History of Tarahumara foot Races

The Tarahumara live in the mountain in the state of Chihuahua in northern Mexico,This is an area of high mountains and deep tropical valleys. It sometimes snows in the mountains in winter. The Tarahumara live in caves, or wooden or stone houses. They have small farms. There are not many roads.                   Other Mexican tribes use horses or donkeys for travel. The Tarahumara walk wherever they need to go. They carry heavy baskets on their backs. Perhaps this is why the Tarahumara are excellent runners. They can run many kilometers without getting tired, and they like to organize races.
                   When the men race, they kick a wooden ball ahead of them while they run. Before they start racing, they plan where and how long they will run.  They might run just a few minutes, or they might run for several hours. Sometime they run in teams, and sometime each person runs as an individual.
                   The women’s races are similar except that the women do not kick a ball. They throw a wooden hoop in front of them with a stick. A hoop is a ring or circle.                   The Tarahumara have other games and sports. They even play a kind of lacrosse. However, they are famous because they can run so fast and so far.