Annual event in eastern Santa Ynez Valley brings together barbecue, wine, and horses
A sold-out crowd of 300 gathered in boots and fancy hats at the Piocho Ranch on Sunday, June 29, for the 13th annual 2025 Santa Ynez Valley Polo Classic.
Proceeds from the event benefit People Helping People (PHP), the Valley’s lifeline for vulnerable residents in need of food, shelter, medical care, and connection to other critical services.
Holding an American flag under a bright blue sky with the mountains as a backdrop, Sean Pitts, one of the owners of Happy Canyon Vineyards, kicked off the main match. “There is no greater honor than to help People Helping People,” announced Pitts.
Sean and his wife, Jodi Barrack Pitts, and TJ Barrack are longtime supporters of the Classic. The trio took over running the event when a more elaborate version became an organizational burden for the small nonprofit. It has transitioned from an ultra-chic day in the country to a casual event that is pure Valley, bringing together barbecue, wine, and horses.
“I just am so grateful to them,” PHP Board President Becky Barieau said. “They chose to maintain the continuity and the legacy of the polo event and it still benefits us. It’s a great thing. It’s a really great thing.”
“It’s about the community that People Helping People supports that are near and dear to our hearts,” Sean Pitts said, noting PHP’s support of ranch and farm laborers. Jodi Barrack Pitts’ family has been part of the Santa Ynez community for well over three decades. She added, “We really love where we live and we want to give back where we live. And we love what they do.”
Joel Baker, a local high-goal player and national coach, started the Santa Ynez Valley Polo Classic with People Helping People in 2012. That relationship is especially meaningful to PHP this year as they just helped facilitate the first residents to move into Polo Village, a beautiful, new, affordable housing complex in Buellton.
The Polo Village development is built on the very land where the Classic started, a polo field formerly owned by Baker. Forty-nine family members and individuals now have permanent housing at this complex designed for seniors, veterans, and working families, along with PHP support services to ensure they stay in that housing.
This year members of La Herradura Polo Club run by Memo Gracida, the legendary polo player, took to the field in the Polo Classic to face off in two matches. The lone woman on the Red team, Gina Padilla, scored four of the team’s five goals. Despite her success, the opposing team won, leaving Guille Aguero, Brent Hamill, Jim Mintie, and Matt Thake to lift the celebratory bottles of Happy Canyon wines.
To learn more about People Helping People go to syvphp.org, or call (805) 686-0295.
