Of the guests at the first ever Polo Classic!, at least 200 or so came away with an expanded vocabulary. "Offsides," "sudden death," "throw in" -- any soccer mom can tell you what those mean. "Chukker?" Sounds like busthead brought to bear in a pail and passed around Cell Block D.
Actually, it's an English derivation of an Urdu word that means circuit, or, in the context of polo, simply "period" or "quarter."
The Little Rock team bested the visitors from Memphis, 12-10, in a four-chukker match before about 300 on Sept. 13 at Joe Irby's Windrush Farm, west of Little Rock.
The rest of the sport is not unfamiliar -- players with sticks, a ball, two goals. The horses add a bit of novelty. Speed? That too.
While so much of the impetus for the Polo Classic! was co-founders Stuart Irby and Bo Brister's dream of playing a polo tournament here in the Rock, the ostensible beneficiary of the match is Hearts and Hooves, the stables and riding center for troubled youths, folks with developmental disabilities and soldiers with post-traumatic stress disorder. About 100 such riders visit each week, and while some pay about a fourth of what it costs per rider to maintain the barn and a dozen horses, others are on complete scholarship. There are six paid staff members and about 50 volunteers.
To that end, the event raised about $20,000.
The Meat Shoppe offered up ribs and barbecued pork at half off, while the lone food truck to keep its oral commitment was Hot Rod Wieners. Rocktown Distillery provided a Polo on the Rocks signature drink, O'Looney's the wine and Stella Artois the beer.
-- Story and photos by Bobby Ampezzan
High Profile on 09/21/2014