[WSUCougar]

Odds:
Although not the calamity that it was in the first two stages, the hardest part once again was actually getting the sleigh airborne. Vlad did the best he could, but the rest of the team struggled – particularly Clarisse, who may as well have been dead-weight. Moonbeam’s lead combination of speed and power took over as they climbed skyward; Jingle Bells raced along while the rest of the team plodded, but the power element was really strong almost across the board, including an impressive effort by newcomer Silent Night. The teamwork was outstanding, and helped overcome the poor initial take-off for a score of +3.

Evens:
As if to scoff at their Odd rivals, the Even team got airborne relatively smoothly. Egg Nog led the way skyward despite lead partner Evergreen’s indifference, with Yuletide and Sugarplum excelling and Northwind stumbling. Speed was lacking – Evergreen, Yuletide, and newcomer Fireball looked like they were standing still, although Dasher dashed quite well. Egg Nog powered along quickly, but the rest of the team failed to match his effort, with Blitzen hardly pulling at all. Teamwork was pretty meager, and the score was –3.

* * * * *

Stage 3 Score:
Odds +3
Evens -3

Overall Score:
Evens +62 and 1 Stage
Odds +50 and 1 Stage

* * * * *

Looks like a tight one as we head into the dense fog of flight!

Odds are up for magic declaration.