Lords, ladies, knights, and squires – 2,500 in all, descend on the town of Asti each year. They gather for a horse race, a bareback horserace.
Commoners stand outside the gates to gaze at the glorious entry.
An artist composes a scene in chalk to evoke a response from the noblemen.
Twenty-one horses carry riders to vie for victory – to stand among the triumphant who have raced here since 1275. There are three preliminary heats, seven horses compete in each. The horse does not need a rider to win.
15,000 people watch.
In the first heat, two riders are thrown.
In the third heat, the Viatosto horse wins without his rider.
In the end, only one wears the crown.
Kathy (trekcapri) says
September 24, 2011 at 1:53 pmHi there, I found your blog from Slow Travel. Beautiful photos! This looks like a wonderful event. Thanks so much for posting your photos and for sharing your experiences.
marissa says
September 24, 2011 at 6:01 pmThank you and welcome!
Thom says
September 23, 2011 at 9:06 pmNow THAT looks like my kind of fun. Who knew they had gorgeous ladies being chased by Sasquatches there?
Been meaning to ask, getting ready for blogging on my Bolivia/ Peru trip. Is there a certain upload/app system you’re using? Got WordPress App for Ipad, but I am guessing you are using a laptop? Or are you uploading thru hotel cpus?
marissa says
September 24, 2011 at 6:03 pmGorgeous ladies is right – so many. Did you notice the bare feet on the Ents (Sasquatches)?
Tim says
September 23, 2011 at 4:27 pmMagnificent pictures, the ents (tree men) are new this year and I haven’t seen the wikipedia reference before. You didn’t mention that this years winner was San Damiano.
marissa says
September 23, 2011 at 8:05 pmYou’re right! I poked around for a good jpg of their flag, but came up empty handed so left it undone – probably not fair to San Damiano. 🙂 What a race!