Rough and Tumble, Bicycle Polo Tourney Begins Play Here

Posted on: Oct 4th, 2012 | News and Announcements

If you are looking for excitement, bordering on a bit of madness, 22 teams will be competing in a bicycle polo tournament at Mobile County?s Chickasabogue Park on October 13 and 14. The tournament is free and open to the public. The high-speed, hard-court game is relatively new and combines a little of street hockey with horse polo, except that the mode of transportation is all manner of bicycles. It?s rough and tumble, since ?it takes a lot of finesse to keep bikes from tangling,? according to Kevin Greene, one of the local organizers and players. ?It?s a young sport, so if you have a bike and are willing to be beat up, you can get out there and play polo,? Greene said. The game is coed, with female player on at least half the participating teams, Greene said. Play will start Saturday, October 13 to determine seeding, with double-elimination competition the following Sunday starting at noon. The tournament has 66 players registered, or three to a team. Participants come from all over the southeast. Many of them, according to Greene, are excited to combine the competition with a campout at the county park. About 15 campsites are rented, according to park officials. About 200 people are expected to attend. Chickasabogue Park, an 1,100-acre regional park located on the Chickasabogue Creek, is located at 60 Aldock Road in Eight Mile. Cost to enter the park is $1 for adults. Started fewer than 10 years ago in Seattle, WA., the game is played with a three-inch plastic ball and a mallets. Helmets are required. Other than that, it is up to participants to get knee pads, hockey gloves and any other protective gear. Players often fashion wheel covers for the tire spokes. ?At this point in the sport, it can look a little mad-max because we piece together equipment,? Greene said. Greene started with the sport about four years ago, playing with local college students in a pizza restaurant?s parking lot. Mobile County today has 12 dedicated players, he said.