The Century Club, sponsored by the Dressage Foundation, will soon have a new pair to add to its roster. Neva Rae Powers and HA Bold Flyer will be riding their dressage test on Saturday, Nov. 6 at the Palm Beach County Mounted Posse horse show on the grounds of the Jim Brandon Equestrian Center.
To become a member of the Century Club, the ages of the rider and horse must add up to100 years or more. This is the second time the Mounted Posse has sponsored a Century Ride, and the honored horse is the same HA Bold Flyer that was so honored in 2013.
Known in the barn at Casperey Stables, where he has been a lesson horse since 2013, as Flyer or the Flea, the grand gentleman is 28-and-a-half years old. This purebred Florida Arabian had no show experience until his was 20 years old. But in 2016, at age 23, Flyer achieved four top 10 placings at Youth Nationals. He also had regional championships in 2016 and 2018 and is the current Region 12 Youth Arabian Working Hunter Crossrails Champion. Flyer qualifies for his Legion of Honor at the end of the year. He is adored by riders of all ages at Casperey Stables, where he is a patient schoolmaster to young, and not so young, riders. Flyer has a great mind, is inquisitive, level-headed and extraordinarily sound. He bounces off the trailer, ready to do his job with a professional and focused attitude.
Powers has the honor of currently leasing Flyer and has been looking forward to their Century Ride since trainer Gina Pengue told her about it. Powers comes to riding very late in life. She didn’t start lessons until almost age 68, but has found the ideal partner in Flyer. Now 71-and-a-half years old, Powers feels incredibly fortunate to have this opportunity.
“I trained for the stage since I was seven years old,” she said. “There was no time for horses. I was studying the piano, flute, voice, dance and acting all through my youth. You have to have that kind of commitment to make it to Broadway, which I did. But after 50-plus years working in a dark theater, this new life suits me just fine. As a matter of fact, it has totally changed my life’s direction. In addition to my devotion to riding, I am certified by the PATH organization as an equine specialist for mental health and learning, and also completing my fieldwork for certification in the Masterson Method, an equine bodywork discipline. Horses have added more to my life than I ever could have imagined. I feel I am my purest self when riding.”
Mary Jane Scott completed her Century Ride on Flyer in 2013. She bought him at age 17 from breeder Lily Sayre and introduced him to dressage. Scott and Sayre both plan to attend the Century Ride on Nov. 6.
