Valentin Valerin Viales is the quintessential sabanero, or cowboy. He grew up and has spent his life working in the heart of cowboy country Guanacaste. For decades, this province of cattle, horses and dance has dedicated its economic activity to working the land. Ranching and farming became rooted traditions in people's way of life, and today the region still maintains its sabanero folklore, customs and music and, certainly, its typical dances.
However, thanks to the influx of tourism into the region, local ranchers have slowly begun to take advantage of an added economic opportunity: turning their properties into visiting attractions to explore. Many ranchers simply sold their fincas (or farms), while others opted to diversify and expand their traditional way of life to include tourist activities.
Luckily for Valentin, a Georgia developer named H.G. Patillo purchased one of these Guanacaste farms with the intention of keeping it operational. He envisioned a development called Hacienda Pinilla Beach Resort and Residential Community, a place that would lodge and entertain visitors while providing an opportunity to view firsthand a working cattle ranch in action.
Today, this weathered sabanero works alongside seven people Jose Roberto Moreno Zúñiga, Bryan Villalta Cardenas, Elpidio Ortega Obando, Arturo Coronado, Roberto Ruiz Matarrita, Adriana Bermudez Solano and Marissa Marin Vallejos, the stable's operations manager. The group is in charge of looking after 32 adult and eight small horses of the Criollo breed from this region, plus two of the lbero breed. The Criollo breed is the symbol of the equestrian culture in Latin America. They were brought to this continent by Spaniards during the 16th century and their hardy stock held up so well that they became the best breed, not only for cowboy work throughout the region, but also for excellent performance in the rodeo ring.
Through his work, Valentin enjoys sharing his Guanacastecas culture by showing all visitors his way of life. He says "We use machetes and traditional saddles called gruperas, when putting the show together to let the people see the way we, the sabaneros, traditionally work with the horses and bulls."
From January through March, Hacienda Pinilla holds its Fiesta Sabanera rodeo show, which opens to the public every weekend. "We bring Los de la Bajura, a group from Santa Cruz that plays traditional music and performs dances of the region dressed in traditional typical attire. Sabaneros accompany the dancers by doing horse formations, roping tricks, bull riding and more," said Marissa Marin.
Inside the Pinilla corral, a thrilling joust between beast and man takes place. The show is a spectacle in which sabaneros challenge bulls by riding and taunting them. No blood is shed - unless the animal actually makes a pointed connection to the man passing a cape in front of him. Groups of other cowboys run around the ring yelling, enticing the bull to surge towards them before they hightail it safely over the sides of the railing.
Amongst all the hustle and bustle, Valentin lights up. "I'm very happy to do this work," Valentin confirms with a smile.
People and Society 
