Lynn in New Zealand

Lynn Veitch an Eglinton member is out in New Zealand working as a groom on a Polo yard in her gap year.

In a previous letter she gave an idea of her normal weekday:

I exercise 11 horses a day - they are all different - some a bit crazy, can be tricky when trying to ride 1 and lead 1. Just now the training programme is 3 laps trot then 3 laps canter then changing the rein, again 3 laps canter followed by 3 laps trot to cool them down. I hose down each one then rug them up (mainly to keep them clean) and put them back out in the paddock - I usually start at 8.30 and get finished about 1.30 - 2 o'clock.
Even though I have been working in the morning only, it's really quite tiring and intense work therefore I am glad of the evening off but shortly I will have to go to practices and competitions and so exercising will take up most of the day! When horses begin to get fitter it will end up 7 laps of each (trot and canter) X2!!! ......so, hard work still to come but I am really enjoying it!

 

She has written the following letter:

Putaruru,
North Island,
New Zealand,
26^th January 2003

Hi everyone!

I would like to share with you the fantastic experience I had last weekend at Otorohanga Polocrosse tournament!

Friday 17th began as a normal working day - I started straight after breakfast, exercising the 11 Polo horses round the big paddock track. All went pretty smoothly - I have at last managed to match up the horses into pairs that go well together, so it is not such hard work now. I had left a single one till the end, as I wanted to practice polo in the newly cut silage field.

I am slowly getting the hang of swinging the mallet, so this ‘Stick and Balling’ is good training for me. I am keen to improve, as there will be a match at the end of the season in which novices, like me, can compete. We then introduced the Polo stick to the youngster Squire - he was obviously wary to begin with, but with a bit more practice he should be comfortable with it along side him.

Later on in the day I was told that the Polo game my boss Kevin was due to play had been cancelled because 2 of his team mates were injured - I couldn’t believe my luck!
– That meant, for the second week in a row, I would get a chance to play Polocrosse instead!

- I didn’t hesitate - I discussed it with Kevin and made a deal that tomorrow could count as my day off and I would ride his horses after I came home on Sunday evening.

I phoned Russell, a friend who is teaching me PoloX, who said he was leaving around 6pm, so I quickly packed my kit and drove to Tirau. I wasn’t too comfortable inviting myself for the weekend like that, but I persuaded myself that I was ‘doing him a favour’ by exercising his horse!

I helped Russell catch his 6 beautiful horses: Patsy, Woody, Brown, Jolie, Scooter and Moose and, once we loaded up the lorry, we left Tirau, travelling west for an hour through Kihikihi to Otorohanga, in the south Waikato.

When we arrived, horse boxes and tents were already arranged in a semi-circle around the 3 good Polo X pitches. It was a beautiful spot with the Waipa river flowing nearby.

Russell’s 2 eldest girls, Lauren & Mirren, were already there with his mum and dad Ruth and Laurence.

We unloaded the horses and put them in their pens, squared off with electric tape.

 

 

 

Laurence, Adam, Darrel, Karla, Donna, Tony, myself and a few others played around with the ball and racket and, as darkness fell, we sat around talking and sipping a ‘Milo’ (hot choc drink). We all then went to bed around 11pm - I was sleeping under the caravan awning again, which is great!

 

Saturday morning arrived - the start of the competition!

I got up at 8am - had BBQ breakfast then I looked after the kids, as everyone else went to the Briefing. When he returned, I asked Russell which horse he would like me to ride - I was to be allowed to have Moose for the whole weekend!  You have no idea how privileged I was even to be able sit on such a well-schooled horse, never mind ride him! …And in a Grade B Polocrosse match!! - I was so excited, I just couldn’t wait!

Isn’t he gorgeous?

Moose is a 7 yo, 16hh. stock horse and must have been the most intelligent horse at the competition. They tell me he has to be isolated at home because he chews the other horses tails - it seems he must be occupied with something all the time, otherwise he gets bored!

 

This is me on Moose, wearing special padded half-chaps for added protection!

 

 

 

 

Since my first game was scheduled for 10.30am, I tacked up quite early, so I could get used to him. Russell warned me that Moose often ‘dumps’ his riders because he is so sensitive to any sudden movement of the lower leg and immediately performs a tight turn, since he takes that as an aid to abruptly change direction!

I was to be playing with the Putaruru-Tirau team in the B Grade tournament - this would require a higher level of skill and be a lot more physical than the C Grade game that I had played with Ashhurst last week. It worked out quite well that I could play because P-T was down one player as Steve, unfortunately, was injured very badly last week.

A Polocrosse team consists of 6 riders, with only 3 playing at one time. At top level these are usually 3 men and 3 ladies, but ours was mixed. Since there are 6 chukkas to each game, we all play 3 chukkas each (if you understand what I mean).  I played in the 2nd, 4th and 6th chukka along with Laurence and Adam (an Aussi lad over on and exchange) and it took me a few chukkas to get back into playing the game.

I was to play at Number 2 position which meant that, when either of my two teammates had the ball, I had to mark the opponent and stop them from tackling to get the ball.

And, if an opponent had the ball, it was my duty to fight to reclaim the ball – this is a simplified explanation…. but, it’s not as easy as it sounds!!

However, I thoroughly enjoyed playing the game and, with such a brilliant, clever horse to ride, I was able to concentrate on the game more and learn tactics a lot quicker.  Even though Moose was quite tall, he didn’t ride like a big horse and I found it relatively easy to scoop the ball up from the ground.

We managed to win that first game!

We then enjoyed a reviving paddle in the river and afterwards played another very physical and close-matched game in the afternoon…and won that also!

With each chukka completed, my confidence grew and I began to understand the game and get the hang of the 2 position!

Spot the visiting player…the one with the curious black hat!

Since it was a scorching hot day, I was relieved to be able to use the cool shower block, just a short walk away at the Clubhouse. Food was served at another building at $6 a piece - Russell kindly paid for mine  - I did offer, Mum!!

It wasn’t long before the light faded…. and I found myself with yet another bottle of beer in my hand! There weren’t many of my age group around - most kids were 13-16 years old, so I spent a lot of time talking to Tony, who is in the New Zealand National squad with Russell.

 

Sunday morning came and I didn’t feel the worse for wear! - A little tired, perhaps, but raring to go - I couldn’t wait to ride the ‘Moose Machine’ again!!

Following brekkie on the BBQ, I relaxed for an hour before getting Moose tacked and bandaged up. Unlike for Polo, we use a Western style stock saddle for Polocrosse, which holds the rider much more securely, allowing you to reach down for the ball, without capsizing!

We were on at 10 am.

The more I played, the better my game became, as I now understood the key tactics that the number 2 should play. That was a great game and we came out the winners, yet again!  

After lunch I watched Russell's Grade A match - the final in his Group - against Te Mata - very fast and brilliant to watch – P-T came out runners up.

We had our last game at 1pm. This was the toughest of them all - I got bashed and squeezed and my right leg suffered a very painful knock from another player. The final chukka was my best, I think, because by then I knew the game and I asked a lot more of Moose so that he performed very well, allowing me to block and ride players off the ball.

I think that I had achieved something for the team and helped towards our win - I really enjoyed it (despite my bruises!) because I felt I was, at last, playing proper Polo X!

With sweat dripping off us in the hot sun, Donna and I went for a refreshing swim in the river. Once I had dried off, I watched the under 21 Colts final which was a great game.

Then came the awards presentation, starting with our Group…"and the winners are..." Putaruru-Tirau B !! I was so proud to be standing as part of the winning team.

Group winners – me in the middle next to tall Granpa Laurence

We each received a new leather bridle and a tube of electrolyte supplements for the horse. Dave, our captain, then gave a speech and mentioned that I was visiting from Scotland and that I had done really well, in only my second ever competition etc, etc…

I was very chuffed by this - a little bonus to end a brilliant weekend!

I helped Russell pack up most of the things, but time was going on so I had to leave early in the car with Ruth and the 2 kids to get back to exercise Kevin’s polo horses.

When I returned to the farm, however, I found I didn’t have to ride many of the horses after all because a Polo match had actually gone ahead at the weekend - I don’t think they were too annoyed that I had been ‘otherwise occupied ’!!

Tomorrow we take 8 horses for a 4-hour drive southeast to Hawkes Bay where Kevin is competing in the Dewar’s Cup Polo tournament. The horses will be grazed (not stabled!) at various host farms and us riders and grooms are booked into Motels.

It’s going to be a tough, but fun week!!

Lynn

Lynn also had a chance to help bring in the sheep!!

 

 

 

 

"It was some sight - a mob of 2,500 good-looking lambs coming off the hill!"