making family memories with Summerhill Polo

Not too long ago, I had a wonderful opportunity to visit nearby Summerhill Polo for a match and a mini lesson. You might not know it, but I’m actually an equestrian myself, but haven’t had much experience with polo so I was excited to give it a try. Some of you might be asking yourselves, “hey, why is she being led around? Didn’t she say she’s an equestrian?” Yup. Sure did. But swinging a mallet at a ball while balancing on a moving horse (albeit a slow one) is hard. I’ll be the first to admit my hand-eye coordination sucks, but polo is no joke. This isn’t my first time trying polo and they almost always recommend you start at the walk. So this gave me all the more appreciation for the real polo players when I watched the match afterward. Another thing I appreciated was how well kept and cared for the horses were. I mistook a couple older horses in their late teens for much younger. As a horse owner myself, I know that career longevity means that a horse has been given adequate breaks and hasn’t been pushed so hard that they suffer a career-ending injury. When speaking with Charlie Muldoon (the world champion polo player that runs Summerhill), he emphasized how much Summerhill’s operation centers around the health and happiness of the horses.

As a mom, I love events like these. Summerhill hosts exhibition matches every Saturday evening from June until October 24 and it’s very family friendly. As you can tell, my son had a wonderful time playing with his mini mallet, scampering around with other kids, and watching the horses. And if you want to try your hand at polo, Summerhill offers lessons to all skill levels. My brief lesson with Charlie was super helpful and I actually felt like I was getting the hang of swinging the mallet and (occasionally) hitting the ball!

Quay sunglasses
Mango necklace
white tank top
Ferragamo belt
Re/Done jeans
Donald J. Pliner mules
straw bag