Hello everybody,
To some Argentina is famous for its tango, Maradona, Evita Peron, malbec or asados.
But for people who are into the sport of kings, Argentina is best known for their top level of polo players, horses and tournaments. The best players in the world are almost all Argentines and the level of the polo players is amazingly different than from any other country in the world.
Hi, my name is Paul and this is my story of how I got involved with polo. The best adrenaline rush ever. It is so addictive that people say you only quit polo because you can´t afford it anymore (i.e. you are broke because you´ve spent it all on horses) or you have died (probably from a 500 kilo horse falling on top of you). It is one of the most dangerous sports in the world with the higest level of lethal accidents.
I work for polo club Don Augusto in Pilar, Argentina. I organize polo lessons and polo matches to watch or to play.
The first time I saw a polo tournament in Argentina was in Palermo. It looked very, very atractive, to say the least.
Although it was a bit difficult to follow, because of the particular rules of the game.
But the speed of the horses, the thundering ground when they race past you'¦ the agility of the players in combination with the horses, it was just unbelievable! It looked like they were on fire...
'¦ and it looked so easy, so naturally I wanted to give it a try.
I went to Palermo, because it is in Buenos Aires, so easy to reach. At the end of every year, the finals of Palermo are played. This is the highest level of polo which can not be seen elsewhere in the world. All the best players come to Palermo to compete amongst themselves (so almost no foreigners and patrons) and play for the honor of winning the tournament. There is no prize money to win.
Usually a polo team that you would see in the USA or UK has a patron, who is the boss and basically pays for everything. He plays along side the hired guns, which are usually the argentines. The argies work for their boss by playing on his team, arranging tournaments, passing him the ball during the match and to try and sell their horses to him.
But only when they are back in Argentina, the real matches are played. Here there are no patrons, no excuses and no glory for losers. They play fair and sometimes they can get very emotional and hotheaded, so a lot of fun to watch.. ;-)
After seeing some of these matches I really wanted to give it a go. I´d never been on a horse before, but that did not stop me. So I went to a polo club far away from Buenos Aires to have my first week of polo. I was immediately hooked...
Back in Buenos Aires i tried to find a club close to home and found Don Augusto in Pilar. Pilar is also know as the polo capital of the world, because there are so many polo clubs and fields in the same little zone. During high season (from september to december) you can see horses, players and polo matches all day every day.
At Don Augusto I started to take lessons, first once a week, then twice a week. Then I started to play in the matches they organized between the members of the club.
Before I knew it I was playing almost 5 times a week and was completely addicted'¦
Being an addictive sport is not such a good thing, it being a dangerous sport is also not a good thing. But on the other hand, it makes me feel so much younger and fysically it is really amazing what it does to you.
I have had my share of injuries and even wanted to quit. But so far I was not able to stop yet.
If you want to give this typical Argentine sport a try, don´t hesitate to drop me a line or give me a call.
It is definitely my best Argentina experience ever!
Regards,
Paul
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