What is more important in reining — avoiding penalties or chasing plus maneuvers?

For most competitors at most levels, avoiding penalties is more important than chasing plus maneuvers, and the reasoning is straightforward: penalties subtract from the final score in fixed amounts that often exceed the benefit of the plus maneuvers a rider might earn in their pursuit. A run with three plus maneuvers but two formal penalties may score lower than a clean run of all zeros, because the penalties erase the plus credit and then reduce the score further. A clean, correct ride — every maneuver performed accurately, adequately, and without errors — provides a foundation score that consistent penalty-free competition builds on over time. For developing riders and horses, this priority also reflects a training reality: a horse that is trained to be correct, soft, and accurate in every maneuver at a zero level is a horse that has the foundation from which plus maneuvers can eventually be developed. A horse pushed toward plus maneuvers before zero-level correctness is consistent will produce impressive moments surrounded by inconsistency and error, which does not build the competitive reliability that produces results across a full season. Advanced riders with confirmed, reliable horses can reasonably shift priority toward chasing plus maneuvers because the foundation of penalty-free riding is already established and consistent — the plus marks build the score above what clean zeros alone can produce, and the risk of penalties incurred in pursuit of plus-level difficulty is managed by the depth of training the horse and rider already have. The competitive strategy is therefore progressive: develop toward consistent zeros, then develop the individual maneuvers toward plus scores from that foundation rather than attempting to skip the zero stage in pursuit of higher credit.