Last Sunday, I made the effort to tuck my shirt in, comb my hair and make it appear that I’m familiar with terms like “chukker” when I attended the Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic on Governor’s Island. It’s just over the water from the financial district of Downtown Manhattan.

I was a mixture of equal parts excitement and trepidation about making an appearance at an event that could be either overly snooty, as one imagines Polo outings in the Hamptons to be. It could also be like many horse racing carnivals in Australia where a lot of thugs are wearing a suit for the first time since their last court appearance and just as many women get confused about clutching their high heels instead of their handbag as they leave the track. Instead the VCPC fundraiser for Donna Karran’s charity Urban Zen Hope Help & Rebuild Haiti Organization was a perfect blend of exceptional personal style combined with a relaxed and friendly atmosphere – possibly because the $17 flutes of Veuve had run out before a mallet was even swung so no one got close to letting the bubbles go to their head.

While the free event didn’t endure for much longer than a typical day at the races, it did have one striking similarity – not many people were there to see the horses. On the ferry back into Manhattan, you would’ve been lucky to find someone that knew that Argentine polo star and Ralph Lauren model Nacho Figueras led his Black Watch team to beat Rico Mansur’s team 6 to 5. The 10,000 person strong crowd included a VIP tent where one might compare cufflinks with celebs including VCPC’s emcee Hugh Jackman – that’s if you’ve got $2500 for your ticket.

So what were people there for? To express themselves with colour under a somewhat grey New York sky, and boy did people do an exceptional job in front of the mirror that morning because the fashion at VCPC was incredible! Surprisingly the men out dressed the ladies; or maybe that’s because at the races I’m used to seeing a mass of dark suits all mashed together and looking like an angry stretch of ocean. So, when I see gents wearing red blazers, white chinos and a host of other vibrant accessories I get easily excited. Regardless of my conditioning, I cannot recall one venue outside of a fashion week party where I’ve seen more colour and more style without the out of fashion accessory called “attitude”.

I hope that VCPC makes it to Australia for next summer.

Photos: Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic

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