The Orange County Polocrosse club currently has over 20 members with a diverse mix of ages and skill-levels. Some of our players compete in regional, national or international events while other play purely for recreation.

** Coaches **

David Brooks (Head Coach)

David is the founder and head coach of the OCPC. He, and his wife Leslie, own Crooked Creek Farms (the site of our practice field) and many of the horses we play on. David is an A grade polocrosse player and the Eastern Zone Representative for the American Polocrosse Association. David also teaches individual and group polocrosse lessons and polocrosse clinics.

Rahul Desai (Assistant Coach)

Rahul has been playing polocrosse for a total of 8 years. He started playing at the young age of 5 when he was growing up in Zimbabwe, Africa; he took 7 years off after moving to the states and joined OCPC in October of 2006. Rahul is an A Grade polocrosse player and is a member of the 2008 USA Youth Development Team and the 2008 USA Men’s Development Team. Rahul attends school at Clemson University, SC where he is majoring in Public Health Sciences with a concentration on Pre-Professional Health Science.

Sara Harrington (Assistant Coach)

Sara has played polocrosse for about 9 years now through the United State Pony Club and American Polocrosse Association. She has been on several USA development teams as well as the United States Pony Club Exchange team to England two years ago. Sara is looking forward to playing A Grade polocrosse again this season.

** Members **

Alan Hale

Ever since he watched the pros play Polo in the ‘90s in Saratoga Springs, NY, Alan has dreamed of trying the sport himself. It took a few years, some cross-country relocations and a lot of negotiating with his wife, but he finally began riding in September 2007. That’s when he discovered trainer David Brooks and Polocrosse. Thanks to David’s expert guidance, Alan has learned the fundamentals of riding and the game simultaneously. He was thrilled to play in his first tournament in May 2008. Alan looks forward to assisting in the growth of OCPC and expanding the club’s Polocrosse activities along with traditional Polo and Arena Polo.

Mark Hauser

Mark once described polocrosse as his “third midlife crisis.” Mark started riding in 2002, got his first horse in 2004, and was introduced to the club in 2005. He has been working on improving both his horse and riding skills over the past 3 years. Mark enjoys learning more all the time from a great bunch of teachers and friends at OCPC and several other polocrosse clubs. Beyond the sport itself he has also learned more than he expected about horse care, training, hauling and anything else to do with horse ownership. Mark lives with his wife in Chapel Hill.

Susan Poulton

Susan started playing polocrosse in 2001 at the age of 52 and has been enjoying the sport ever since. Susan plays C and D grade with her horse Elvis - the blue eyed paint, famous in song and legend. Susan originally played on the “Red Hot Bahama Mamas” team but has now progressed to playing with the “Hot Flashes” team. She also regularly plays on scramble teams. Susan prefers participating in local, regional and national tournaments which are held close by. Susan is affiliated with the United States Pony Club where she helps represent polocrosse. She also runs an adult group through the USPC and is looking for players to compete in the regional polocrosse rally. Susan says, “If you don’t go out and have fun, you’ll miss it. Come play with us!”

Susan Schneider

If you see a bumper sticker that says “Polo Sports ROCK” it’s probably on the bumper of Susan’s car.  A convert from USPA club polo, she discovered polocrosse at Orange County as a tournament spectator in May 2006.  Taking advantage of a Beginners Clinic offered by the club (shameless plug – check out our calendar for details), she was “hooked” on polocrosse, and joined the club a short time later, even playing in National Championships later that year in Dallas, Texas.   Susan lives in the Charlotte area with her 10 year old daughter, Alexandria, who is an up and coming lead line polocrosse player for OCPC.   

Chris Wolf

Chris joined OCPC in Fall of 2007 after a 12 year hiatus from riding. Chris rode hunt seat as a teenager and played arena polo for a couple of years on a community team affiliated with Cornell University. Chris recently bought a new horse, Candy, and is competing in D Grade tournaments this season. Chris is a geek and is currently maintaining this web site.

Tobi Wolf

Tobi only started riding at the end of 2007 and is already starting to play polocrosse with the group. Tobi decided she had better learn to ride and play so that she wasn’t always stuck on the sidelines and being sent to fetch items that the other riders had left in the barn. Tobi and her husband Chris live near Garner, NC.

If you would like your member bio added to this page e-mail webmaster@orangecountypolocrosse.org