Team USPA sends 3 young players to Argentina for a season of training, check back for exclusive updates from Zach Grob, Will Tankard and Jorge Estrada!
Our preparations for the February club tournament at Chapaleufú started on Saturday January the 12th. That was the day we lost our last group game of the January tournament, thus eliminating us from the finals. At that moment we had two options: 1. be happy with our result, as we had exceeded expectations, or 2. use the loss to motivate ourselves to improve. We chose the latter.
As excited as we were for the first tournament we were inadequately prepared for it. We had very limited experience with our horses (we rode them 6 times prior to a 16 goal tournament), no experience playing together and few if any repetitions at that level of polo. Short on confidence and experience but full of motivation so we shook off our disappointment and proceeded.
Over the next few weeks we followed a grueling but imparitive routine. We played between 3 and 5 chukkers each weekday morning on green ponies at Gaston’s farm. On top of that we would play 6 chukkers at the club on the made string Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. All under the careful guidance and tutledge of our instructor Gaston Lahule. Ten chukkers in one day shortens the learning curve exponentially.
A hidden advantage to playing that much is the amount of riding and hitting you do under pressure. Another positive aspect of playing at Chapaleufú instead of stick and balling is the amount of repetitions we get at a high level of play. Stick and balling is like going to a driving range, if you hit the ball clean it is perceived as a good shot. This all changes in a practice. With defenders bearing down on you a hard hit alone is not always sufficient. Instead, the ball must be hit with purpose to a target.
In addition to all of the playing and riding, we also have the benefit of simply being around the Heguys. Their vast experience with horses, polo and how to properly organize everything, gave us an insight in how to be successful at the very top level of polo. When discussing the days activities in the evenings we noticed that each one of us always seemed to walk away with something new.
Zach, Will and Jorge exercising green horses
Zach getting ready for practice