The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

3e, Magicas. HEN you think about sports, espe- cially in a community as small as ours, polo is certainly not one that jumps into the foreground, that is, until now. That's right, Scugog Township now has an official polo field and in two weeks is about to host a world-class event. At the root of it all is Arthur Strahl, an 18-year-old who loves horses and lives for the game. Arthur has been playing polo since he was 12 and practices three or four times every week, all year long. “My grandfather played polo in Calgary and when I was 12 he gave me the opportunity to go to Brushy Creek, Texas and learn the sport,” and Arthur never looked back. “My family is very supportive,” Arthur explained and they would have to be. Their farm, on the outskirts of 09,FOCUS, SEPTEMBER.48 pgsindd 41 Photo by Jonathan van Bilsen Port Perry, is geared to the sport. A regulation polo field is continually groomed and sits on a hill behind a large, indoor riding stable. Arthur has nine horses which he regularly rides. “It is not uncommon for polo players to bring two or three horses to each match.” When he’s not riding or practicing Arthur is busy at his job working on a stud farm. His plans are to go to Cornell University and take a farrier course. He loves the lifestyle and his awards are proof: a national championship, several regional champion- ships and he was elected to the North American All-Star polo team for 2010 and 2011. On September 16th Arthur and his family will host the annual ‘Polo For Hope’ event, which from Please turn to page 43 FOCUS - SEPTEMBER 2012 41 12-08-20 8:39AM