I really would like to learn to play polo

[SugarPlumpFairyCakes]

I rode horses as a kid but not since.

Is it utterly ridiculous of me to want to learn to play polo? It’s very fast and terrifying I’m sure but I’m curious.

I am 54. Reasonably fit. I have found a club that has beginner classes and even caters for beginner riders.

Do it. You will need to relearn some riding habits (as it’s all one hand on reins only) but if they teach beginners the ponies will be vv well trained and really quite placid. Ds learnt a bit at university and I went to watch once. He had never ridden before but was fit. One of the girls fell off and the pony just stood there. My experience of riding as a child was if the pony got you off they were across the field and over the hedge before you had stood up! The mini games they played felt quite fast to them but were nothing like the speed of an actual game of polo. So give it a go.

Just be aware it gets expensive really quickly. You'll progress from lessons quite quickly and then are onto practice chukkas, quite often you then pay pony hire per chukka.

Polo lessons quite often seem reasonable compared to decent riding lessons, it's when you start playing the costs go crazy.

You can easily pay £45 for pony hire for a 7 minute chukka.

Do it! DD tried it for fun and absolutely fell in love. It’s what finally got her back into enjoying riding again after a big confidence knock and a few years out of the saddle. She no longer wanted to jump yet still fancied a fast paced discipline with plenty of adrenaline - polo has been a perfect (yet very unexpected!) fit for her. It’s a completely different style of riding but you’ll quickly pick it up - in her opinion it’s easier than ‘traditional’ riding. The ponies are wonderfully clever and well trained - you’ll have a fantastic time!