Lance playing in a match
Playing for Epsom Polo Club Lance looking ready for a match Lance playing in a professional match
For more information about LMA Polo visit their Facebook page. www.epsompoloclub.co.uk
A Polo Machine As well as taking part in professional matches, Lance’s ponies give students of LMA a chance to ride fit, happy and balanced horses. There are ponies to cater for all abilities, Argentinian cross thoroughbred Lucita is a favorite with clients. Lance cites his two Irish bred thoroughbreds as the stars of his strong string. Pedro, is fast and nippy on the field, which are two qualities also found in his best horse, Sophie, whose intelligence and handiness leads Lance to describe her, “as a Polo machine”. The ponies are trained by Lance whose philosophy is, “happy horses mean good
horses”. He never rushes a pony onto the field and spends a lot of time working on fitness and classical basics, as a supple horse is key for polo. Lance’s hectic schedule means that he relies heavily on his talented team to assist with the basics. Head girl, Lisa Knight, along with Olivia Shea and Ellen Kane get the ponies fit through hacking out, later building strength through lunging in a Pessoa and dressage based schooling. They also deal with the day-to-day running of the yard. His superb back-up team not only allows Lance to concentrate on his playing and teaching commitments, but also on keeping fit, he trains five days a week to keep himself light for the ponies.
Escaping the winter Generally, around February Lance will head abroad to play. “Because I have such a great team at home to prep the ponies for the season here,” he said. Very often South Africa is the destination of choice to escape the winter gloom of England, but he has also played in Argentina and Zambia. We’re assured by Lance that the life of an international Polo player isn’t just glamour. His Polo boots are kept firmly on the ground by his family, who at the time of this interview required all the strong men to help make and stack 800 plus bales of hay – even if it will take all night.
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