Carabao racing is so rad!

May 27, 2011 by Grace

In my lifetime I have seen turtles race, spiders fight and crabs wrestle but I never knew that carabaos could race! I had the opportunity to watch these hefty farm animals go neck and neck during a Filipino Fiesta at my mom’s hometown of Nueva Ecija . It was spectacular! I never knew they could run very fast.

Little did I know that carabao racing is serious business among farmers in the province. I got a chance to sit down and talk to my uncle who used to own a champion carabao. He said that these carabaos are trained like horses. They are also bred to race. One can cost from anywhere to Php 50,000 to 200,000 (USD 1,000-5,000) depending on the beast’s genealogy, speed and training.

Carabao racers can win up Php 25,000 to 50,000 (USD 500-1000) per contest. So every summer (March-May) when fiestas are happening all over the country some would go from town to town in order to join the local race. For a farmer to win 1-2 contests is a big deal. Plus they get bragging rights aside from the prize money.

If you want to see why carabao racing is so rad check out this exciting video that I captured especially for you: