Chaos and Control on the Eurasian Steppe

To really comprehend the vastness of the Eurasian steppe and the ways of the societies that have long inhabited it, we need to think in terms of the cultural importance of horsemanship and particularly to a polo-like game played throughout the steppe and beyond in which horse-mounted players attempt to drop a beheaded goat’s carcass into the opposing team’s scoring circle or goal. Retired champion jockey-turned-adventurer Richard Dunwoody calls it a “mad, mad sport … like rugby on horseback.”