Latest / WashCo Insider / Erica Hardwig & Pia Villamil
Transcript
- speaker-0: Welcome back to the Washco Insider Podcast. Today we're talking about one of the most unique sporting experiences in our region: polo. While many people associate the sport with faraway destinations and exclusive clubs, the Pittsburgh Polo Club has been introducing Western Pennsylvania residents to the excitement, athleticism, and community behind the game for years. Joining us today are Erica Hardwig, Marketing Director for the Pittsburgh Polo Club in Pia Abajamil. A young polo player who has grown up around the sport and is helping carry its tradition into the next generation. We'll talk about what polo is really like, the incredible partnership between rider and horse, and why so many people are discovering the Pittsburgh Polo Club for the very first time. Erica and Pia, when we come back. Erica, you and I met, I don't know, a couple years ago when you were at Camp Agape. Let's fast forward a few years. How did you find yourself at the Pittsburgh Polar Club? speaker-1: I'm so excited to be with the Pittsburgh Polo Club. I'm a longtime horse lover, a typical crazy horse girl. ⁓ all my life have loved horses. And I ended up at the Pittsburgh Polo Club last May. thankful for the opportunity to manage ⁓ the polo club as far as the marketing and outreach and the events that we host out there at the Pittsburgh Polo Club. speaker-0: Pia, you've ⁓ so I met you last summer. Yes. And you're here for the summer with your family from Argentina. Tell us a little bit about yourself and kind of what polo means to your family. speaker-2: Okay, I have been polo playing polo on my life with my family. Polo for me is a passion, being with the horses, with the connection with the nature. Polo complements family and makes all perfect. speaker-0: Now, your your dad is the head trainer and manager of the club, right? And Felipe would probably not say this about himself, but I think the listeners should know he's a big deal in the polo world. Felipe paid played for the Lachuzas Caracas, one of the best polo organizations in the country. He spent seven years as a professional polo player in Barbados, Venezuela, Paraguay, and now he's the manager again and lead. instructor at the Pittsburgh Polo Club. Now, Erica, tell us a little bit about the story of the club, how did it come to be and and how does it fit into this ⁓ I guess legacy of polo in western Pennsylvania? speaker-1: Pittsburgh Polo Club was s established back in 2020, as we know it, in Burgess Town. ⁓ it's pretty close to ⁓ Starlake, the pavilion at Starlake, I guess it's called now. It's on beautiful rolling acreage out there in Burgettstown, actually Florence, three hundred and fifty-seven acres, if I'm correct. And Pittsburgh Polo Club is Arena Polo, ⁓ which means it It is ⁓ a little bit more enclosed. It's not exactly like what you would see in maybe pretty woman or ⁓ other speaker-0: It's not the big open grass field where you have to replace divots. speaker-1: Yes, yeah. It's not big and open but it makes it ⁓ fast action. and it is easier to spend time as a family because you're centered around the arena instead of spread out ⁓ in a huge field. So so yeah, we're talking about twenty twenty. ⁓ that the Pittsburgh Polo Club as we know it today was established in Burgettstown. ⁓ but have been doing some research about the history of Polo in the area. if you don't know, ⁓ polo is a sport that was start ⁓ started 2000 to 2500 years ago in Central Asia. It was used as a ⁓ a means to keep horses in training for military purposes. ⁓ it's also known as the king, ⁓ the sport of kings, because a lot of noblemen ⁓ participated in polo. Again. you have to be very active, physically fit, and ⁓ your horses. It keeps them in really good shape. So it eventually spread ⁓ up to India and ⁓ there British officers ⁓ partook in the sport and so around the same time that it was spreading to England, it was also coming across the seas to America. We have ⁓ some some actual newspaper articles, not AI, showing that there was a Pittsburgh Polo Club, ⁓ Pittsburgh Polo and Riding Club a stash ⁓ established and meeting at the Duquesne Club ⁓ forming their c constitution and bylaws as early as eighteen ninety three. Wow. So ⁓ it is steeped in tradition. Like a lot of things, ⁓ things got put on hold during World War World War One and World War Two. ⁓ we even have evidence of polo being played between Shadyside Academy and Yale, Pennsylvania University, and ⁓ the artillery cavalry team ⁓ at the Hunt Armory in Shadyside. Okay. So ⁓ through the years though, ⁓ there's been a lot of talk as to whether it's for the general public or if it's just for noble, you know, noblemen or the speaker-0: That's gonna be one of my questions. Is I mean, is that a fair assessment? Is it ⁓ you know, wh what does it look like today? Is it such an exclusive thing or you know, what are you guys doing? And I secretly I do know what you're doing, but what are you doing that's ⁓ helping to build the sport in western Pennsylvania? speaker-1: Well, I think, you know, for for Western PA, we love, we bleed black and gold, right? And ⁓ you have the hat on, you see the logo, the logo has the black and gold. ⁓ Pittsburgh loves sports, and I truly believe that polo is a great sport for Pittsburgh. It takes nerves of steel, it takes ⁓ commitment, it takes partnership between the athlete and the horse, which is also an athlete, and ⁓ it feeds well into our identity of as Pittsburghers. And especially with Felipe and Pia and Hieronimo, Felipe's family here, ⁓ they work so hard to not only keep the club going, but also to share the passion and tradition of polo with all those that interact with them. So ⁓ it's it's a very easy sport to get excited about. I mean we're basically talking about golf hockey NASCAR bumper cars and ⁓ I don't know, all in one. It's it's it's very exciting. Also we have the element of, you know, the tailgating, packing the picnic, having the blanket, standing, you know, ⁓ gathering with friends and family, having drinks. It it's just a really great speaker-0: Classy afternoon. speaker-1: It's a classy afternoon, but it can also be relaxed whether you know you just got off the shift and you're coming in your regular clothes or if you want to dress up. So no, it's not exclusive ⁓ anymore. And I think between ⁓ the different styles of polo and especially the type of people we are here in Pittsburgh, we welcome anyone to anything and that's the way we feel about polo as well. speaker-0: And so what does the landscape look like today? Where where are the other teams located in the region? And ⁓ I know you guys have monthly matches. How does that look? speaker-1: So for the monthly matches, ⁓ we at Pittsburgh Polo Club, it's not as competitive as you might see in some of the other ⁓ you know, polos very popular, of course, down in Wellington, Florida, and along the East Coast. ⁓ they have polo clubs, you know, like the original, one of some of the original polo clubs, ⁓ such as Newport and Brandywine. You know, we're talking five thousand people come out ⁓ for a match, which according to research, ⁓ They were getting those type of numbers back in the late 1800s, early 1900s in the in our area. ⁓ that's what we'd like to see happen, you know, at Pittsburgh. But ⁓ like I was saying, ⁓ in our region here, we have the Darlington Polo Club, ⁓ which is just north of Pittsburgh. And they were established for over a hundred years, and it was basically a bunch of farmers that would come in from working in the field and gather under lights and play polo. ⁓ we also have Opal Polo and North Point Polo. And then of course, you know, ⁓ Felipe, we can have Pia talk about that a little bit. Felipe's brother is the polo coach out at Lignir Polo Club. ⁓ and you go a little further, you have the ⁓ Lancaster Polo and and then over in Ohio, I think there's a club outside of Cleveland. and there's clubs in New York and down in Virginia. So We're not in Maryland. We're not too far out. We're at a nice central location. A nice central ⁓ location. And we are ⁓ a member of the United States Polo Association. So a lot of the clubs I mentioned are also members. And ⁓ the I don't know if you've noticed ⁓ on the world stage, ⁓ the United States teams are making a ⁓ a statement and they're competitive. ⁓ on the world stage so it's exciting, it's a it's a great time to get involved. speaker-0: All right, so take us to Burgertstown. We'll take a look here at some footage from ⁓ the Pittsburgh Polo Club and describe to us kind of what you see and and and what it's like being there at the Pittsburgh Polo Club. speaker-1: Absolutely. The thing I love about coming out to the Pittsburgh Polo Club is it typical in Western PA, you have the rolling hills, the different properties, the farm. It's just absolutely stunning on the drive out. And then you pull up the drive under the sign of the Pittsburgh Polo Club and you just can't help but take a deep breath and breathe in the fresh air, ⁓ take in the sights of the beautiful horses, the green grass. And ⁓ you know, you take your you park your car, you ⁓ get your your belongings, whether you packed a a picnic or you're gonna enjoy food from a food truck, and ⁓ you relax and you take in the ⁓ the match. speaker-0: And you guys have ⁓ an Airbnb, right? Pre Civil War. speaker-1: We do. Yeah, yeah, there's a a section of it that is pre-Civil War. ⁓ in fact I'm looking for more information about about that. So if anybody listening to the podcast has some history about that area, I'd love to hear it. ⁓ but ⁓ it is a six bedroom home. It can sleep eleven, but it also is beautifully ⁓ accommodating toward ⁓ businesses. if you want to do like a budget retreat or if you have some corporate training or ⁓ we've even reached out to local four H groups, anything like that that would want to have training. It's very versatile. ⁓ there are trails on the property for ATV riding. you got to see the the range for whatever that is ⁓ rifle or skeet shooting. speaker-0: Really cool property. Yeah. speaker-1: ⁓ so yeah, there's a lot of ⁓ potential and a lot of possibility for the wide open space. speaker-0: All right, let's go to match day. Pia, one match day. What are you doing before the match to prepare yourself and also to prepare the horse for the race or for the ⁓ competition? speaker-2: Okay, this what happens. A lot of people think that we just go to the field and play over there, but that's not true. It's like a month of preparation, getting all the horses in shape, cleaning all the equipment and getting all pretty for the day too. Sure. And what happens too? For me, the day starts the night before. I cannot sleep. I feel so nervous about it. I try to eat a lot, ⁓ healthy food to have energy for the next day. I think one of the most important things is to train yourself. it in a healthy way that that's give you all the energy you're going to left the day you're going to play. in my opinion, the things I try to do is to check the horses, check all is okay, check the equipment is clean. ⁓ it's not just like go and play. It's to look good. speaker-0: Yeah. Now I got to see a little bit of this last week when we were filming for ⁓ Pittsburgh Today Live. I saw your dad doing a few things to the horses before we took them up ⁓ to the arena. Tell us a little bit about what you do with the tail and what you do with their legs. speaker-2: Okay, this is what I do. First of all, we take them from the stalls or from the corrals, we brush them to them to look pretty, we put all the equipment on, we do something to their tails, and that's speaker-0: You're essentially taping up the tail right so that the mallet and show us show us what a mallet looks like here. Okay. So you tape up the tail so that whenever you swing the mallet, it doesn't get caught in the tail. speaker-2: That's true. This is the mallet. This is one very important things ⁓ to hit the ball. And here we have one arena polo ball. Grass polo ball is very different. It's little, but this is arena one. It's bigger. So this is very important. speaker-0: And then also I saw thinking about soccer, it looked like your dad was putting shin guards on the horses, which is kind of like what it was like, right? What does he put down around his around their ankles? speaker-2: And they put saddle path and path two. Saddlepath is for protect all the horse. I mean the most important things for us and for most of the polo players is the protection of the horse. You know, the animal goes first. Because you go, you get on them, you have fun and everything. No. You need to keep them in shape, give their food, go to the morning. It's a big deal to have a horse. speaker-0: Sure. Yeah. And these are very, very special horses. Tell us about the types of horses that you use for polo. speaker-2: Okay. ⁓ the horses that we use for polo in our club, in Pittsburgh Polo Club, we have a couple horses from Argentina that flew from there, ⁓ or the mothers from Argentina. You know, polo and the most important thing is the horse, you know. And nowadays all the genetic is like changing all of it. Okay. You know, it's getting polo more competitive. 'Cause as more horses as you have As better horses that you have, you get better and better and better and makes this board grow so speaker-0: And the horse is just as much a player as you are, right? speaker-2: ⁓ yes, so much. speaker-0: So Erica, we talked a little bit earlier about ⁓ kind of growing the sport in Western Pennsylvania. ⁓ you guys offer private lessons, group lessons. Tell us about w what's available. speaker-1: Well, both of those are available. ⁓ we even have the opportunity because we have the ⁓ the the house there, the Airbnb, to do weekend events. ⁓ so whether you're a beginner or you're an accomplished rider, ⁓ Felipe with his expertise and of course Pia and Hieronimo, ⁓ they are very they're a lot of fun, they're very kind, ⁓ very accepting. And ⁓ everything's provided as far as, you know, the the horses Tacked up, ready to go. The horses, ⁓ you know, we're talking about these Argentinian ponies, they're like the fiaris of the horse world. And ⁓ they're very responsive and they have to be. They turn on a dime, they stop on a nickel, and ⁓ you know, they're fearless. So even if you're an accomplished equestrian, whether you're doing English or Western games or ⁓ anything like that, I would I would implore you, I would suggest, you know, take take some time, take a lesson with Felipe, experience what polo is. speaker-0: And I saw on your website too, what is a margarita leg? speaker-1: That what is the Marga League? Maybe Pia can explain that better than I can. A Margarita League. Do you ⁓ I believe it's ⁓ a type of competition where they interchange the teams or they interchange the players. I that's a question I was not prepared for. So I apologize. speaker-0: ⁓ so Erica, from a from a marketing perspective, I'm always curious what are some of the biggest challenges that come along with marketing a sport that maybe not a lot of people are familiar with? speaker-1: One of the challenges we do face is a lot of people in the Pittsburgh area ⁓ don't realize that the Pittsburgh Polo Club has been active in the polo scene in Pittsburgh for the last several years. one of the biggest fundraisers for one of the ⁓ for the family house ⁓ organization in Pittsburgh is their annual polo match. And they hold that polo match out at Heartwood Acres. And this is one of those events where you know they end up getting, you know, two thousand to thirty five hundred people out. And it's a it's a gorgeous event. It's been happening for forty-three years now. And ⁓ the Family Health Organization is a beautiful organization. They provide housing for people ⁓ that are receiving medical care in the Pittsburgh area. ⁓ so we pr Felipe the last several years, ⁓ Pittsburgh Polo Club has a a pretty good record ⁓ playing under the Howard Hannah banner. we compete against, and I forget again the name of the other family from Virginia that comes up. Their polo club comes up and competes under the number one Cochrane name. And ⁓ it's it's kind of like a backyard brawl. ⁓ you know, Pittsburgh versus Philly type of thing. ⁓ Pitt versus WVU, ⁓ dare I say. ⁓ so It's it's quite exciting and yes, so if you're in the Pittsburgh area and you've been to the family house polo match in the last five years, you've seen what the Pittsburgh Polo Club can do. speaker-0: Pia, let's ⁓ let's talk about you growing up. When do you remember how old you were when you first got on a horse? speaker-2: really don't remember but I have pictures of me when I was ⁓ I don't know, six month baby on a horse with my daddy on. So I think too many time ago. speaker-0: And and when did your dad start getting you into polo? When did you start playing? speaker-2: Okay, I have been riding horses that I think is the most important part of the sport since I'm I don't know, four year old and getting into polo and all that stuff maybe since I was ten year old. ⁓ speaker-0: Okay. So now you and your family will travel to the States each summer to be with your dad at the polo club. Besides playing for the Pittsburgh Polo Club, what does your normal day look like while you're here in the States? speaker-2: Okay, ⁓ first of all we got up in the morning, have a good breakfast, have energy for all day. We go, check the horses, feed them, we organize maybe we got we give lessons, we pray practices. We you know, horses, it's like a job of all the day. You need to take them care all day. Seeing if they're okay, if they don't feel bad, give a lot of things to them. speaker-0: Sure. Yes. So you've played polo long enough and been around it long enough. What do you see that draws people into polo? What what makes people fall in love with polo? speaker-2: I think ⁓ what makes people fall in love with polo is the connection with the animal 'cause maybe they have a long day at work or have a bad day and then go with the horses, feed them, get them ready, get on the horse, have a good time. You know, polo is not just competition. There's amateur sport too, that people go, have fun, you laugh a lot. So I think that's what make people love polo. speaker-0: Can you tell us, and the only reason I asked this question is because we talked about it beforehand, but can you tell us about how women are such a big part of polo now and that's such a growing group? But tell us about the history of women getting into polo. speaker-2: ⁓ yes, I think that's fantastic. Years ago polo was a very s male sport. There was a lot of men playing and not as girls. But nowadays women polo is growing too much. There's a lot of women playing. They're buying horses, putting money on the sport. This makes the sport grow so much and as a woman it makes me so proud that a lot of women are trying and they say, Okay, let's do it. They're not afraid. speaker-0: Yeah. So I I think we're gonna have a lot of listeners that don't know anything about polo. Okay. Can you give us a little overview of what we're seeing when we're watching a polo match? What are some of the rules? ⁓ just help us to understand it so when we do go there for the first time, we know what's going on. speaker-2: Okay. ⁓ in arena polo there's sometimes three players cause it's more tiny to feel. But on grass polo we have four players. We have the number one that is the one to who tries to make the goals. speaker-0: And that's number one on their jerseys. So their jersey number reflects their position on the field. speaker-2: That's true. Got it. And number two, defense, plays, goes through ball. I identify with that number 'cause he's she's run all the field. ⁓ so that's number two. Then we have number three that thinks more about how the play is going is a thinker, I think. Okay. Okay, you go there, you do this, you do that. Number three is that and nowadays number four some sometimes attacks. Usually years ago number four stays just defending but the poll is changing a lot. So nowadays number four maybe attacks, maybe the number three goes back and defends. So I think that horses are changing that makes the way of the place changing too. speaker-0: We talked about how important the horses are. Can you tell us like how as a player do you build that trust with the horse? speaker-2: Okay, I think is something of the day on the day. You go, you feed them, they see you, they'll they smell you, they know what you're doing. If you have a green horse, it's all new for them. You just need to be patient. Give their time step by step. And it's not a green horse, you just go but let them see you, smell you and all that stuff. speaker-0: So I I've seen you play and I think it's easy to watch and and say, I could do that. But then when you really watch it and you really think about it, you're like, wait, they're not just riding a horse, they're riding a horse, trying to stay on that horse while making sharp maneuvers, leaning over to hit a ball, it's a lot going on at one time. What was the hardest skill for you to learn? speaker-2: Okay, I think that the hard and the most important thing is to be a good rider. 'Cause then you will hit the ball better and get better and all that stuff. But the most important thing is to ride in a good way so you don't fall off. Maybe you can miss the ball but you don't get off the horse. So I think the most important thing is riding are the hardest to speaker-0: Now, Erica, I guess maybe you started as a little bit of an outsider, you've been around it now long enough, and I think you've observed things f through probably a different lens than others have. What are some of those traditions maybe that you've seen at polo matches or within the polo community? speaker-1: I think the biggest tradition that I'm drawn to is among the team. ⁓ especially ⁓ how they celebrate, how they prepare, getting the horses ready. Everybody's happy. ⁓ you know, they the it's not uncommon to see ⁓ especially you know, these teams sharing players, sharing horses, and ⁓ And then after ⁓ gathering for a meal. ⁓ the our the Argentinian influence in polo in the area is very strong. ⁓ in fact there's ⁓ a polo club up north ⁓ that offers the full Argentinian experience where they have an asada after a polo match. And basically, you know, asada. Yeah. Do you want to explain an asada? speaker-0: For those of us that don't know. speaker-2: Yes. ⁓ asado is a traditional Argentinian food when all the family, friends get together and share a big barbecue. So that's an asado. speaker-0: All right, I understand barbecue. speaker-1: Yes, yeah. And barbecue and that they're cooking on an open fire, you know, it's it's beautiful. You're you're sharing food. It yeah, it's really it's really neat. So just how everybody shares, how everybody gets along, ⁓ the camaraderie is is what I was really surprised ⁓ to come into. And longtime relationships. ⁓ we're excited at the Pittsburgh Polo Club. Two of our members ⁓ who met at the club fell in love. got engaged and are getting married at the Pittsburgh Polo Club this summer. ⁓ so it's it's very ⁓ it builds community in a lot of ways that you wouldn't expect. speaker-0: It's it's it's so neat and it it feels like it feels like family. I mean go out, experience it for yourself. ⁓ the next match coming up is July eighteenth. Go see it, experience it, pack a lunch, I don't know, maybe a charcuterie tray. It's fun. ⁓ but it's a beautiful property. So Pia, we ⁓ oftentimes like to wrap up with some fun, rapid fire questions. You ready? Ready. All right, here we go. What is your favorite horse? Your favorite polo memory. speaker-2: Lina. playing with my dad and my brother. speaker-0: What is your favorite post match meal? what is your favorite place that you've traveled to because of polo? speaker-2: Absolutely. Yeah. speaker-0: Most competitive person you know. Your brother right here, Hieronima I like it. And it's funny because I know your dad plays against his brother and I've heard those matches get pretty heated. ⁓ yeah. ⁓ what is your favorite horse name you've ever heard? speaker-2: ⁓ my brother. My brother. Yes, that's true. ⁓ frijolito. It means beans in Spanish. Okay. speaker-0: If you weren't playing polo, what sport would you choose? speaker-2: Any sport that has horses. speaker-0: Good choice. Ladies, thank you so much for joining us today. Pittsburgh Polo Club, as I mentioned, hosts monthly matches May through September in Burgustown, as Erica mentioned, just down the road from the pavilion at Star Lake. Next up, Saturday, july eighteenth. Tickets are just ten bucks, or you can get a VIP tent. but check it all out at Pittsburgh Polo Club dot com. Thanks for joining us. We'll see you next week.