Overview
Head to Pilar in the Pampas to learn the secrets of horse breeding, training and the game of polo. Experience the Argentine rural lifestyle and sport at its best, in a land famed for endless grassy horizons and cowboy traditions. You will be staying at El Retiro polo School, a well known polo breeding farm and polo school one hour from Buenos Aires and in the worlds polo capital - Pilar, where you can watch the best players in the world in action.
The farm is a family-run business where life revolves around the barbeque, it has two polo grounds and all the facilities required for keeping around 30-40 polo ponies in breeding and training.
You learn and play polo six days a week (Tuesday - Sunday) weather permitting and on rainy days there is the possibility of some optional community work helping the local church and teaching young children.
Spend your mornings working alongside the gauchos, taking care of the mares, foals and yearlings and exercising the horses. Help with general stable work and maintenance, learn tricks of the trade and experience the magic as gaucho’s break in the young horses. You will also have the opportunity to observe the estancia’s visiting vets, who work taking care of horses’ health, treating wounds, giving ultra-sounds, vaccinations and keeping records of general horse care.
After lunch and the traditional siesta, when you can take a dip in the swimming pool and generally relax, you will learn to play polo, practice stick and balling, play ‘baby chukkas’, matches and possibly (depending on local polo schedule) try your skills in a friendly tournament at weekends.
There is plenty of time to sample traditional Argentinean hospitality, whether that’s chilling out with the gauchos drinking mate, taking tango lessons in town and attending shows at the local carnival. Immerse yourself in rural traditions with a trip to local bars or gaucho festivities (traditional dancing, auctions, rodeos, carnival - if available) and indulge your passion for polo by watching Argentine practices and high goal tournaments throughout ther year (the official high goal season is October-November) in an unforgettable atmosphere.
This is an amazing opportunity, which enables you to gain a wide experience of Argentina’s amazing polo and riding as well as its diverse culture and countryside.
How you help
You must be confident with horses and will be asked in the mornings to help the stables in all activities 'box work' e.g. feeding mares, foals and yearlings, training two-year olds, healing and exercising the polo ponies, cleaning the tack and stables, collaborating with the grooms in their daily activities and generally helping keep the horses fed and in good condition. Including riding out around the farm, excersing horses and perhaps a little stick and ball.
Then after a typical Argentine siesta to eat lunch, swim in the pool and generally relax and chill out you then head to the polo fields at about 2.30 and learn and play polo until 6.00 PM (depending on the light) 6 days per week weather permitting, just in time for 'happy hour' at the house before supper.
Leapers will play polo according to their skill level. You will be given polo lessons, ‘stick and ball’, play chukkas and eventually take part in matches and local low goal tournaments (if available). You will be supervised and taught polo by Marcos Llambias and his son Felix, your hosts and assisted by their other polo staff.
Marcos is a retired surgeon and he and his wife Christina, son Felix and other family members - their eldest son plays polo professionally in the States are fantastically warm and friendly. Past Leapers always comment on what a special, fun and family friendly experience it is.
Lessons are given on a group basis. In teams of varying abilities the groups will be divided by skill and will rotate between playing chukkas, stick and balling, walking with the polo stick and receiving tuition from the teachers. Although the allocated slot for Polo lessons is usually between 2.30 and 6.00 PM you may not be on horseback for this entire period. As the standard of polo played by the team progresses the speed and intensity of chukkas will increase. This has a knock on effect on the length and organization of lessons since high speed play will generally not exceed 20 minutes at any one period without breaks for the horses.
Practical Polo lessons are dependent on dry weather conditions (not just on the day of play but for several proceeding days) to ensure that the ground is safe for both horse and rider. When wet weather conditions prohibit play other activities will be provided in place of practical lessons.
Community Work
Once or twice per week there is the opportunity for those volunteers that wish to, to help the priest from Escobar’s cathedral with some informal teaching: English, drawing, reading, playing etc, to local primary school children at the nearby church school in Escobar. There may be the opportunity also to help with painting a small church or helping at a community lunch place.
This would usually take place in the mornings or potentially for the day. You will only be offered this optional community work on days when it is NOT possible to play polo or have polo lessons at all (due to bad weather or unsafe pitches). For those of you who do not wish to carry out some community work on rainy days you will carry on with the box work at the stables as usual. There is no guarantee that Marcos will be able to offer this community project work as this will depend in addition to poor weather but the needs of the local community, so please remain flexible.
No previous experience of polo is necessary but you clearly must be able to ride pretty well.
You will have no problem communicating in English with Marcos and his family and other family friends. English is not widely spoken amongst the gauchos but you will be able to communicate in Spanish with the gauchos and staff so it is an excellent way of learning or improving your Spanish. It is possible to arrange Spanish lessons on request for a small additional charge on a weekly basis.
Your base
You will fly out as a team and be personally met and transported from the Airport to the farm where you will receive a full induction during your first few days.
This will involve the following:
Meet and greet the staff, tour of school, stables and facilities, horse breeding and polo school tasks, emergency procedures, health and hygiene, safety at work and leisure, safety with horses, working time and leisure time, leisure time activities and travelling in the area, local communities and customs.
Placement Management
You will be looked after by the Llambias family who are all very good polo players. They are very friendly and professional who in tandem with our team in the UK, will ensure you are extremely well looked after.
Your Team
Maximum of 12 volunteers aged between 18 -27. Minimum group size of 2. In the unlikely event that the minimum number is not reached you will be offered an alternative placement at a convenient time.
Accommodation and Meals
Depending on the number of volunteers, you will share double or triple bedrooms with private bathrooms in the guest house. You will eat with the family and the guests. Sometimes it will be possible to stay at the stables to have lunch with the grooms, which would be a typical Argentinean barbeque. You will have to pay for all soft drinks, beers etc. There is 'Happy Hour' between 6 - 8 PM ad the Llambias family love a party and socialising - it will be plenty of fun.
Local Towns
The nearest town, Pilar, is 10 kms away and Escobar 5 kms away.
Weather
Low Season is February to May (autumn) and the high season is August to December (spring/summer). The weather can be very hot between December and March, although in April the temperature can drop rapidly to as low as 8 degrees and expect some rain. And it is pretty wet between May and September (the winter – average temperature 0 to 15 degrees C). Spring temperature average 20 degrees C and summer 25 to 40 degrees C.
Polo Seasons
The school is closed between December and January. The low season is between mid February until May which means there are fewer guests. May – July the school is closed for winter.
On 1st August the horses are brought in and the Argentinean polo season officially begins on the 1st September. At this time of year it is spring and can rain a fair amount, the weather is unpredictable, but the days are long and the sun dries the fields out quickly.
Time In/Out
Time In
The farm is a polo horse breeding and training operation with a mission to breed, raise, train and sell quality polo horses to a growing polo playing population in Argentina and other countries around the world. The mission takes time to complete its cycle: a horse will not be considered a player before it is five or six years old. The farm staff will do their best to enjoy all stages of this cycle and prioritise the welfare of their horses. Volunteers will be taught to understand this philosophy and to enjoy this way of life.
You will normally play polo, stick and ball and chukkas every afternoon, 6 times per week apart from Mondays (groom’s days off). They have two polo fields and a practice field for 'stick and ball', allowing them to rotate if needs be.
You will receive a daily work schedule on arrival, be given an orientation and safety briefing and to learn the routines for stable work. All polo activities can be cancelled when it rains or if the school considers it's too risky to play on a wet field. Sometimes in spring this can last for a few days at a time and Marcos can arrange trips to town or into Buenos Aires or increase your work at the farm during this time.
Generally activities will take place 6 days per week for 6 - 8 hours with Mondays off - club tournaments and matches take place at weekends. This may be subject to alteration if local circumstances dictate but it is to be taken as the norm. Main Polo matches take place at weekends.
You are to be up and ready at 8.00 am and work until lunch, looking after horses, cleaning out the boxes, repairing stables and fencing, tacking up, riding out around the farm checking on the health of the horses and perhaps riding and a little stick and ball, etc. NB these times can vary throughout the year/seasons.
Then there is a 2-3 hour break over lunch during which time you can cool off in the swimming pool, enjoy a siesta, cycle or watch DVDs – Marcos is proud of his collection of horse movies, including about 12 Argentine Polo Open finals ...but also has a few other titles to choose from!
At around 2.30pm you head for lessons from the assigned teacher and assistants, take lessons, play ‘baby chukkas’ or matches and/or stick and ball until 6pm (depending on the light) when the day finishes.
‘Happy hour’ at the farm is between 6pm and 8pm, during which time you can listen to music and enjoy a drink, etc. Dinner is usually at 8pm, in the evenings you can read, watch tv/dvd’s, and Diego provides lectures every two weeks on polo (breeding, selling, how to play and the way of life).
Time Out
Marcos will happily arrange transport into the nearby town, where there is an internet cafe and shops.
Top trips
Visiting Buenos Aires, learning to dance the tango and shopping to your heart's content(!), attending a traditional Gaucho horse auction, walking and cycling. They also offer a one day horse riding trip visiting a neighbouring farm, a horse breeding facility and a very old local country bar - not to be missed! Watch the world's best players in action in the heart of polo - Pilar!
Costs/Dates
Departure Dates
2012 for 6 or 10 weeks
February 14th, August 1st
2013 for 6 or 10 weeks
February 14th, August 1st
N.B. Once on the placement it is possible to switch from 6 to 10 weeks.
Costs
Up until 31st August 2012
6 weeks £3142
10 weeks £4982
Up until 31st August 2013
6 weeks £3142
10 weeks £4982
Includes:
Selection and briefing on all aspects of the scheme.
24 hour emergency back-up, management and support by UK team and in-country Placement Manager, with reliable communications and infrastructure.
Polo, riding and chukkas.
Safety and induction course on arrival.
Airport pick up and transfer to and from the placement.
Food and accommodation throughout.
Not included:
International flights and airport departure tax, travel insurance, medical expenses (reclaimable through travel insurance), soft drinks/beer etc and independent/weekend travel. e.g. food and accommodation whilst away from the placement location and any excursions not listed above.
We are happy to arrange flights through STA Travel, who are well known for offering good value.
Exchange Rates
Please note we are paying the project host in US Dollars to cover all in-country costs. The cost of the placement is set so far ahead, if there is a big change in the exchange rate or fuel increase we reserve the right to increase the cost of the scheme, as per our Booking Conditions. We will of course absorb any minor fluctuations, and will give plenty of warning if we have to raise prices slightly.
