A Mexican charro event in which a rider leaps from his own galloping horse onto an unbroken mare and rides her until she stops, scored over a first and a second attempt.
El paso de la muerte, literally the pass of death, is the closing spectacle of the charro programme in Mexican charreria. The charro rides out on a horse, comes alongside an untamed mare running loose in the lienzo, the charro ring, and transfers from his own saddle onto her bare back at speed. Once across, he has to stay on her and ride her out until she is brought to a stop. The skill is the transfer: timing it, committing to it and keeping a seat afterwards on an animal that has never carried a rider.
On eTalenter the item is individual. A competitor enters alone and is placed in one of six age-based groups: Dientes de Leche up to 10, Infantil A up to 12, Infantil B up to 15, Juvenil for riders under 18 by birth year, Libre for the general adult field and Mayores for riders aged 50 and over. The template gives the same male, Spanish-language item to every group, so a single set-up covers the full age range.
The source rules describe the scoring in terms of attempts. A rider who completes the pass on the first vuelta, or turn, scores 20 points; one who needs a second vuelta scores 15. Infractions then deduct 2, 4, 6 or 10 points depending on how serious the fault is. The template carries 20 as the maximum for each group, which matches the first-vuelta figure, but the rules do not describe it as a general ceiling for every kind of total, so treat it as the scoresheet default.
Organisers run it because it completes the set of nine traditional events (suertes) on a charro championship card, and because it is the one most spectators remember. It is also the most dangerous item on the list. Whether and how the youngest groups attempt it, and what safety arrangements apply, is the organiser's decision and should be checked against the event's own rules before the programme is published.
Where El Paso de la Muerte comes from
The pass belongs to the horse culture of the Mexican hacienda, where riders handled half-wild stock on open ground. Charreria later turned the manoeuvre into a formal event with defined attempts and deductions.
Where El Paso de la Muerte is run
On eTalenter this item is used in one template, built from the official rules of the national charro championship of Mexico. Charreria is practised in Mexico and in Mexican communities in the United States, but each association publishes its own rule book, categories and scoring tables, so coordinators should follow the rules of the event they are running.
- Mexico
Key facts
- Individual item: one rider per entry
- Template assigns it to six age groups, from Dientes de Leche (up to 10) to Mayores (50 and over)
- The rider crosses from his own horse onto an unbroken mare and rides her until she stops
- Per the source rules, 20 points for a completed first vuelta and 15 for the second, less deductions of 2, 4, 6 or 10 for infractions
- Run in Spanish; no time limit is set in the template
- Ninth and last of the nine traditional charro events (suertes) listed on the template
On eTalenter, El Paso de la Muerte is filed under On Stage and typically scored with Marks. It appears in 1 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.
Across the templates that use it, El Paso de la Muerte is most often entered as an Individual competition, commonly run for Male, typically scored out of 20.
How it is scored
The scoring method the templates attach to this item, and what that scale means.
- Best score is
- the highest
- Decimal places
- 2
- Used for
- Arts
Where it sits
The category this competition is filed under when a template is installed.
Others in this category: Dance, Music, Drama, Mimicry, Debate, Elocution, Story Telling, Group Song, Action Song
Judging criteria installed for it
eTalenter matches an item to its criteria on the words in its name, and creates exactly these when the template is installed.
No criteria match this name, so none are created automatically — judges score it on the event’s own criteria instead.
What judges look at in El Paso de la Muerte
What a El Paso de la Muerte panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- The transfer: a clean crossing from one horse to the other, committed and well timed, is what the whole event is about
- First vuelta against second: completing on the first attempt is worth 20, a second attempt only 15, so a rider who hesitates gives up five points before the ride begins
- Staying on after the pass: a secure seat on the bare-backed mare until she is stopped finishes the score
- Control of the ride out: bringing the mare to a halt in order and without chaos shows the rider was never just a passenger
- Infractions: faults are deducted by grade, 2, 4, 6 or 10 points, so a clean pass beats a spectacular one with errors
- Approach: matching the speed and line of the mare before crossing sets up everything that follows
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for El Paso de la Muerte under Scoring Setup, or start from judge scoring and tabulation software.
How to prepare for El Paso de la Muerte
How entrants and their teachers usually get El Paso de la Muerte right on the day:
- Read the event rules first for what counts as a vuelta, what counts as an infraction and how each is graded, and rehearse to that list
- Build the fundamentals under a qualified instructor: balance, bareback seat, leg strength and quiet hands, before any attempt at the pass itself
- Practise the crossing in stages, on trained and steady horses, at slow speeds, and only increase speed when the last stage is safe and repeatable
- Work on decisiveness: a half-committed leap is the commonest way to lose the first vuelta, so train the approach until the take-off is automatic
- Agree a routine with your helpers and the arena crew, so the mare, the pickup riders and the timing are all understood before you enter the ring
- Check protective equipment, footing and a first-aid plan well before the day, and have an experienced charro watch a recording and call out faults you cannot feel yourself
Events that run this (1)
Ready-made templates that already include this competition. Installing one sets it up for you.
Frequently asked questions
Is El Paso de la Muerte judged individually or as a team?
Across eTalenter's templates it's most often run as an Individual entry, commonly for Male, though an organiser can set either participation type when assigning the item to an age group.
What does el paso de la muerte mean?
It translates as the pass of death. It names the moment a charro crosses from his own horse onto an untamed mare while both are moving, then rides her out.
How is el paso de la muerte scored?
The source rules score a completed first vuelta at 20 points and a second vuelta at 15, with deductions of 2, 4, 6 or 10 points for infractions.
Is it a team or an individual event?
It is individual. Each entry is one rider, and the template assigns it to every age group so each rider is scored on his own pass.
Is it the same as jineteo de yegua?
No. Jineteo de yegua is staying on a bucking mare from the start of the ride. In el paso de la muerte the rider begins on his own horse and the transfer onto the mare is the main skill. Each is its own item on the template.
Similar competitions
Items whose names share a word with this one — usually the same discipline in another form.
Want the full judging picture? Read judge scoring and tabulation software, or browse every on stage competition item.
Try El Paso de la Muerte in eTalenter
See every ready-made template that runs El Paso de la Muerte, and install one as a live event — age groups, rules and scoring included.
