MTFCA Forum

Lots of people thought we were crazy last year when we began talking about playing a game of Autopolo with our Ford Model T speedsters but we proved them all wrong recently when we gave it a red hot go. Our venue was the Brooklands Airfield near York in Western Australia.

The arena was a 300 yard long strip of airfield 50 yards wide. The gravel surface made it ideal for sliding sideways during the game. Six Ford Model T speedsters were lined up and six “malleteers” joined them to hit a fit ball to either end of the field. A goal was scored when the ball crossed the line. We planned a game comprising two teams of three cars. With two cars from each team on the field at the same time, we could recreate the original sport. The ball was a small rubber fit-ball of 35cm diameter.

The airfield has a slippery gravel surface which makes it easier to slip and slide the cars. The malleteers gripped a six foot long laminated bamboo pole with a small square head we made ourselves on the end and with the other hand they held on tight. The game was to be played in four 15 minute quarters. The fit ball was placed on the centre line and drivers called heads or tails to seek the downwind advantage.

Every one waited expectantly for the game to begin. When the horn sounded, the Ford Model T driven by Bill with Warren as malleteer roared to life with Warren the malleteer swinging the mallet and giving the ball a mighty hit down the field. Immediately the chase was one with the opposing team coming from behind the centre line to challenge for the ball.

The ball was now free and the two lead cars turned to the right as their team mates came forward to hit the ball. Racing to the ball in low gear, both cars slow down and line up a shot. Only one is successful and the ball is heading in the other direction. But now the other driver was also in position to challenge for the ball. In a couple of minutes, both teams had vied for control of the ball until finally it was dribbled towards the goals hustled over the line.

Referee Hugh in a 1926 Chrysler driven by Peter then collected the ball and took it to the centre line. Once again the ball is in play and cars drive into the ball, sometimes missing and taking a hard turn to the right. The battleship formation with the two team cars in line one in front and another about 30 metres back and wanting to pounce when the ball bounces free.

Drivers are in total concentration as the malleteers point to the ball and call for more speed. The roar of exhausts and the shout creates a lot of excitement. Fortunately no cars crash or malleteers fall out although by the four quarter, Shane Burns limps off with his first gear band just about gone.

After almost an hour of strenuous play, the umpire decides to call time and the score is five all - a draw for the first game of Autopolo in more than a century. Autopolo is a game which requires nerves of steel and a surprising level of fitness -- it's also great fun!

Model T speedsters are absolutely ideal for the sport. They are light and nimble and the acceleration is enough in first gear. A relative lack of good brakes was not such as problem at the slow speeds.

It seemed fair to us that since we were the first people in more than half a century to play a proper game of Autopolo with T Fords then this would be the World Championship. And if we are the only two Australian teams then we are the Australia A and the Australia B team. Australia won win the World Championship! An excellent result!

Give it a go if you dare!

Graeme
Perth, Western Australia

Looks like a lot of fun !

I second..ds

Need a little modification to the cars.
Mallet and ball look good.

Here's a picture of the mallets. We made them with laminated bamboo shafts and glue-lam heads cut down from ceiling beams. The ball is a regular fit-ball which we filled with about 500ml of water so that it would have some weight. We went through three balls during the game as they don't like being run over (or getting stuck on the exhaust underneath the car!)
It was great fun.
Graeme

I also have an auto polo car but have no one to play.

I've always noticed the auto polo cars I've seen have a rather interesting roll cage on them... I'm guessing so when (not if) they went on their sides they'd continue on over and (hopefully) land on their pins again... as if it was a regular and expected occurence to have the rubber sides up... Also makes me wonder what secured the driver and hammer into the car... belts, ropes, or unabashed "brawn" with a bit of luck...

All in all, it looks like a fun time!

Hi Susanne and Steve
Great to see an original old Autopolo car has survived!

The old Autopolo footage shows the "malleteer" or "jockey" scrambling all over the car to hit the ball. I also think that the crashes and rolls were all part of entertaining the crowd, a bit like demolition derbies at the speedway.

We decided on our own "Aussie Rules Autopolo" to make it a bit kinder on our cars and our participants. We decided that the fewer rules the better:

Our Rules of Aussie Rules Autopolo
1. Malleteer can only hit the ball from the left hand side of the car (obviously this would be the opposite for those countries which have Model Ts with steering wheels on the left!).
2. Drivers must only turn right when near the ball to avoid collisions. This avoids both cars turning into the ball and makes it a much more civilised game.
3. No blind reversing for obvious reasons.
4. This is a game of ladies and gentlemen so all other rules of civilised behaviour apply.

That's about it for the rules, except to say that the game starts with the ball in the centre of the field. One team (two cars) can be at the centre line while the other team has to be about 30 metres back from the centre.

When the ball goes out of play, the umpire throws the ball in by standing with his or her back to the field and throwing it blind over his/her head.

We set out to stress that it would be very bad sportsmanship to ram or damage another person's car.

We thought that the game would take a very long time if we had to get the ball through a set of goal posts so we made it a goal if they ball was hit over the end of the field.

We initially thought that four 15 minute quarters would do the trick with five minutes between each quarter and longer in the middle half so that the cars could cool down. We started by subbing a car to each team after 10 minutes so that the Ts could alternate and having a rest. We ended up making it seven and a half minutes on the field before one car was substituted. This seemed to be much simpler. Out of six speedsters, we only had one DNF (did not finish) which was the result of a first gear band beginning to slip. It was the only car with an original, very worn Scandinavian lining. We also found that a Tru-fire timer (the only one on any car in the field) self-destructed. This could have happened at any time but we were all driving our cars with a lot of enthusiasm.

On a 300m by 50m field, the cars only got into top gear when they were trying to get ahead of the play. Otherwise, it was all low gear driving with a lot of manoeuvring. This is what made it such good fun. We were looking for a grass field but nobody wanted us to rip up their grass. I am glad we were allowed to use the private airfield as it had a layer of gravel which made it ideal for tight turns without rolling the cars.

We had the "World Championships" with only two Australian teams. Next year we might include a New Zealand team! It all depends upon how many people want to drive their cars with a bit of enthusiasm. We all had no fear of breaking our Ts because we can all fix 'em ourselves. People can be too precious about their cars.

All in all, it was a great day. Here are some more pics from the test day which we called the "Australian Selection Trials"!

Graeme

But why NOT have the hammer on the right side of the car, whacking around the driver?? --lol-- -- WHAP!! Sorry, mate! --

I remember as a kid people still running 1/4 and 38' mile dirt tracks as "exhibitions" and having hoop-caged polo cars out on a field would be wild!!! Would I do it? You betcha!!! (Just don't tell the other half!!) Calistoga? I wanted a car for that!

It's like the old "destruction derbies" when I was a bit older... we used to buy old retired cop cars and campaign in county fairs (and beef them up, tho in ways the "judges" couldn't see)... actually made some money on a couple of them... An old BF had a Dodge Polara (and they would only allow 1 or 2 of then in a derby because they were just that tough), I had a Ford Galaxy 500 (and a sponsor for radiators!!), it was a FUN car, but man, it couldn't keep up to that Dodge Brothers steel... The Chevys were easy targets...

And I wonder why I have aches in places I shouldn't 40 years later --lol-- But if I could do it again? You betcha!!! THAT was fun!

Left and right hand drive cars in the same Autopolo match - now that would be chaos!

Yep! You call them destruction derbies. We call them demolition derbies! The last word in that form of craziness for us was with caravans being towed behind the cars.

Why not get a couple of teams together and create your own US Championships?! Autopolo could spread around the world again! If this last year has taught us one thing, it's that life is too short to sit around in the waiting room.

A couple more pics to whet your appetite!
Cheers
Graeme

Susanne, I have often said that Calistoga was the most fun I ever had in my life, EVER!
If I had an appropriate car for that? I could get talked into it. I know I have enough right parts for one, but no time to put one together.

Susanne

I do not know if this photo will come through. On this polo car you can see 1 inch pipe going around the car that the mallet holder walks on. It goes all the way around the car. There is also a pipe that goes up and over the top of the car to hang on to. The driver can try to throw you off, but he/she cannot do it. The car belongs to a member of the Milwaukee Model T Club.

Here is another photo which I found at a local market here in Australia.

Hi Peter
I wonder whether that photograph you bought was a publicity shot for the Autopolo matches played in 1930 at the Melbourne Exhibition Speedway? As far as I can find out, the last Autopolo games played in Australia for Ts were in March 1930 when a team representing Canada beat a team from the USA.

Does anyone have a copy of the article in this magazine?

Graeme

Good thought Graeme,

But the photo I have is definitely from the USA
The seller of the photo had a large number of photo's, mostly British and European of 1920/40 race meetings the autopolo was an odd one.

He purchased the whole lot in England, they were from a professional photographer who was a friend of his wife.

You will note the cars are LHD. Don't think it would have been economical to bring the cars in with costs for shipping and duties.

As you noted the match you mention happened in Melbourne in March 1930, one photo in the "Register News Pictorial" showing the event on the 25th March shows the two Fords are RHD so they probably made them in Victoria and the drivers and passengers were likely the only imports.
An advertisement in the Herald on Friday 2st March shows a photo also of RHD cars.

Hi Peter
Yes, it looks like the same madman made both cars judging by the superb rollover protection!
We had fun with our speedsters and no protection whatsoever.
Graeme