Sunday @The Pit

I spent part of my Sunday in New York's Chinatown.. not the one near school in Flushing, but the other one in lower Manhattan. I got blackberries for $1 [yum] then spectated one of my most favorite sports.

Being healthy requires staying active, which might not always seem easy. The key is to find things you enjoy doing and vary it up. There are so many activities out there, sometimes it's just a matter of discovery. Try this one on for size...


Have you ever heard of a sport called 'polo'? According to Wikipedia...

'Polo is a team sport played on horseback in which the objective is to score goals against an opposing team. Players score by driving a small white plastic or wooden ball into the opposing team's goal using a long-handled mallet. The traditional sport of polo is played at speed on a large grass field up to 300 yards in length, and each polo team consists of four riders and their mounts.'

Horses. psha. So passe. Bikes: they don't smell, don't need to be fed, and don't leave piles behind..


..and you can still do cool tricks with them...

There's just as many moves...

And just as much competition...

So here's how it works...
There's three [not four] players to a team. Teams are blindly chosen at random-- three mallets thrown to each side of the court.

Players pick up their mallet if so chosen...



..then proceed to their side of the court with their other two teammates. The ball is placed in the center of the court. Someone shouts 1-2-3-go and the game begins.

Players race to get possession of the ball...



The object is 'simple': get the ball into the goal, defined by two cones.



umm... did i say 'simple'..? ..



..ha ha. yeah right. balance, strength, coordination, agility.. ..not letting your foot touch the ground, avoiding collision...



..are you up for it?

Join the club... They're a friendly bunch and write:

Now, our home court is The Pit at Chrystie & Broome Streets. We play there on Thursdays & Sundays. We play on a tennis court in Brooklyn on Flushing between North Portland & North Oxford on Tuesdays.. ..

Newcomers are always welcome. Come out with a bike and we’ll loan you a mallet. It might look & sound like a dangerous sport, and it is, but we’ll take it easy on you the first few times.

For more info: check out the NYC Bike Polo website.. ..and maybe I'll see you @The Pit..