A Lucky Horseshoe
Memo and Meghan Gracida see polo in the future of the Santa Ynez Valley
Memo and Meghan Gracida see polo in the future of the Santa Ynez Valley
Ready for polo action, Meghan Gracida practices a mallet move alongside Memo on the field.
Written by Joan Tapper
Photographs by Dewey Nicks
He named the property La Herradura—meaning “horseshoe”—and used the symbol as an emblem for the ranch.
You can’t miss the gleaming silver. Sit down to chat with Guillermo “Memo” Gracida and his wife, Meghan, in their Santa Ynez ranch house, and your eye inevitably turns to the shelves of shining trophies and statues that honor his achievements as a top world polo player. There’s a replica of the U.S. Polo Open cup, which Memo has won 16 times in his career. There’s the coveted fluted bowl from the Argentine Open, the Gold Cup of the Americas trophy, and the British Queen’s Cup, which Elizabeth II presented to Memo twice. The hardware is impressive, but what Memo really wants to talk about is why he and Meghan have now relocated to this area and his vision for the property they call La Herradura.
The word means “horseshoe,” he says, and it hearkens back to the name of the Mexican polo team Memo’s father fielded with his siblings. “They were the only set of four brothers to win the U.S. Open,” he says proudly. “That was in 1946. Father was a great mentor. He taught me to play and gave me a love of the sport.”
And that’s what Memo is now hoping to pass on to others at La Herradura by teaching and coaching both people and horses. “We came to the New World of the West Coast with energy to create a polo center. This place is a dream for a horse lover,” he says. “It’s the ultimate horse property.”
“La Herradura means “horseshoe,” and it hearkens back to the name of the Mexican polo team Memo’s father fielded with his siblings. “They were the only set of four brothers to win the U.S. Open,” Memo says proudly”
Memo has been coming to this part of California for the last 30 years, usually just for three or four weeks at a time as part of the professional circuit that moves from Palm Beach to England, Santa Barbara, Texas, New York, and Argentina. He happened to be here in September 2012, waiting out a hurricane in Florida, when he met Meghan, whose roots are in Santa Ynez and San Luis Obispo. When she began working in West Palm Beach a few months later, they reconnected and, after a whirlwind courtship, married almost five years ago. They bought the 45-acre ranch—a onetime Arabian horse farm—in December 2017.
The 3,800-square-foot house on the property, built in 1973, needed more than a little work. Walls were removed, the kitchen and master suite renovated, and the exterior totally redesigned, with other changes still to come. But the equestrian facilities—including barns, 60 stalls, fences, and paddocks—were all horse ready.
“We came to the New World of the West Coast with energy to create a polo center. This place is a dream for a horse lover. It’s the ultimate horse property.”
There are three large barns, including one with living quarters for half a dozen grooms, and 13 big pastures. “We have 100 horses, both ours and other people’s,” says Memo, “and our days are spent looking after them—working them, resting them, training them every day. We also run clinics and matches. It’s a three-ring circus!”
“People come for clinics and lessons from all over the world,” he continues. “There aren’t so many polo schools on the West Coast. My goal is to get new blood in the game and teach all different levels. We have ideal beginners’ horses—responsive and well-trained—and a safe environment with a staff dedicated to producing the best service.”
And the polo players—newbies and veterans alike—are learning from one of the best. Memo held a 10 handicap—the highest rating—consecutively for 21 years, and though he doesn’t play competitively as often now, he enjoys teaching others. That includes Meghan, who had never ridden before but now holds a 3 woman’s handicap and plays regularly on La Herradura’s women’s team. “She’s a great athlete,” Memo says. “She can ride any horse.”
“I get great satisfaction from seeing a person learn to make a great play,” he continues, “and seeing young horses and young players do something new.”
“When you’re on the field, you’re not thinking about anything else. The connection of horse and person is epic”
Until recently, weekend matches as well as riding lessons and stick-and-ball sessions have taken place at Piocho ranch, five minutes away. But as of September, there’s a new polo field at La Herradura. Creating the venue has been a huge project. “It was a horse pasture,” says Memo, “and to grow grass for a polo field, you have to do a lot of prep. We were lucky to get a lot of fill from the mudslides to even it out. Then we seeded it. You have to let the weeds grow out, then you can kill them. It’s taken a year and a half start to finish.”
The Gracidas hope to develop other fields in the future, with the goal of building a club with 150 members. Polo is “great for people who have been successful in life and are looking for a challenge,” says Memo. “But there haven’t been a lot of opportunities to learn, or a place nearby where people can try the game and see if they like it.” In fact, even though people may think of the Santa Ynez Valley as horse country, the number of animals has dwindled as ranch land has been converted to vineyards.
Riding his pony Muñeco, Memo conducts a polo lesson with Meghan on Patito Feo, a gift from her husband. Filling out the foursome are students Joshua Dubarry and Memo’s nephew, Alejandro Gonzalez Gracida.
Meghan points out that for Memo, the important things are his family, horses, and polo, and indeed he’s a superb advocate for the sport. “When you’re on the field,” he says, “you’re not thinking about anything else. The connection of horse and person is epic.” •