horse transport
POLO PONY JET SET
It is not just the human stars of the sport that fly around the world in first-class comfort; the equine elites have the option to turn left on the plane too! Guards Polo Club’ s vet Holly Baird MRCVS finds out how these superstars travel Pictures by International Racehorse Transport and Nic Roldan
Passport? Check. First Class Ticket? Check. Custom-made trunks laden with designer clothing? Check. Hand-crafted leatherwear? Check!
One could be forgiven for thinking this is the checklist of an international supermodel preparing to fly into town for London Fashion Week. This list, however, is for a far more exclusive traveller. These voyagers are touching down at Heathrow for a different, yet equally glamorous reason – they are the polo pony jet set.
A handful of elite ponies travelling the world to play polo in the highest rated international tournaments. From the estancias of Argentina to the palmdotted fields of Florida, the rolling hills of Australia’ s Hunter Valley to our very own Smith’ s Lawn, these ponies are accumulating more air miles than many of their human counterparts.
One well-travelled pony is Nic Roldan’ s Illusionada. With an 8-goal handicap, Nic is America’ s highest rated polo player and Illusionada is the stalwart of his string. Described by Nic as a“ rockstar” and his“ uber-spare”, this stunning chestnut mare began playing last year in Palm Beach, where she competed in the US Open. In April, she and five stablemates travelled from Miami to London, the final destination being the West Sussex stables where she was based for the summer. Once settled, Illusionada began preparation for the Queen’ s and Gold Cups, with Nic playing for La Indiana.
Memorably, Nic was riding Illusionada when he scored a superb under-the-neck goal at the end of the third chukka in the final of the Gold Cup, levelling the game just before half time. The completion of the 2016 UK high-goal season then saw her board another flight, this time bound for New York.
High-goal big guns, King Power, also have a multitude of high-flying ponies. At the front of the check-in queue with her frequent flyer gold card is Open Katrina.
108 guards polo club official yearbook 2017