The Iowa State Fair saw a slice of an authentic Mexican rodeo on Sunday afternoon. Charros and Ecaramuza from central Iowa performed on the Fairgrounds for the first time at Elwell Family Park.

The show demonstrated a sport known as Charreria, which is composed of 10 events called Charreada. However due to certain limitations, only five events were displayed including dancing, horsemanship and roping.

“Performing at the fair is amazing,” Alejandra Pina, captain of the Escaramuza Quetzallihas, said. “We’re mostly Iowans so it’s the culmination of a lot of dreams.”

Charreria as a sport orginates in Mexico and requires contestants to demonstrate skills with a lasso and control of their horse. It involves both showmanship and carefully refined technical skill. While Sunday’s show wasn’t competitive, Pina said it was good practice.

“The rings are a bit smaller,” she said. “And the ground is very different. We’re used to soft, sandy surfaces.” Pina’s assistant team coach, Anna Garcia, said she’d rolled her ankle once already after the first show.

President of the Charros clubs in Iowa and announcer at the event Juan Pina said they were “making history as we perform.” The Charros have been in the State Fair Parade for 16 years, but this is their first time performing on the grounds.

The show started with a dance routine by Wendy Espinoza, who shared the ring with a horse that trotted around in time to the music. A live band was present to score most of the show, adding yet more Mexican flair to the event.

After Espinoza, a lone Charros performed a series of technical maneuvers including multiple 360 degree spins in a row. Some of the maneuvers were even performed without a bit, a tool that makes it much easier to control the horse.

One of the highlights was an impressive display of skill with a lasso by Dariel Delgado, one of the younger Charros who performed. Not only did Delgado lasso a horse that was at all full speed, but he also performed 40 consecutive jumps through his lasso, a trick called the Texas Skip.

The crowd was treated to several more dances and shows before the event came to an end.

Pina said he hoped the show would be able to come back next year. Garcia agreed, calling the sport and show a labor of love.

“It’s a really fantastic way to connect with your roots,” she said.

The Escaramuza team that performed can be found on Facebook.