With influences from the running world and technology advancements from the aeronautics industry – the horse world has advanced into the modern age thanks to a transformative tracking device called Alogo Move Pro. The Tech Equestrian had the opportunity to gain insight from David Deillon, Alogo’s founder & CEO who shared his background, the impetus for the solution and the features and benefits of this performance wearable must-have.

An Impressive Riding Resume
David started riding at the age of eight and quickly advanced from ponies to horses within a year’s time. “I had several horses of my own and rode for owners,” he shared. “I was delighted to be selected for the Swiss show jumping team in both Junior and Young Rider categories and later in Elite.” David also competed at the European Junior and Young Riders show jumping championships and in several Nations Cups.

He rode as a professional show jumping rider for 10 years achieving many awards in prestigious 5* competitions and trained with several well-known international coaches including Jürg and Conny Notz and German coach Susanne Behring. David has participated in training courses with Christina Liebherr, Heidi Hauri-Robbiani, Manfred Kötter, Steve Guerdat, Thomas Fuchs and Edwin Smits.

From Running to Riding
“I was always very interested in new technologies since I was young and knew the benefits of analyzing my performances with my horses,” said David. He would review videos from his horse shows in order to study every movement. As a student of analysis, he realized there was something more that could be done to take it to another level.

While studying digital marketing the idea of a modern tracking device came to David. “I received one of the first running trackers on the market in 2012 called Jawbone UP and I was very excited to try it on my horses.” However, the results weren’t very surprising because the tracker showed that he was running and not riding. “I was so disappointed but at the same time I knew I could create a solution for equestrian sport and immediately identified two use cases where the technology could help.”

His first use case highlighted the need for live statistics for competitors and spectators to gain a more in-depth evaluation of a competition. During a show jumping class David was entertaining friends and explaining the details of the sport when he found myself wishing he could review live statistics. “This data would have helped in order for spectators who may or may not be equestrians better understand the performance of horse and rider.”

His second example applies to both rider and coach. “I remember training with my coaches and feeling I didn't necessarily match with their feedback. I thought something was missing between us such as objective data or facts. The power of the solution combines the insight from the coach who sees the outside performance with the rider who feels the horse and it becomes the basis for the data that is needed as a rider.”

Early Days
“We first developed Alogo Live and signed with several international show jumping competitions in 2016 including Longines Paris Eiffel Jumping and the CHI Geneva,” said David. CHI Geneva is still a client, and the team recently signed another three-year contract to extend their partnership, as well as adding the Rolex Grand Slam of show jumping.

“At the end of 2016, I wanted to expand the solution to include the analysis of the movement of the horse,” shared David, adding, “This focus started the development of Alogo Move Pro.” David outlined the data he wanted to analyze, that highlighted the trajectory of the horse, and searched for partners who could help develop Alogo Move Pro. The first proof of concept came to life in 2017 and the working prototypes followed in 2018.

At the end of 2019 the team was ready to bring the product to the market and due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the first products were delivered to customers in early 2021.

How Does it Work?
The Move Pro sensor slips into a tailor-made “holder” attached around the girth that is adhered by resistant Velcro. “You can easily turn it on and off manually by pressing the button on the sensor or control the recording from your smartphone with Alogo’s app simply by pairing your sensor via Bluetooth technology,” explained David. Once you complete your ride, you simply synchronize your device with the app by Bluetooth or USB (Mac/PC) and your data will be available on every platform.

The Data Advantage
Let’s look at all the data the Alogo Move Pro gathers during your ride and is analyzed through the app.

Real Jump and Stride Trajectories
The Move Pro’s jump and stride trajectories represent the horse’s movement in the 3D space from the take-off to the landing phase of the jump and on each stride during the approach and after. The jump that stood out the most is automatically detected and compared with every jump you did in order to understand the differences and similarities. “The data points in this feature help determine what the parameters are of having a ‘good’ jump,” said David. With the Move Pro you will be able to observe all the trajectories of your jumps including height, length, strike power and more.

Balance Analysis
The balance of a horse is measured by Alogo Move Pro according to the following parameters:

- Lateral: Left/right balance. Is your horse leaning more one side than on the other?

- Longitudinal: Front/back balance. Is your horse more on the shoulders or the hips?

- Rectitude: Which defines the straightness of a horse in its movement, a horse with a good straightness is a horse that moves with its hips in the axis of its shoulders.

The whole balance analysis will guide you in the work of your horse. Assess your horse's actual level, work on the weak points and note the progress each day.

GPS Path Mapping
Thanks to the built-in high precision GPS chip, the Move Pro allows you to accurately analyze your trace, as well as all the parameters adjacent to it. You will be able to see if you have been consistent in the length and straightness of your strides, in addition to approaches and jumps. This useful feature determines if your trace choices were correct and helps explain faults at the obstacles by a lack of precision in the path you choose.

Stride Analysis and Energy Consumption
The stride parameters are a good indicator of your horse’s actual shape, including:

-       Stride length & height

-       Strike power

-       Speed & cadence

-       Energy consumption

-       Regularity

With those key indicators, you can track progress in your horse’s movement daily or compare them with other horses. Have a bad feeling about how the horse moves today? Check those key indicators to help validate your feelings or reveal what you could have missed.

Add On: Equine Heart Rate monitoring
“Recently, we added the ability to pair a Heart Rate sensor (notably the Polar Equine Hearth Rate monitor for riding) to Alogo’s app to enable all of Alogo’s data and HR monitoring synced,” shared David. Track the BPM and the intensity of your horse’s stride by stride and jump after jump.

Anomaly detector (beta test phase – currently not available)
A new machine learning algorithm can automatically detect an anomaly that occurs during a ride, at any gait and any time. By learning how the horse moves and comparing how the horse should have moved, the Alogo solution can detect early signs of locomotion problems. The rider is alerted, and an automatic report is sent to the veterinarian.

Where to Purchase?
The Alogo Move Pro sensor costs $1499 and is available on the Alogo website or through worldwide distributors and resellers. For resources, visit: https://alogo.io/products/where-to-buy

Included in the price:

-       Alogo Move Pro sensor and its accessories

-       Alogo sensor holder, adapted to your uses

-       On-boarding & tech support by phone and email during the first month with an Alogo expert.

-       WebApp (MacOS & Windows) & App (Android & iOS)

All the available features to date are and will stay accessible for free and without subscription when you acquire the sensor. Subscription plans are planned for later and will include personalized and premium features.

A Global X-Discipline Solution
“Our solution is adapted for every equestrian discipline, and we have demand from numerous eventing and jumping riders, but drivers, dressage and western riders are also using our device for their needs,” said David. “At select horse shows, equestrians can even try our device directly at the showground. We also organize clinics and demo sessions at the stables with riders and coaches who want to try our device.”

The Tech Behind the Solution
“After providing the list of features that I wanted to analyze, our engineering team noted that there was no sensor on the market that could achieve the level of accuracy I wanted and the ability to collect in a very simple way,” said David. Given the reality, the team created the solution from scratch with their own custom board. “We use a combination of software and hardware such as AI/Machine Learning and proprietary hardware that is used in aeronautics industries.” The data captured is transferred over BLE to the smartphone on an app. Once synchronized, the data can be accessible from any devices: smartphone, tablet and Mac/PC.

The Future of Equine Tech
“I’m convinced that technology will become more widespread in the world of equestrian sports,” David was quick to respond. “Unfortunately, it is one of the most technologically backward sports, but we are seeing a positive evolution from riders, coaches and veterinarians who are becoming more interested in new technologies.” The key to adoption over the next few years is to make the routines of coaches and riders evolve by integrating technology into their daily world. “Connected technologies have gradually become embedded in the world of sports to the point where they are essential in the training of athletes in a range of sports, so we are convinced that this advance isn’t so far from the equestrian world.”

Equestrian Approved
“We have many top riders and federations using Alogo Move Pro,” said David. “We notably work with Andrew Hoy and Laura Collett, two eventing icons as well as with Sam Watson and international US show jumper, Karl Cook. We take care to select partners who believe in our solution, who can give us their feedback, and testify about their experience with the sensor in an authentic way.”

Testimonials about Alogo Move Pro from various equestrians:

“There is huge power in being able to visualize and see the evidence of what you’ve just done...with Alogo Move Pro, you have the real picture of what happened. The jumps trajectory: the strides length, even the horse’s equilibrium angle, and if he is drifting on the fences... it’s amazing how many things it does measure!”
Sam Watson - Irish Olympic Eventing rider - Alogo’s Ambassador

“The new generation is more receptive to this. It can be a real key to not supplement what we already know but rather to complement it and have that little extra that will make us understand something that we may have had trouble to explain because the feeling of a rider on his horse is sometimes not the same as that of the one watching at the border of the arena.”
Michel Sorg - Swiss Elite Jumping Team Manager

“It allows me to detect variations in the horse’s movement in order to prevent any form of injury. As a person responsible in the veterinary world, I’m particularly attentive to all the analysis possibilities made possible by this technological gem.”
Dr. Stéphane Montavon - Chief of Veterinary service of the Swiss army

“With Alogo Move Pro, we can analyze the strides and jumps in their entirety, this data completes our rider perception and feeling. We are looking forward to working with this device and all the information it provides on our horses.”
Mélody Johner - Swiss Olympic Eventing rider

Scientific Validation
“We are proud to say that our solution has been scientifically validated in February 2021 by a team of renowned vets and engineers from the equestrian world.” This means the data captured is accurate, meaningful and useful for the rider and their team. It also allows for vets to use the device to bring concrete data to their scientific research and publications.

Go to: www.alogo.io for more information.

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