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The Exhilarating Game of Automobile Polo (PHOTOS)
It’s polo but with cars
When automobiles were invented, they came on the scene with the intent of replacing living, breathing horses. The early competition between cars and horses is one of the reasons we still have the term horsepower today. Early cars were referred to as horseless carriages. With all of the overlap between equine transportation and the early automobile development at the start of the 20th century, it is no wonder that someone came up with the brilliant idea of replacing the horses in the sport of polo with the new automobile.
The horses were replaced with modified early automobiles, which reached top speeds of 40 miles per hour during play and included a driver and a malletman. The driver steered the car while the malletman hung onto the side with a mallet attempting to whack a basketball into a predefined goal. The driver attempted to get into the best position possible without flipping, wrecking, or getting his malletman injured or pinned.
The sport was popular from 1911 until roughly 1930 before falling out of favor. Automobile polo was often played as a publicity stunt or featured at fairs and festivals. At the peak of its popularity, the sport boasted official clubs similar to existing soccer or polo clubs.
