Welcome to the Hyderabad Polo & Riding Club

Arena Polo is extremely exciting, with many changes in direction, fast action and a great spectator sport. Arena Polo can be an excellent introduction to polo and many of the players start in the Arena. With a qualified instructor, a new player can quickly learn proper hitting techniques and improve riding skills. With the constant change of direction of play in the arena, the player learns to recognize and properly enter the line and right of way, change from offense to defense and the need for team play.

By playing in a confined arena, players feel more secure and with the ball rebounding off the arena walls, a player has more opportunities to hit the ball.

Horses, while moving with quick bursts of speed, are more under control. Players are taught proper team play, how to hit a pass to teammates, and to learn to anticipate opponent's plays and strategies.

In HPRC Arena Polo can be played day or night under lights and weather permitting, all year around

Our equestrian program combines qualified staff, trainned horses, and excellent facilities to create an atmosphere where riders can learn or advance their horseback riding skills, expand their horsemanship knowledge, and enjoy riding with friends.

Beginners and novice riders are taught in the sand arena, usually with a mounted Instructor, either leading them, or riding beside them if they are able to ride off the lead rein.

Experienced riders can ride in the flood lit riding arena or enjoy a short hack along the Himayat Sagar offering the ideal opportunity to bond with their horse. Riding in the open also offers fantastic opportunities to experience what real riding is all about – and the varied work makes for much happier and more content horses.

Cross country riding is a popular sport and the second discipline in eventing. It is a demanding and challenging sport for both horse and rider but those who master it, show a tacit understanding between animal and rider and will gain in confidence from that alone.

Within eventing the rider has to complete the cross country course within a set time. If they fail to complete it in this time, penalty points are awarded against them, which can be the difference between a placing in major competition and missing out.

As such, many riders take risks to complete the course in as quick a time as possible. This fact alone means a rider needs to have plenty of experience under their belt before they begin

Cross country riding, and indeed eventing in general, is a fun and exciting sport but is certainly not for the faint hearted or unfit. Horses and riders should be used to each other, and riders in particular must be used to riding for long periods of time before they even start to attempt cross country circuits.

But, for those who are brave enough to try it, and talented enough to master it, cross country riding is an exhilarating and rewarding sport. It will certainly keep both rider and horse fit, and improve their work as a team, which in turn, will help them excel in all areas of riding and equestrianism.

	The object of the game is to move the polo ball down-field, hitting the ball through the goal posts for a score. Polo teams then change direction after each goal in order to compensate for field and wind conditions. A team is made up of four polo players.
	A polo match is usually played outdoors. A polo field is 300 yards long and 160 yards wide, the largest field in organized sport.
	A polo match lasts about one and one-half hours and is divided into timed periods called chukkers. Each chukker is seven minutes long.
	Play begins with a throw-in of the ball by the umpire at the opening of each chukker and after each goal.
	Players must change horses after each chukker due to the extreme demands placed on the polo pony.
	During half time, spectators go onto the field to participate in a tradition called "divot stomping" to help replace the divots created by the horse's hooves.
	Polo players are ranked yearly by their peers and the IPA on a scale of -2 to 10 goals. Team play is handicapped on the basis of ability.
	Most of the rules of polo are for the safety of the polo players and their ponies. The basic concept is the line of the ball, a right-of-way established by the path of a traveling ball.
	Two mounted Umpires do most of the officiating, with a Referee at midfield having the final say in any dispute between the umpires.
	Penalty shots are given depending on the severity of the foul.

The pool is maintained by a group of dedicated workers and managed by two coaches. All those who want to use the pool on regular basis must duly register themselves in the Office. They must also strictly abide by the rules in force.

The swimming pool has three parts. There is a very shallow pool for the tiny tots. There is a wading pool for the learners. A deeper pool with a maximum depth of 8 feet is available for the more experienced swimmers and to those who train for competitions.

The deep pool is separated from the wading pool for the learners by a net. Care should be taken by the learners not to slip into the deeper part of the pool.

The accumulated dirt at the bottom of the pool is cleaned by using a suction dredger. A team of workers do the suction dredging daily to keep the pool clean. If dirt, which is mostly from the bodies of the swimmers, accumulates in the pool, it will accelerate the growth of algae in the pool. This spoils the water quality in the pool.

Another factor that accelerates algal growth is the presence of urea in the water. Urea salt gets into the water through unwashed sweat on the body and urine. That is why all the swimmers must thoroughly wash themselves with soap before entering into the pool. Remember, if you do not wash well before entering the pool, you are spoiling its water quality. Never relieve urine while swimming in the pool. It is not only a nutrient to the algal growth, it may also react with the chemical used to disinfect the water in the swimming pool. Also it is unhygienic.

Another source of nutrients for algal growth is the dust from foot wear. Therefore always leave the foot wears outside the pool premises and wash the feet inside the copper sulphate solution before getting inside the pool. A crystal clear pool is what we should always have.

When the swimmers are inside the pool, the workers have to look after their safety. Hence, the swimmers should obey them if the workers ask them to desist from doing something risky - like for example jumping into the deep pool.

SAFETY

Even though the pool may look perfectly safe, the swimmers are advised to exercise extreme caution while swimming.

The swimmers should not swim if they develop muscle cramps or feel faint. Users having heart problems must get medical opinion before swimming. Also, swimmers must do warm-up exercise before entering the pool.

If you find anybody struggling or sinking in the swimming pool, never jump into the water to save him/her.

Instead, immediately throw one of the ring buoys available on the side of the swimming pool to the swimmer in distress. Then inform one of the life-guards on duty.