52 SIDELINES OCTOBER 2014
FOR HORSE PEOPLE • ABOUT HORSE PEOPLE
e
Passion For Polo
Kerstie taking part in the 59th annual Makawao rodeo on Maui.
Photo by CJ Dewolf Photography
Polo, Rodeo
and Surfing
Adventures
in Hawaii
By Kerstie Allen
Aloha! Hawaii has turned out to be an
equestrian dream. The amount and variety
of different riding opportunities is immense. I
have to admit that I had very little in the way
of expectations regarding riding and playing
polo here, but was I ever wrong!
It’s almost hard to believe that you can go
from riding in a rodeo or practicing in a hunter/
jumper ring to playing polo and then take
an amazing trail ride along a sandy beach
or up the side of a volcano! I was fortunate
enough to have the kind folks at Hawaii Polo Life coordinate a lot
of activities for me so I wouldn’t miss a thing.
I started my tour at the 59th annual Makawao rodeo on Maui. It
was a four-day extravaganza where all the cowboys and cowgirls
from the islands gathered on Fourth of July weekend to let loose
and have fun. It was great that so many polo players crossed over
and were doing rodeo on their polo ponies.
I enjoyed competing in the team roping on my horse with no
mane. It was a great lesson for everyone to not be afraid to cross-
event your horse if you ever get the chance. All in all, it will only
make you a better horseman in the end.
There was even the old fashioned Paniolo Fourth of July parade
featuring lots and lots of horses, old cars and marching bands
and, did I mention, more horses. The children even got their own
stick-horse race down the main street to kick off the parade. This
is truly an experience for any horse lover to never miss.
While in Hawaii, I got the chance to meet and ride on the beach
with big wave surfer Marlon Lewis, who also has a passion for
surfing and polo. He was on the island with a group of people who
I met on Maui at the rodeo and came to support polo. I’m not sure
if you’ve ever seen what a big wave surfer does, but it’s insane.
It’s like surfing down a high-rise building that’s moving and coming
at you at the same time — truly not for the faint of heart.
I was on the beach doing a photo shoot and, after his surf
session, he paddled out of the ocean and came over to us and he
traded his surfboard for my horse. It was really cool to be around
such a courageous athlete who gets the same adrenalin rush
playing polo as riding those big waves.
Back on Oahu at the Hawaii Polo Club, for the first time in more
than 25 years, Chris Dawson’s all-Hawaiian team won the High
Goal tournament. After the game, we took a long ride with the
Hawaii Polo Oceanfront Trail Ride company. It was a breathtaking
and scenic ride along the length of the polo field and then a ride
Kerstie on the Oahu coastline.
Photo by Kimo Huddleston
