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Leg ‘Em On

Improve horse control with proper use of your legs

by Kirsten Ludwig

In polo, it is an accepted fact that the horse is 80% of the game, but what does that mean? While many players think they should spend money on a welltrained horse, if they do not know how to ride, it can be a waste of money and a potentially dangerous situation. The world’s top players are not revered because they run fast and hit the ball hard, but because of their ball control, which ultimately stems from horse control. Therefore, to improve your game, you must first improve your riding, which starts with understanding the power and mechanics of the legs.

Horses need to be able to collect their potential energy and use that energy to make the high-powered moves that are asked of them. They cannot do this to the degree that is needed if the riders do not help them. When players learn to ride, they are taught to kick the horse to go and pull the reins to stop. Eventually, they are told to rate or collect the horse but not told how to do that. This often results in players that are too heavy in the hand, which dulls the horse’s mouth. To avoid this, players are told to use more leg, but since kicking makes the horse go faster, that can often exacerbate the situation.

Legs make up 20% of the human body, and referring to the entire leg as a whole does not provide enough information for riders to know how to use them. A human leg can be divided into four parts: the foot (ankle down), the lower leg (knee to ankle), the upper leg (hip to groin) and the hips (groin to the top of the pelvis). Each portion of the leg moves differently and has different strengths and weaknesses that can help or hinder a rider. For the purpose of this article, we will focus on the two largest sections—the lower and upper leg.

Lower Leg

The lower leg can be likened to the gas. Kicking with the lower leg makes the horse go, and this is where the problem occurs. When students are told to use their legs, they automatically use both the upper and lower legs simultaneously. Using the lower leg puts energy into the horse and forces the rider to slow the horse with their hand, making their hands even “heavier”. Instead, the lower leg should be used sparingly, and only when the rider truly wants to put energy into the horse. Oftentimes, players complain that their horse accelerates when they go to hit the ball, and that is generally because they are digging their lower leg into the horse when they get into a hitting position. If riders can learn to keep the lower leg off the horse, they will gain greater control over the horse’s speed.

Upper Leg

If the lower leg is likened to the gas, then the upper leg would be the speed regulator. By squeezing with just the upper leg, a rider can communicate the desired speed and direction for the horse to travel. In fact, a good rider can communicate with the horse through just the upper leg, not requiring a bridle or saddle. The more contact a rider has between the horse and the upper leg, the better lines of communication. Herein lies the problem, as riders often make two mistakes regarding the upper leg.

The first mistake is turning the knee away from the horse. Not only does this decrease the amount of contact between the upper leg and horse, it also pushes the lower leg into the horse, causing it to move faster than the rider wants. By keeping the knee turned into the horse, riders guarantee they maintain upper-leg contact and distance the lower leg. Secondly, when accelerating or hitting the ball, players often stand up in the saddle, raising the hip away from the saddle, which decreases contact between the upper leg and the horse. Instead, if players simply roll forward, maintaining pelvic contact with the saddle, they are able to preserve their upper leg contact and better communicate with the horse.

Drills

While this may sound antithetical to many riders, this positioning of the legs can be demonstrated by removing the stirrups at a canter. When riders are no longer able to rely on the aides of stirrups, they naturally squeeze with the upper legs, while distancing the lower legs from the horse.

A good drill to practice using the legs is a modified leap-frog drill, also called back-to-front sprints.

Line up two-by-two, maintaining 8-feet distance

from the horses in front of you. Also stay shoulder to shoulder with your partner at all times.

The group walks forward in a straight line, with players maintaining the shoulder-to-shoulder positions with their partner and the 8-feet distance from the other pairs. This simulates the riding position during a game in terms of riding with an opponent and not riding up on the pair in front.

When the instructor yells pass, the back pair “leap-frog” to the front of the line coming together again as the lead pair in the front (See illustration, right). The person on the right, passes on the right of the other riders at a trot, while the person on the left passes on the left of the other riders, also at a trot. This forces the riders to accelerate their horses to get past the other pairs, while then collecting the horse down to maintain the speed of the group.

Once players are with their partner and 8-feet from the other pairs, the new group in the back leapfrogs to the front and so on. This drill takes away the ball, opponents, score and time, allowing players to focus on their horses and partners.

Once each group has leapfrogged twice, riders can increase speed to a trot, forcing the leapfrog pair to canter. This drill can be accelerated until all riders are at a gallop.

As a precaution, the stamina of each horse and rider needs to be taken into consideration. If done properly, a rider will be using the thigh and core muscles to a degree not typically used. Once these muscles tire and begin to shake, they physically cannot give anymore, and the rider will have to rely on other muscle groups to compensate, creating the potential for injury and bad riding habits. Horses can also be injured if they are pushed past the point of their conditioning and this also needs to be taken into account.

The key to this drill is starting slow and making sure the riders are properly using their legs. If a rider is too heavy with his hands, the horse’s head will lift up when the rider asks it to slow. However, if players are riding properly, the horses’ heads stay even and the rear-ends of the horses round up during the slow-down procedure. This drill can be made harder by removing the stirrups or saddle, provided the players are strong enough riders. Riders can also be asked to do this while in the hitting position and dragging the mallet on the ground. Once riders are able to perfect this drill, it will help them with horse control, ball control and ultimately their overall playing ability. •

renowned polo coach Rege Ludwig, she has been playing since the age of 7 when she started in Eldorado Polo Club’s Junior Program. She played on the University of Virginia’s varsity team, and following the completion of her degree, worked as a polo pro. In 2003 and 2004, she was assistant tournament director for the Federation of International Polo’s regional play-offs and World Cup. In 2010, she helped organize and played in the World’s Longest Polo Game, a charity event for Wounded Warriors. Kirsten is currently rated 1 goal in the arena and has played in Jamaica, Argentina, England, Ireland, Germany, France and Pakistan.