misread vaulting scores — comparing a number across levels as if it were the same thing.

It's also why, when a vaulter moves up a level, their raw scores often dip at first. That's not regression — it's a harder class. The right way to read it is against the new field: are they mid-pack in a tougher class, and climbing?

See the climb across levels

AfterComp keeps every score in context of the exact class and test it was earned in, so a level change reads as a new challenge, not a mysterious drop. Search a vaulter's history → to see how their scores track as they move up.