My Mexican heritage wasn't a huge part of my upbringing, aside from the occassional family trip to Pilsen for dozens of warm tamales we'd eat in the backseat of my dad's Thunderbird, low-riding our way back to the Chicago suburbs.
Although my paternal grandparents were born in Mexico, he grew up in a time before being bilingual was cool and didn't pass the language or many cultural traditions to me. My dad died 20 years ago, just as I graduated from high school. One of my last memories of him was how proud he was that I won the English award at honors night.
As an architect, he'd typically wear suits during the week, and sports attire on the weekend. But ever since he was young, my dad fancied himself a Mexican cowboy. He had an intricately tooled leather belt with a big silverwork buckle that hung promiently in the closet. These photos of him are proof of a long-held passion*:
So when DSM editor Michael Morain reached out to see if I'd take on a story about an equestrian drill team steeped in Mexican tradition, it was a quick 'yes' from me. The end result is a dream!
Watching the charrería at the Iowa State Fairgrounds made me feel like I was a little girl, sitting in my dad's lap. He would have loved the pageantry----and probably would have bought himself a whole outfit despite not having a horse or anywhere to ride.
I brought my daughter to the show, Michael brought his mom, and behind-the-scenes DSM designer Annabel Wimer even came, too! We had a blast, despite the unseasonably cold March temps. Highly recommend a trip to the Iowa Horse Fair next spring!
Huge thanks to the editorial team at DSM, photographer Janae Gray whose stunning images capture the layered beauty and movement of the sport and of course Alejandra Piña and Unión de Asociaciones de Charros del Estado de Iowa for sharing their story!
*UPDATE: My amazing aunt had the backstory to the photos of my dad. Apparently, my grandmother entered a contest to name Gene Autry’s new horse and listed his name on the entry form. The name was “Lucero” ("bright star" in Spanish). The prize was a train trip for two to Gene Autry’s ranch out West …and the spiffy outfit that he is wearing in the promotional photos taken! I also have photos of my dad wearing a cowboy outfit as a small child, so I'm sure this was an incredible experience for him.
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