Polo on Wheels

In some ways, the activity on a greensward in Southampton, N.Y., last week resembled a regulation polo match. The meaty thwock of a mallet hitting a polo ball punctuated the polite murmur of cultivated sideline conversation as a brightly uniformed player sped toward the goal. But one sound was missing: the thundering hoofbeats of the polo ponies. There was good reason. Instead of riding ponies, the players were astride a variety of bicycles, fiercely competing in a sport that is enjoying a rapid resurgence across the U.S.: bicycle polo.

The rules of bicycle polo are similar to the traditional version, with four players on each side, all trying to swat the white wooden ball between the opposing team's goal posts. Pith helmets or padded caps are required. But the mallets are half-size with 30-in. handles, the field is only a third as large, and a player is limited to three successive hits (compared with the unlimited number in regulation polo). For girls' teams, seldom seen in pony polo, the braless look is de rigueur.

Down Cycles. One other difference from traditional polo: the governing U.S. Bicycle Polo Association finds it necessary to outlaw "riding off," bumping another rider, a common practice in pony polo. "A pony is somewhat resilient and can bounce," explains the association's newsletter, "but a bicycle is an uncompromising animal and, if approached to the bouncing point, will promptly tangle itself with whatever it can lay its pedals on."

Bicycle polo was first played 80 years ago in Ireland, on a field fittingly called

The Scalp, and soon spread to the U.S. where the charter club was organized at Milton, Mass., in 1897. In the intervening years, it had brief periods of popularity and was kept alive during its several down cycles largely through the efforts of the Aiken Preparatory School of Aiken, S.C., which uses it to help teach regulation polo. Explains Carlos Concheso, a New York banker and one of the founders of the U.S.B.P.A.: "It's a good way to develop a feel for the fundamentals, especially for the teamwork that is so necessary."

Winded Riders. In the past few years the inflation (polo ponies cost about $750 to $1,000) and the increasing popularity of bicycling have given bicycle polo a new shot in the arm. Clubs have been organized in California, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and New York, where the U.S.B.P.A. holds practice sessions in Central Park every Tuesday and runs tournaments during weekends on Long Island.

The new generation of enthusiasts is currently engaged in a polite argument over the relative merits of various wheeled mounts. One faction, for example, favors the 18-in.-wheel minibike, which, according to its advocates, is more maneuverable than the 27-in. English model that others prefer.

Though bicycle polo is inexpensive enough for almost anyone, most of its aficionados so far are relatively affluent. In Southampton, for example, the crowd is very social indeed, but weekday practice sessions in Manhattan's Central Park are somewhat more democratic: volunteers are allowed to join the fun when one of the riders becomes winded. Occasionally a pony-polo expert decides to give the game a try. He is usually disappointed. "It's easier on horseback," a high-ranking rider from Colombia discovered last week. "You don't have to pedal the horse."

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