Jesús María 2022: Malena Carignano, pilchera by profession

Every night, on the dressage field of the José Hernández Amphitheater, an activity is carried out that combines tradition, passions and, for a few years, also staunch detractors, those who advocate for the rights of horses. Jesús María 2022: Malena Carignano, pilchera de profesión Jesús María 2022: Malena Carignano, pilchera de profesión

In the midst of this stormy combination, after an edition canceled due to the pandemic, the Jesús María Festival once again summons all those who join the rodeo.

While the artists parade on the Martín Fierro stage, on that green heart in the center there are, during the night, several batches of rodeo, in its three categories.

It is a complex team that makes sure that everything goes as it has to go: there are many roles and much more than the riders in the field. There is the foreman, in charge of everything, the sponsors, who are in charge of catching the rider who completes his seconds and must get off the horse, also carriers who bring the animals from the stables to the posts.

Jesús María 2022, day 5: with the Los Tekis carnival in Jujuy, the first full house arrived

In addition, in this whirlwind the pilcheros stand out, those who carry the "pilchas"; that is, the elements that are used for riding and that vary from category to category, before the riders leave.

All those faces are mostly male, there is an overwhelming predominance. And in the middle, you can see just a couple of female faces, with loose hair that remind us that yes, women were and are: they may not have as much place, they may have a more humble role, but they are and will continue to be.

Together with Claudia Ávila, who has been a pilchera for several years, rides Malena Carignano, a 19-year-old girl with bright eyes and proud of her place in this event of dressage and folklore.

Raised in the countryside, used to working on it with her father, she says that she went to the Festival for the first time "in her mother's belly", and since Jesús María is a tradition for her family, not a single one has been lost since then. moment. In fact, her father is Sebastián Carginano, the field foreman. Her mother is a typical clothing manufacturer and has one of the stalls.

inheritance issue

“We are from Salsipuedes. My family has always been part of the festival. My grandfather was the first champion, Emilio Toranzo. My other grandfather was a field foreman, also a sworn man for many years, ”she relates.

Jesús María 2022: Malena Carignano, pilchera de profesión

Today, Malena is studying veterinary medicine at the National University of Río Cuarto and dreams of specializing in large animals. If she can be a skill horse, if not polo would be a good option. She says that she really enjoyed her first year of college, despite her "pandemic" status.

Of course, she has also ridden since she was very young: "As a baby they took me and when she was two or three years old she was alone." That was how this opportunity opened up for her. “Before there was another girl who was a pilchera and who didn't come anymore. As they know that I ride a horse and I am always there, they told me about the internal commission to ask me if she wanted to go. She was still a minor when she came the first time,” she specified.

Malena is happy because this "is a place that many people want." This year they called her back and of course, there she is.

She says that every day her family returns to her home in Salsipuedes. They usually make the daily trip with three horses. His is called Sacristan.

His obligations in the field end between 12 at night and one in the morning, with the last round of riding.

During the day, Malena sometimes accompanies her father on her duties, such as checking and checking the condition of the horses, or helping her mother at the stall.

Has she imagined herself one day as, say, a field foreman? Have there been women in that role? “There haven't been any. This is a bit of a macho environment. It is good that there are women who work and the truth is that everyone gives you participation, no one makes you feel useless or nothing. I already knew everyone who works so maybe it's different there. However, everyone is always fine with me, ”she replies. For Malena, her place is to “represent the country woman”, give visibility.

good impact

While she doesn't consider herself strictly a feminist, she does support many issues in the struggle. “When a woman makes a mistake doing the same task as a man, she is much more criticized, it is not good. That is why it is good to represent this in the best way, to show that women can also do these things.”

Although it may not seem like much, it has repercussions that she and the other pilchera are every night performing their duties in that sea of ​​men. A lot is noticeable among the little ones: "The girls come, say hello, ask you to take pictures," she comments, delighted.

She also reflects on the criticism of the rodeo and the protectionist action: “For some years the rodeo has been regulated, there is a breed of horses, an association that regulates, as there is also an Argentine polo association. Before, the riders were perhaps stallholders or people who worked in the fields, now they are athletes, they prepare themselves”.

“It is a difficult issue because they are very different views, it is difficult to understand each other. There is also a lot of ignorance, there are things that are supposed to be one way and they are not. Maybe it's a bit of our fault too, for not making it so widely known, ”she thinks.

On the other hand, she thinks about the use of helmets and other protection elements, which were planned for this year but could not be implemented due to pandemic delays in distribution, as explained by the Festival.

"It was good to wear a helmet and a vest," she says about it. As long as an accident is avoided, that's a lot. Some are against it but I think it's fine. The fact that a sport is made means that it begins to be regulated like this”.

Malena's mother, Alejandra Toranzo, smiles when talking about her daughter and says: "She loves all this, it is her passion. Anyway, she doesn't come to do this today, she does it every day, she works on the farm: she goes to the fields alone, she takes care of a calf, everything”.

“And she really likes horseback riding. She is also a super friend, and a very happy girl and very close to her father, ”she rounds off.

“She has two brothers, they can also work in the fields but they don't like horse riding. But we have tried to raise them as free as possible so that they can make their own decisions, ”she completes.

At dawn, when she finishes everything, she only has to relax and enjoy. Malena says that she joins the leisure alternatives, but before she observes that "January 2021 was very rare, the first summer without a festival."

And then she adds: “This year is also weird anyway, it's not a very common festival, which is always a party and full of people. It is a little more subdued but it is good that it was possible to do it, and I see a lot of people with a mask.”

"It's also a party: there are things to do, bowling alleys... I would have liked to see Los Manseros and I like that there is a quartet after the folklore, I want to see La Konga," she concludes.

Thus, when she gets off the horse, she takes the opportunity to enjoy those festival and summer nights with friends.