WHERE SILK MEETS THUNDER:

Inside the World of Escaramuza

foto por Bernal Q

On a lonely stretch of road to Londres, amid the humid hum of a Naranjito night, something is about to happen. From the end of a darkening dirt track, drifting on the tenderest of tropical breezes, come the strains of Latino music from a small speaker, the sound of ladies’ muted laughter, chatter, and the occasional whinny of a quarterhorse. The track leads you to the horses and their riders themselves, warming up in a sandy arena. Brightly floodlit, it casts the surrounding jungle into dense blackness, shining light instead on swishing tails and cowboy boots, and on the dust clouds raised by the drumming tattoo of eight dancing sets of choreographed hooves. 

These are the Escaramuzas Antares, an all-women riding group that practices and performs the Mexican equestrian sport of escaramuza, with a uniquely Costa Rican twist. Ranging in age from 13 to 53 and with equally diverse backgrounds - veterinarians, business owners, occupational therapists and high school students - once a week, in that quiet jungle spot, they all come together to rehearse what they have in common - their love of escaramaza.

The word ‘escaramuza’ means skirmish, a fast and tactical clash, and the name carries the echo of history. Long before escaramuza was formalized as a sport, women rode out of necessity: on ranches, on haciendas, and during the Mexican Revolution, when soldaderas rode ahead of armies and, working in unison, performed tactical maneuvers such as circling and kicking up dust to disorient advancing enemies.

For centuries, those rides slipped quietly through history, unmarked and unrecorded. Charrería—the national equestrian sport of Mexico—celebrated masculine feats of roping, riding, and dominance over cattle. Women were present, but rarely at the center of the action.

Escaramuza changed that. In the mid-20th century, women entered the arena - not as ornaments, but as athletes: forming teams, strategizing movements, and demanding to be seen. They went one hoofstep further, though - escaramuza is a story brought to life; a living testimony to history, courage and sorority, performed by a group of eight women who ride in sweeping skirts and guide their horses with an almost telepathic touch. They did not merely invent a sport; they embodied a moment. 

Rehearsal photos by Rachel Mary Prout

The women of Escaramuza Antares and their coach Emmanuel Arias, inspired by the equitation skills of an event in which horses are not treated as props but rather as partners, adopted the tradition and spun it with vibrant Costa Rican folklore and symbolism. The flowing dresses replicate the costumes worn in traditional folkloric dancing, be it the red, white and blue of the national flag, or skirts woven in the violet of Costa Rica’s national flower, the guaria morada. Unlike their Mexican counterparts, the ladies of Antares don’t ride side saddle; instead, they sit astride their horses with their billowing skirts flowing behind them and across the flanks of their equine teammates. 

It is the discipline and meaning of escaramuza itself that drew the Antares women away from competition, leading them instead to perform as an exhibition. Their spectacle lives somewhere between dressage and dance, lingering in the mind long after the music quiets and the riders wave goodbye.

Eight riders enter the arena and become a single organism. They cross paths, weaving in and out with inches to spare. Partners meet and turn in a move reminiscent of a waltz. In the centre of the arena they become a single, spinning line. Swirling formations of palomino, pinto and appaloosa form circles, converge, separate, and converge again. The arena becomes a geometry of motion - lines, arcs, intersections drawn and erased in seconds. 

The riders trust one another completely, surrendering individuality to the rhythm of the group in a breathtaking display of skill and of confidence - in themselves, in their sisters, and in their steeds. The soundtrack starts with the spirited jangle of traditional Costa Rican tune, before shifting gear into a banjo-driven country score and finally exploding into rock, all backed by the spontaneous whoops and cheers from the crowd - an auditory display to mirror the pace and excitement of the visual extravaganza unfolding below.

The music fades, the skirmish ends, and the dust settles under hooves which are stilled once more. A tangible sense of triumph hangs in the hot humid air; triumph not only at a performance well-executed but triumph that the performance exists at all. 

The Escaramuzas Antares have harnessed a piece of history, stitched it with Costa Rican color and ridden it into the present with femininity and pride. They are a living reminder that history is not a closed book; it is a trail, and it belongs to all those who dare to blaze it, to reinvent it, and, most of all, to those who dare to ride. 

The Escaramuzas Antares are:

Victoria Dalton 

Valeria Campos

Ariana Quesada

Gabriella Dalton

Paula Leon

Audry Matarrita

Lani Castro

Kristine Morley

Follow them on Instagram @escaramuzas_antares_cr.

Caballeriza Antares is owned and run by Emanuel Arias and his wife, Mary Cruz Garro.