Sisters polo player off to early start

Thirteen-year-old Drew Harrison, a 4.0 student at Sisters Middle School, was born and raised in Central Oregon. He has always had horses in his back yard. And his father, professional polo player Dan Harrison DVM (of Bend Equine), has been anxiously awaiting the time when his son would take enough interest in the sport to seek out his wealth of polo skill and experience.

But like so many young kids who are raised around something all their lives, Drew didn’t show much interest in polo — or horses for that matter. He was more interested in playing basketball and music, playing guitar and singing.

“My dad first exposed me to polo when I was two years old with a game called foot polo,” said Drew.

The same mallets are used in foot polo as are used in polo, only the handles are cut short, and an inflatable indoor ball is used.

“It is sort of like croquet, only in a soccer format without a goalie, and is played much the same as polo,” he said.

It became a Harrison family tradition to set up the foot-polo game and play together all summer long.

“It is lots of fun, but for some reason it still didn’t really get me interested in regular polo,” Drew said. “I remember many family trips to Santa Barbara, Yakima and Spokane when I was young, to watch my dad play in polo tournaments. It was always ‘my dad’s thing,’ but as I got older I started to really enjoy the trips.

“One day after getting back from one of my father’s tournaments I remember thinking, ‘With all the equipment we have, the experienced teacher I have in my own dad and all the trained horses we have in our back yard... it would be really stupid of me not to at least give this sport a chance.’”

Drew was 10 or 11 when he started riding with his father on their training field at their home in Tumalo.

“I started to really see what all the excitement was about,” he recalled. “Then one of my dad’s friends, George Dill, who is governor of the North West Polo Association, let me borrow four of his made (trained) retired polo horses.”

About 70 percent of the success in a game of polo depends on the horse a player has under him and how well the horse is trained.

“Dill’s horses were wonderful to ride; much easier to handle at the beginning level than my dad’s horses, who are used to a much higher level of play and faster speeds. Those horses gave me the chance to learn the sport, practice, and make mistakes ... that’s when I became hooked on polo,” said Drew.

After much practice Drew finally played in his first tournament on Labor Day. It was The Peter Dix Memorial tournament, held in Spokane.

“At first I was really nervous about how I would do and how the other players would accept me,” said Drew. “But they were very supportive and encouraged me all the way through.”

All the players on Drew’s team were at least 15 years his senior. It’s quite a challenge for a kid of 13 to play professional polo with a team of experienced adults. Not only did Drew step up and accept the challenge... but he played well, scored goals, and hit his shot from 40 yards in a tie-breaker goal that helped his team win the game! “It was a real thrill to win on the first time out, I am so enthused,” says Drew. “Now I love the sport with all its intensity and in-the-moment action, and I can’t wait to play more next season.”

Seems Dan Harrison has won also; finally his son is joining in his passion.

“Now we will be looking for my brother Eli (10) to join us in polo some time in the future,” said Drew. “Then we will be a real family team.”