This Spring students in the Virginia Polo Club learned a new skill, how to pour a concrete pad. 1958 UVA alum Dan Colhoun brought an instructor to guide the student players through the process.
Alum Colhoun learned much during his years in the Virginia Polo Club in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s, when the students had to run all aspects of the fledgling club. He envisioned this Spring’s experience for the current students to enable them to feel the same sense of ownership in the facility and learn a new skill that will be helpful to them in their future lives as adults, much as he did during his college years.
The concrete pad will be a foundation for the future full farm generator to sit atop inside the new hay barn. Workers were students who answered the call for volunteers to assist in a grounds project, and a hard-working crew they were. Early in the project many students helped to lay out the wooden frame for the platform and place the rebar as other students loaded hay and fed ponies in their pastures.
The bulk of the work was done by a core crew of hard-working players, Women’s varsity players Kelsey Bray, Alana Benz, Rory Knox, and men’s varsity player Mak Mourad, saw the project from start to finish alongside Assistant Coach & Barn Manager Abbie Grant, and Coach Lou Lopez. These students hefted the 80 pound bags of concrete, poured it into the mixer, and dumped the heavy mix into the frame- no small feat! All done with a great attitude. As the frame filled they smoothed the mixture, problem solving as they went along. Though the work was hard, jokes and banter kept the afternoon upbeat.
The project stretched longer than expected by the students, but they were committed to seeing it through to completion and great satisfaction was felt when the smooth concrete pad was finished. Each student who worked it traced their initials in the concrete, memorializing the afternoon and leaving a lasting impression for the players to come back and see at future alumni events.
Alana Benz UVA ‘25 begins the smoothing process
Dan Colhoun spearheaded the project, making a generous gift to the Virginia Polo Club to fund a full farm generator, engaged the work instructor for the day, and traveled to the Polo Center to oversee. He brought along framed photos of the original Virginia Polo student work crew, pouring concrete at the first home of the Virginia Polo Club— Brook Hill Farm along the Rivanna River on what is now know as Polo Grounds Road on 29N.
Assistant Coach & Barn Manager Abbie Grant evens out the pour
Rory Knox steers the (heavy) concrete mixer to the form with a smile
Satisfaction of a job well done! Students signed the slab with their initials.
The original Virginia Polo Club crew of UVA students literally building the polo club from the ground up at its first home, Brook Hill Farm off 29 North on Polo Grounds Road.