Holy Chukkers! They're playing polo up in Careyes

CAREYES, Jalisco, Mexico - The Admiral and I and CEO Laura succumbed to the lure of a polo match Saturday afternoon, a standard, five-chukker event held in toney Careyes, a few kilometers up the highway from Arroyo Seco.

Pip, pip and all that, you know.

It was great fun. And most of my reservations about polo being a really snooty sport evaporated quickly as the horses pounded up and down the field and the local team scored. The crowd had a lot of fun, some of it perhaps inspired by various libations imbibed to ward off dehydration. Regardless, the match was over very quickly and even included a 15-minute divot stomp in which the spectators went out on the field - with tequila shots in hand - to stomp down the grass where the horses had dug things up.

Seemed easier to stomp after a shot or two.

Among the many spectators were La Manzanilla bon vivant Jane Gorby, accompanied by her daughter Lizzie, visiting from Long Beach.


Some of the elegant spectators at the match

The polo field is immense, maybe three times the size of an American football field. And when the action was on the other side of the playing area, I wished I had brought my field glasses.

But when they came up close, they came really close and you could hear the polo ponies panting.

The riders change horses as many as five times during the whole match.


Children at play - between 'chukkers'