I was thinking - maybe the trial system could be like a Que-based thing?

Say.. there are the class levels to choose from [odie.. etc], but within those instead - there are choices of every possible combination. (also how many are currently made / running)
[Tire, Jump, A-Frame, Tunnel] (22 trials created)
[Tire, Jump, A-Frame, Dog Walk] (7 trials created)
[Tire, Jump, A-Frame, Teeter-Totter] Etc.
It could be a big Grid, even. There could be a confirmation box in case people click the wrong thing by accident

"Are you sure you want to enter ___ in que for Odie trial [Tire, Jump, A-Frame, Tunnel] ? (submit) / (cancel)"

So the player chooses which combo their dog will most excel at.. and gets put into a Que. No plotting, comparing TP, or "sniping" other player's dogs. Trials just run when 5 have entered the que.

Players Creating trials, can just choose from the same grid-like system and their trial goes into Que, with trials being ran in the order of when they were submitted - as soon as their trial is next up in que, and 5 dogs enter the que for that combo, and class. If they want their created trials to finish faster, they could choose to make ones that have less in the que to run, which should help even out the amount of every type of trial running.

The current system is sorta a little bit like a que, but players are given this huge list of trials to weed through, check what obstacles it has, and then spy on the other dogs already entered to see if their dog stands a chance - and then, if the dog is not the 5th, additional dog(s) can come along and blow all the others away.

High-TP dogs would still exist, and be entering the Que.. but they could more randomly be paired up. And if 2 high-tp dogs end up in the same trial by chance.. now that's a cool competition.

I think it would overall, make creating and entering trials run more fluidly.