RBC | Janice Oldland showed me a photo taken in Meeker on July 4, 1913, of men on horseback holding pointed sticks, resembling swords, around a box on the ground. If you’d like to see a copy, one is on display at the Bank of the San Juans.
From left to right, the mounted men are Gerald Oldland, an unknown rider, Walter Oldland, and John Oldland—all sons of Rueben Oldland, who was then vice president of First National Bank of Meeker. The bank appears in the background of the photo. The men are playing a game called “potato polo.” In the 1913 contest, the Red team faced off against the Yellow team, with the Yellow team winning the $20 prize.
Janice and I had the same question: What is potato polo? With a little “digging,” I found it was a novelty game, a sort of potato race for cowboys, usually played at horse shows and fairs in the Southwest, reaching as far as California. It was often played alongside events like mule racing, wagon racing, bucking contests, and pony racing. The best description I found was from the July 27, 1904, issue of The Lamar Register: “This race [potato polo] is run on ponies. A large box of potatoes is placed at one end of the course, and each rider has a sharp pole. He must spear a ‘tater’ and get it to his own box at the end of the course. The most ‘taters’ wins the prize. The contestants will be at liberty to knock the other fellow’s potato off his stick, if possible. This is a chance for good riders, possessing quick horses, to get in on a prize.”
According to detailedpedia.com, the sport wasn’t so much an ordered race as a free-for-all, which could last up to 10 minutes. The only resemblance to real polo was the use of horses and sticks. Instead of polo helmets, they wore cowboy hats—and it was chaotic. I found “potato race” listed as one of the events at the Meeker Fourth of July celebration with a prize of $12.50. The 1921 Rio Blanco County Fair offered $10 for first place. The Rocky Mountain News announced the winners of their 1923 potato race for girl riders, awarding $15 to Miss Janice Thayer of Denver. Rules for the women’s race included, “No potato to be knocked off within 20 feet of the starting box. Any rider standing guard over the receiving box will be disqualified. Every potato that stays in the box counts one point. Every potato knocked off from opponent’s stick counts as one point. Seven-minute periods.” This contest seemed tame compared to most.
Harry Arthur Gant described the team race at the 1909 Frontier Days as so violent that judges halted the competition midway. Pulling riders off their horses was considered fair play, and “biting is about the only thing barred.” This sounds like an event we should resurrect for our RBC rodeos. It’s definitely more exciting than Monday Night Football.
By ED PECK