Reno shares Basque Culture at 41st Festival

Several hundred festival goers braved the 90 degree heat to enjoy the festivities on Saturday in Reno’s Wingfield Park.  There was a variety of Basque rural sport and dance exhibitions, gastronomy, and music for everyone’s enjoyment.  This is the 41st annual festival and the organizers, Zazpiak Bat (the seven provinces are one), are very keen at understanding the local crowds desire to learn more about Basque cultural and the club’s ability to showcase it in a weekend.

It was also an opportune time for a social gathering of friends and family to chat, laugh, enjoy each other’s company or meet for the first time.  One special feature of the weekend was a father-daughter aizkolari (wood chopping) exhibition and contest.  Stephanie Brana and her father, Juan, were able to show the crowd a popular rural sport that is done is a style that is specific to Basque sport; they step on top of a series of logs and chop in between and around their feet and until each log is chopped through.  What was special about this showing was that a woman was competing; something that is not seen that often.  After the aizkolari axes have ceased feverishly flying through the air and the event is competed, a favorite part for the kids is to pick up the slices of thinly and freshly chopped wood as souvenirs and get an autograph if they are lucky.

There was plenty of music and dancing as well as the evening was capped off with a dinner-dance at the Santa Fe Basque Restaurant.  Event organizers said that many of the patrons were not Basque, thus, they were able to show and be ambassadors of their Basque culture for all to enjoy.