Saturday was Chuck's 52nd birthday party. Chuck is very well known because of the surf shop but what others may not be aware of is his other passion - horses!!
Fortunately a week prior to the party, I happened to be in his store in Jaco with other friends looking to buy a board. I can't remember how this came up but he mentioned something about horses. I told him I had seen him in Esterillos several times riding a beautiful pinto and that I also owned a horse - a black and white pinto in CA.
In the next moment Chuck informed me that the following Saturday - this past Saturday was his birthday party and he was having a cabalgata to celebrate.
What a cabalgata is - is a "country ride". During the dry season almost every weekend there is a cabalgata or a "tope" somewhere in Costa Rica. As I understand it (which may be wrong).....If the ride is in a city or paved roads it is called a Tope. If the ride is on dirt roads, cross country or beaches it is a Cabalgata. A few days after Christmas the largest tope of the year is held in San Jose, the capital. There are over 4,000 riders in this event. The men can be dressed in anything from casual and work boots to "rhinestone cowboy" - however it is the women who are the show stoppers. They are dressed to kill - often very, very tight jeans and boots that have a deadly heel. And then there are the horses....again, they can be working cattle horses or the very expensive show horses famous for their dance and high step movements.
Like many sports, there are followers who work the circuit and so it was at Chuck's party. He and his family live in a small development across the highway from where I live. I actually expected to see people I know but there was only one person present, who lives in the same development, and he - I barely knew. I didn't even know Chuck's wife and the reality is I only know Chuck from here in EO surfing or at his shop in Jaco. The majority of the people present were riders and their families that came from other areas of Costa Rica to participate in the cabalgata and whom obviously know Chuck for that reason.
So......here I was feeling a bit uncomfortable while surrounded by tico's who are all really good riders with their amazing horses. Fortunately a few other gringos from the development arrived. I did not know them either....but I do now.
Like all cabalgatas I have been to, there was lots of traditional food and music. Since many of the riders come long distances to arrive......by the time we all got organized, I had chosen my "rental cabalgata" horse, it was almost 4:30 pm. Here in CR the sun goes down at 6 pm everyday. All and all, there were about 40 riders.
There is no real organization to any of these events - at least the ones I have been to. In one moment, everyone is getting in the saddle, the next we on the go.
The ride was very dirty in the beginning - down a very dusty road. I soon realized this and got as close to the front as I could. Within a short distance we were soon on trails over looking the ocean. As it got later, we headed to the top of a hill and this is where one of the most important aspects of the cabalgata took place - the distribution and consumption of at least one beer of your choice. It does not matter where you ride on a cabalgata, way up in the very remote mountains, there will always be a beer truck!
This event was last Saturday, the day after the full moon. How is it that one night the sky is all lit up and then the very next day after a full moon - it is pitch black? And so here we were, 40 riders at the top of a hillside consuming beer and then heading out in the dark not knowing where we were or where we were going. The last vision I totally recall was zig zaging down a hill, one horse following another, just enough light you could see a tree branch above one rider in front of you so you had time to duck. Then....when we got to the bottom, because I was about the 12th rider, as we were crossing a small stream and then walking up it to an embankment, the lights of the truck that were shining on the crossing... went out. All of a sudden it was dark, as dark can get when you are standing in a stream in the jungle. I didn't move. Have no idea what happened with the lights but within another moment they were back on. I remember passing a huge herd of cattle and that is all I saw until we were back in the development. At that point you just trust your horse to get you back.
I have now participated in 8 cabalgatas and one tope. Each one unforgettable!
I am so grateful I just happened to be in the right spot at the right time and was invited to this event. Another Costa Rican amazing experience I will never, ever forget.
Muchas Gracias Chuck!!!!!!
Pura Vida
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| Check out the grill- wheel barrel with cement blocks :) |
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| Chuck w/his family |
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| The Birthday Boy |
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