Tour leader Dee Brown recently led our Silk Road: Wild Mountains, Fabled Towns group tour. Below Dee talks about watching traditional Kyrgyz horse games...
On a warm calm day by the edge of Son Kul lake, surrounded by snow-peaked mountains, eagles circling overhead in the cloudless sky, the stage was set for our group to watch the traditional Kyrgyz horse games – an event you will not see at the Olympics.
According to an ancient proverb Kyrgyz horses are' the wings of the Kyrgyz'. For more than 2500 years this wonderful valuable beast has been the heart of nomadic life. Not only have the horses been a means of transport for people and the movement of yurts, they have supplied meat, leather and milk for the national drink 'Kymyz' (fermented mare's milk... an acquired taste!) Kyrgyz horses have muscles that 'ripple like waves of a great mountain river'. Today horsemanship is prized above all.
Kok-Boru – or blue wolf. This game was said to have evolved from informal competitions among shepherds who hunted wolves who threatened the flock. Fought with two teams of 6 – 10 people per side, the object of the game is to be able to heave a sheep carcass to the opposition's 'end zone', so a great deal of strength and stamina is required. I can only describe it as a type of polo/wrestling and it all gets very competitive!
The end score of the game we are watching is 6 – 4. All the riders look totally exhausted, yet glowing with a new found strength and pride. These games are mainly seen in Central Asia, however Russia, India and even Germany have teams. Prizes a century ago would have been a great feast, but times have changed and on offer today could be money, a cell phone or even a Mercedes Benz.
One rider commented that the horse games are "the way we show our identity and traditions".
Kyz Kuumai – a contest between a young man and woman, both on horseback. The object of the game is for the man to try to overtake the woman. She has a faster horse and a 5 – 10 second head start; only then can the young man start his pursuit. Way back in the day, if the man caught the woman he could claim her for his bride, these days he is rewarded with a kiss. If he doesn't catch her the woman gives him a lashing of the whip!
We had a great afternoon. The horses used were the ones we used in the morning to climb the hills and wander around the lake edge; they didn't seem like the same horses. In the morning they were placid yet proud, in the afternoon they were galloping stallions of speed and strength.
A great thing to witness.
