Lakewood Ranch resident celebrates 70th birthday with polo

SARASOTA — Lakewood Ranch resident Barb Alexander isn’t afraid of a challenge.

She actually thrives on competition. So it’s not all that surprising that for the past two decades, Alexander has been searching for the best female competition her sport has to offer.

As the organizer for the Central Circuit Women’s Challenge, a women’s tournament she not only hosts but also in which she competes, Alexander’s goal is to invite the country’s best female polo players — making it even more difficult to compete.

So when Alexander finished atop the podium one August afternoon several years ago, she reveled in the moment.

“I’m very competitive, and I’m always a good host,” Alexander said. “I invite people in who can beat me, so I’m very proud of the moment when I won my own tournament. I’ve since demoted myself to the lower bracket, because everyone is so much better (these days).”

Now with her 70th birthday only days away, Alexander still hasn’t lost her competitive edge. On March 10, two days before her birthday, Alexander will once again saddle up and take to the arena where she will celebrate her 70th birthday playing the sport she loves.

“I’m a competitive person,” Alexander said. “I like getting out there — I still get the urge.”

Alexander, who plays arena polo three days a week at the Sarasota Polo Club, always had planned to play polo that day, but it wasn’t until her husband, George Alexander, mentioned her upcoming birthday to a friend that word began to spread.

“It wasn’t a secret, but I wasn’t advertising it, either,” George Alexander said.

Barb Alexander will either play alongside or against her husband this weekend, but no matter whether they are teammates or opponents, she’s happy knowing she’ll be playing polo surrounded by her family and friends.

“I’m surprised I’m still doing it,” said Alexander, who has had a knee and a hip replaced. “I’m going to keep playing as long as my favorite horse (Cashmere) is around. She’s like riding a rocking horse.”

LIFELONG LOVE
A native of New Jersey, Alexander was 4 years old the first time she climbed onto a pony. She was visiting her grandfather in Nebraska, and as the oldest grandchild, Alexander had the privilege of going out for a pony ride.

Alexander grew up around Western riding before turning her attention to English riding in the fourth grade. She joined the local equestrian team in high school, eventually making the A team, and also started giving riding lessons. She then went on to study theater at Northwestern University, but her passion for riding never ceased.

“I took riding for gym class,” Alexander said.

Alexander, an actress, first became interested in polo in the 1970s, after hearing some of her fellow cast members talking about the sport, but at the time there were no female polo players.

So Alexander, who was showing hunter jumper horses, decided to buy her husband a polo lesson.

It was the best $10 she ever spent. Alexander began spending time playing what she called “hit and giggle” polo. A group of women, who called themselves the Happy Hookers, got together and started hitting a few balls around. The women didn’t have equipment and wore their equestrian uniforms to play.

“The news came out to talk to us, because it was something new and unique,” Alexander said. “We eventually made up our own ratings with trophies.”

Alexander began taking the sport seriously in the 1980s. In 1986, she and her husband opened Blackberry Polo Club in Batavia, Ill., which the couple still owns today. A year later, Alexander began playing in tournaments with the U.S. Polo Association.

Last July, Alexander was the lone female to compete in the Polo Training Foundation’s tournament for seniors, ages 50 and up, which she and her team won.

“My name is on the trophy more than anyone else’s,” Alexander said. “The trophy makes the rounds all over the country.”

In addition to playing polo, Alexander also still performs on stage and in commercials. This summer, she’ll portray both a 9-year-old girl and a 70-year-old woman during the Old Time Radio Convention in Cincinnati.
She also enjoys riding her bike, dancing, taking Pilates classes and traveling with her family.

“You’ve got to keep it moving,” Alexander said.

Contact Jen Blanco at [email protected].