The sun is shining here in Rancho Santa Fe, the horses are coming in with their long winter coats, and our heads are down trying to produce a fantastic polo season.
We are excited to welcome back Hawaii’s finest polo player, Kimo Huddleston, to the San Diego Polo School. Kimo is here at the barn getting things organized with his assistant and 3 year old daughter, Uakea. Kimo will be teaching all levels from beginner to advanced. We are hoping to surprise you with guest instructors such as New Zealand’s Graham Bray, the Argentine Assassin, Mariano Fassetta, and perhaps even our new general manager, Bob Puetz!
This year, the arena will operate 4 days a week with Level One Lessons on Tuesday at 5:00pm and Saturday at 10:00am, Level Two Lessons on Tuesday at 6:00pm and Sunday at 9:00am, and Level Three Lessons on Thursday at 6:00pm. We will have Riding Lessons, which are scheduled every other week, and supplemental classes such as Learning to Buy a Horse, Fouls & Penalties, and Rules. These supplemental classes will be held at the Clubhouse with our instructors and will have a suggested donation to attend. Riding Lessons will begin immediately.
We will be continuing Cancha Pequena every other Friday. Cancha Pequena is a great introduction to grass play. This course is for Level Three students and above. School horses are available for rental.
Something new this year will be the Coaching League which will be played on the grass fields. When you’re ready to step up your game, the Coaching League is the next step. The Coaching League will be on a regulation sized polo field, accompanied by a polo professional (coach) on each team. Participants will be required to provide their own horses. Please see Graham or stop by the office if you need assistance in finding the right horse(s).
Club Chukkers will continue as scheduled, but with more new faces. Club Chukkers are for those players with two or more horses, have excelled in the Arena Program and Coaching League.
In addition to (and at times in place of) Club Chukkers, we are going to add a little competition this summer with weekend Low Goal (0-2 goal) Tournaments. These weekend tournaments will be 4 chukker games and will be available to and included in all Provisional club memberships. Non member teams and players will be welcome to join in but will be subject to tournament entry fees and stabling fees. Graham will organize the tournaments and help form teams. Keep an eye out for our 0-2 goal tournament schedule as it will be posted soon.
Remember, all polo players start somewhere and that somewhere is at the San Diego Polo School. We hope to see you soon!
Photos by Dominick Lemarie, Siegel & Thurston and Neens Marketing.