As our generation I Nic Roldan Free Shoulder Saddles got more exposure we continually sought input from players as to how to make them better. We collected feedback from Nic and other high goal players provided us with the input we needed to make our saddles even better. Actually, significantly better.
We improved the tree and removed the rock that some of the 8, 9 and 10 goal players noticed. The patented cantilever seemed to bother some grooms and trainers who were used to putting a saddle on a certain way. Rather than confuse the issue we created an invisible cantilever which appears to be a normal panel but is in fact a false one to keep the weight behind the clavicle. Both changes making the saddle even better and eliminating any objections to the design but still keeping the important performance and comfort features for the horse.
We have further refined the workmanship and you will find the free shoulder to be not only the most functional polo saddle made, by anyone, anywhere, but also the finest. The best quality, best leather, best workmanship. Oil elephant skin oil leather provides better grip than suede and significantly better appearance, durability, and functionality.
Don’t your horses desire the opportunity to perform at their best? Only one saddle assures that, the PoloGear Nic Roldan, Generation II free shoulder saddle.
In stock, available for immediate shipment. Call or order on line today.]]>
There are many ways to make the team shirts that are worn in polo competitions around the globe. Historically they started as woven shirts, then to the iconic knit “polo shirt” perfected by Brooks Brothers in the 1920s, to the sublimated high-performance fabrics of today.
Which are best for you, where do you find them, how much do they cost, how long do they take to make, and which supplier is the best to use are all important questions you may be asking yourself?
Polo shirts are required to have numbers to differentiate the team members, and most teams want to have the team name or sponsor name prominently displayed. From here many like logos or attractive patterns or designs. These designs can range from very simple to very elaborate. Now with the advent of dye sublimation and computer graphics and design, they have become massively complex and beautiful with no limits to the creativity and imagination of the design.
Simple polo shirts could be cotton, or polycotton or poly polo shirts with numbers sewn, embroidered, silk screened, or heat transferred on them. All these types of shirt production are still used today. Polo rules require each team to come to the field with both a light and a dark set of shirts.
For the past 100 years, until the past 10 years, most polo team shirts were made on cotton pique knit polo shirts. Sometimes cotton jersey knits were used or other knit patterns, but primarily they were pique. Why? Mostly because pique was a durable weave for the roughness of polo and it provided good ventilation for the day. They also looked good and embroidered well. Rene Lacoste made the Izod polo shirt iconic in many and tennis circles. A few polo based companies began to specialize in just building polo team shirts and polo team jerseys. The PoloGear Teamshop™ was really the first in the world to specialize specifically in polo custom team shirt and polo custom polo shirt production and to export these nationally and internationally. That was in 1995.
Special embroidery machines and extra-large hoops allowed them to create embroidery for the front and back of the team shirts in one template, simplifying production but more importantly controlling the alignment of the design elements and providing standardization and allowing more complex and sophisticated designs. Here branding, letters, numbers, logos could all be aligned and organized to precision. Corporate sponsors and image sensitive sponsors loved the new professionalism afforded. Special machines made of cast iron allowed precision embroidery even on these large jobs and a whole specialized industry was created.
Team shirt design often included satin twill sashes which could be attached in different ways, typically horizontally, diagonally or vertically and these were often incorporated into the designs or would be attached by a seamstress by hand. Numbers could also be attached by hand or by an embroidery machine provided the digitizer and operator were skilled. These cotton shirts could range in price between $75 for a simple shirt with numbers to $125 or more for complex team name and embroidery.
At the turn of the century, technology was changing the performance market and new fabrics were being developed that promoted moisture wicking and improved comfort for sporting activities. PoloGear™ was a leader in polo shirt performance once again and developed a proprietary fabric that was superior in its performance characteristics. Hybrids of this original KwikDri™ fabric still remain best in class today. With this superior fabric also came a new technology for embellishment. Sublimation is a chemical process where heat and pressure allow special ink to chemically and physically changes the molecules of the sublimation fabric, so they change color. This process is superior because it never fades or wears off. It also has the advantage of reproducing exactly any computer design. Because of the superiority of fabric and design most polo shirts and polo jerseys are made from the sublimation process today. It is still possible to have traditional embroidered or heat transferred polo shirts made as well. Sublimated shirts can vary in price from $135 to $200 depending upon design, quantity and sewing options.
Today the traditional polo three button plaquette is used by a newer design mock neck zip style is more popular and is used by most of the high goal teams because it is more stylish, comfortable to wear and with the zip allows an additional element of temperature control.
]]>When trying to select the proper polo boot you must first evaluate what are the most important selection criteria for you. Is it price, quality, durability, looks, style, prestige, safety, protection, maintenance, care, guarantee? Or, are you new to polo and don’t even know what your criteria should be?
Allow us to share some knowledge from experienced polo players with many years of experience buying, maintaining, repairing and replacing polo boots. The criteria of experience polo players are pretty consistent, and that overview is what we want to share with you today.
First, a boot must be comfortable, provide adequate support and protection. It must provide a stable platform to ride and hit from. Polo players rise in their irons in hitting the ball, so it is imperative the boot provide stability and support in the sole and ankle area. Stability here also provides protection which is very important for the ankle and foot which could be easily damaged by a polo ball or ride off and inadvertent contact with the opposing players stirrup iron or boot. The strength, thickness and number of layers of leather also provide a measure of the protection afforded in the leg area as well as the sole. The leg is very susceptible to bruising or worse during ride-offs and boot makers are increasing to focus development on superior ways of offering increasing protection here. Those ways include quality of leather, double or triple layers of leather, special shock attenuating foam inserted between layers of leather to better absorb impacts.
Important additional protection and stability are afforded by a toe box and a heal cup. Inexpensive boots often don’t have them, and any better boot certainly should because they not only protect but add to durability as well. Seeing they are unseen it is often difficult to discern whether they are present, but any experienced boot seller or maker would certainly be able to advise you.
Most polo players prefer zip boots to provide easy in and out. With zips boots, the zipper quality is very important because polo is a rough sport and low-quality zippers do not last. YKK is a brand known for its durability and our suggestion would be to insist upon YKK #16 zippers for ease, strength and durability. You can purchase western style polo boots which are pulled on, although most players prefer the ease and comfort of zip polo boots.
You can spend between $300 to $2000 for a pair of polo boots. More if you want to go to cordovan leather or something exotic. You can get a great pair of boots for under $1000 that protects, looks great, lasts a long time and functions well for polo. Most of the professional players insist on three-layer protection and those sell at $1800 or more. Here you get additional protection, hand-crafted workmanship and beauty. When you make your living playing polo that is important. On the lower end, the low-price boots tend to be mass produced with little focus on protection, performance or quality. At around $500 you start to get a good boot that offers protection, functionality, traditional polo zip boot ease and style.
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In 2008 PoloGear LLC of Wellington Florida developed a proprietary fabric which exceeded all others in its performance characteristics for the sport of polo. In 2023 it has been further improved.
Exclusively From PoloGear, your premier Polo Outfitter. Made exclusively in America. In Wellington, Florida, USA. Chosen by Top Teams, Players and Events Worldwide.
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