It’s the Escaramuza, part of a Mexican rodeo, in which girls and women in elaborate gowns ride side-saddle on a horse and perform choreographed, synchronized movements.

By Elizabeth Flores

The Minnesota Star Tribune

August 9, 2024 at 2:00PM

The Amazonas de Minnesota Escaramuza team compete during a charreria at the AAA Ranch in Ham Lake, Minn., on Sunday, July 21, 2024. They ride in a group of eight and ride at the same time and is choreographed. They also do tricks with their horses and compete in their abilities as riders. (Elizabeth Flores/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

On a hot Saturday in July, Esmeralda Garcia Del Rio’s back was aching from falling off a horse the previous week. But that didn’t stop her from participating in the first Escaramuza competition in Minnesota.

“I never imaged becoming an Escaramuza,” said Garcia Del Rio, a 48-year-old grandmother of four, from Hastings.

Escaramuza is an event in a Mexican rodeo (a charreria) where groups of eight girls and women ride side-saddle in carefully choreographed, synchronized movements. They wear a sash (rebozo), traditional sombreros and ruffled undergarments under beautiful dresses. Some hold a satchel. All of the competitors must dress identically and their horses must also be dressed alike.

Charreria, which includes roping, bull riding and bareback riding, has been a tradition among men in Mexico for hundreds of years and has grown in popularity in the United States. Escaramuza, an event for women only, is less known in the U.S. But now 18 states have teams. This is the first year Minnesota has held an official competition, said Veronica Maldonado, of Rosemount, who has been training young girls in the sport since 2016.

As the Minnesota Escaramuzas State Delegate, Maldonado organized the inaugural state championship competition at the AAA Ranch in Ham Lake in mid-July. Three teams of riders, ranging in age from 10 to 50, put their athletic skills on horseback to the test. Two judges from Mexico were flown in for the event.

Escaramuza teams compete throughout the year, and the competition culminates in a tournament in November in Mexico, where the rodeo is considered the national sport.

“It’s a very complex sport and it is important for the choreography to be precise because you are riding at a fast speed on the horse and any errors can be dangerous,” Maldonado said.

It’s also a feast for the eyes.

If you’d like to see it for yourself, will compete at halftime during a Charreria on Aug. 24 at 55431 305th Lane NW. in Cambridge, Minn. (The rodeos begin at 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.) $20 per carload.

Juana Villagrana, left, from North Branch helps Itziry Pliego, right, from Eagan, tie her rebozo at the AAA Ranch in Ham Lake on Aug. 3. On this day, The Escaramuza Charra Las Coronelas de Minnesota were training the younger girls on the art of being an Escaramuza. The girls began riding in 2016 but recently started competing. (Elizabeth Flores/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Esmeralda García Del Rios, from the team Amazonas de Minnesota, competes in the “Dar Punta” part of the competition at the AAA Ranch in Ham Lake on July 21. In the “Dar Punta,” the rider must ride as fast as they can for 60 meters and try to stop it within a 20 meter length. The measurement is based on the amount of prints the back legs drag. (Elizabeth Flores/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

A member of Las Amazonas de Minnesota wraps a rosary around her rebozo as she prepares for competition at the AAA Ranch in Ham Lake on Aug. 3. The rosary or any other religious pin or piece of jewelry is used for protection from harm. The rebozo must be tied in a special knot to the left of her waist when competing on a horse. (Elizabeth Flores/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Samantha Ortiz Esparza, with the team Las Amazonas de Minnesota, watches the charreria before she competes at the AAA Ranch in Ham Lake on July 21. (Elizabeth Flores/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Family, friends, coaches and spectators watch as Escaramuzas compete in a tournament that will lead the winner to compete in Mexico at the AAA Ranch in Ham Lake on July 21. (Elizabeth Flores/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Zoila Cardenas, center, a judge that was brought to Minnesota from Guadalajara Jalisco, Mexico, and Laura Ferrer, from Aguascalientes, Mexico, judge the Amazonas de Minnesota Escaramuza team during a competition at the AAA Ranch in Ham Lake on July 21. There were two judges from the Federción Mexicana de Charreria, (The Federation of Mexican Charreria) that judged the competition between Escaramuzas. (Elizabeth Flores/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

The Escaramuza Charra Las Coronelas de Minnesota team compete in a group of eight and ride at the same time and choreographed at the AAA Ranch in Ham Lake on July 21, 2024. (Elizabeth Flores/The Minnesota Star Tribune)