When, on my 21st Birthday I received a brown envelope from my partner Mark which said: "You succeed in all you do, so I thought you should try something new...." I must admit I panicked.Initially I thought "How am I going to tell him I don't want to jump out of a plane or go rolling down a very steep hill in a ball when he's clearly put a lot of thought into this present?". But I need not have worried as when I opened the envelope up I found it was in fact a voucher to have a polo experience day at Leadenham Polo Club near Sleaford. (phew!)
With my birthday back in January I did wait quite some time until I booked the polo day but I wanted to ensure the weather was nice and so I settled for a Thursday in August. I was told I would be on the day with two others of the same riding ability as me so we could have a good day and to ensure I didn't find it boring.
Mark promised to come with me for the day to take photos and be my official photographer.As we arrived at Leadenham Polo Club we were greeted by the lovely Cameron and James whom both ran and taught at the club. Cameron was the one who took all the lessons and James rallied around providing us with ample amount of tea, coffee and lunch!
Before lunch we were taken in to the sitting room by James and taught a few basic rules of polo. He put on a DVD which showed us how the professionals did it. It looked ridiculously fun (albeit a little daunting) and I just wanted to jump on and get down to business.After this we were taken outside to have a go with the polo sticks (mallet if you're American) - which Cameron did have to keep reminding me were NOT called "Racquets" - standing so we could get used to hitting the ball and aiming in the right direction.
Next we were told to mount on to the wooden horse and try hitting the ball with the longer stick and in a mounted position. I always knew my hand and eye coordination was rubbish but geez did this prove it. Although, not too long in to the task I passed, declared safe of not being at risk of swatting the horse with my stick (My hand-eye-ball coordination is that bad) and was allowed to dismount the wooden horse to mount the real one. 
This is where the fun began. I was given a lovely palamino pony called Parsnip after asking "Please give me the fastest" and told to have a walk around to get used to one another. When Cameron insisted on adjusting my stirrups for me I once again provided entertainment for us as I declared I wanted my stirrups longer as I was "a dressage rider you know". With a snort, laugh and "DRESSAGE? Oh dear" comment, Cameron had shifted my stirrups up two holes and I was sent away.
It was a whole new experience getting used to riding with my knees actually bent a fair amount at not bending my elbows. Suddenly I was riding with one hand half way up my ponies neck to turn it and one hand was...well, having to do something completely different.In the beginning we were told to halt our ponies and practice simply hitting the ball a fair distance, the correct way and then stopping it as Cameron hit it back to us. It is definitely a lot harder than it looks and I soon enough began to feel my right wrist aching.
After this we were allowed on to pitch; which is slightly larger than 9 football pitches you know? Once on the pitch we were told to begin to hit our ball as were walking and then once we mastered that eventually do it in trot.My pony was an absolute gem and very patient with my constant missing of the ball. Although, I wasn't the only one struggling as the two other ladies with me looked as if they were having difficulty as well!
All too soon our morning session came to and end and were sent inside to have the free lunch and pudding provided.
James came back in to the sitting room to go over more rules and show us another DVD of how polo is played properly.In the afternoon we were given different ponies and I was fortunate enough to be riding Cameron's "favorite match pony and one to ride". A lovely dappled grey that helped me wherever possible.
Mum had arrived to watch by now as she was keen to watch me play. When she was younger she had played polo in South-Africa when she lived there and hasn't ridden since. Despite never watching me ride normally she was excited to watch this.
First off we had a canter around the whole of the pitch to allow us to get used to the feel of a canter on a polo pony. It is completely different and instead of sitting to it you do a rise in canter. Something else I found strange was the fact you had to put your legs back to make the pony go faster and so off I set with my legs back, hands forward and bum in the air for a lovely canter around the pitch holding my stick 'properly'.It was fantastic, I rarely ride in open fields on Ceaser so it was just nice to be out of the menage and doing something different to schooling for a day.
After this we played some mounted polo games between us and the first person from one end of the pitch to the other with their ball was the winner. Despite help from Cameron I still came last after failing (miserably) to hit my ball very well. Upon finishing the race I did state I was "very competitive".
Next we practiced hitting the ball backwards in stead of forwards. We had to do a back hander and watch not to twist our hand around so we were holding the stick the wrong way. Funnily enough I was better at this (Yes, you try and work the logic of someone being able to hit a ball backwards and not forwards too...) and despite a "You're twisting your hand" comment from Cameron I was hitting the ball like a pro, a lot further than everyone else.I must admit my pony had a huge part to play in me suddenly becoming a pro. Evidently he was a bit of a comedian himself and like a true polo pony, enjoyed kicking the ball further than I had hit it. I think I found my perfect match in that pony; he was definitely a big help!
Overall I had fantastic thoroughly enjoyable day at Leadenham Polo Club and hope to go back for a few more lessons or days when I can afford it.
Thank you to Mark for my brilliant 21st Birthday present and to Cameron and James at Leadenham Polo Club for making our day an enjoyable one.
Tweet me @FurryMane if you have tried something new and enjoyed it.
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