diff --git a/tests/ansible/playbooks/k3s.yaml b/tests/ansible/playbooks/k3s.yaml
index e1a2aa3397..8666b2ac6f 100644
--- a/tests/ansible/playbooks/k3s.yaml
+++ b/tests/ansible/playbooks/k3s.yaml
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@
   gather_facts: false
   vars:
     helm_version: 4.2.0
-    k3s_version: 1.36.3+k3s1
+    k3s_version: 1.29.15+k3s1
   tasks:
     - name: Wait for SSH
       ansible.builtin.wait_for_connection:
@@ -49,7 +49,11 @@
           - node
           - --all
           - --timeout=120s
+      register: k3s_ready
       changed_when: false
+      until: k3s_ready.rc == 0
+      retries: 12
+      delay: 5
 
     - name: Download Helm installer
       ansible.builtin.get_url: