United States Eventing Association

“Shall we do this together today?”

Susan Burwen has been asking her horses that question every time she swings a leg up into the saddle for nearly three decades. In early May, she asked that question one more time as she and her horse, C Taz Go, took part in a time-honored eventing tradition—the Century Ride.

The USEA Century Ride Achievement Award, sponsored by Spokane Sport Horse Farm, has been awarded only six times since 2022. A true achievement, it marks a milestone ride for horse and rider pairs whose combined age equals at least 100. In order to receive the award, the pair must complete any level of eventing at a recognized event.

On May 23 at Woodside Horse Trials, in Woodside, California, Burwen and “Taz” officially completed their Century Ride, earning a score of 31.7 and finishing third in the Senior Rider Starter division. “It was absolutely fantastic,” Burwen said of her Century Ride. “I came in third, which was amazing. The dressage, the stadium, were OK, but the cross-country was just a blast. It was so much fun.”

Having competed up to Novice level, Starter was a hat trick for Burwen and Taz, who have danced through the last decade together. She purchased the now 22-year-old Thoroughbred/Westphalian cross when he was 12.

“Liz Hall and I were going on a horse buying trip to the East Coast, and Taz was for sale in Boyd Martin's barn,” Burwen said. “I was a little leery in the sense that when you usually get a more advanced horse, that's what they're used to doing and that's what they want to do. They want to go fast and be more aggressive than I would want to ride.”

Taz turned out not to be your typical upper-level event horse. While he had competed up to the Preliminary level with Bradley Champagne, he was still a “steady Eddie.”

“Taz was extremely mellow and, at the same time, extremely well-trained,” Burwen said. “He's so responsive off the leg and the seat. He's just amazing and a really talented horse. I’ve never had any issues riding him at lower levels. He was just happy to do whatever I wanted.”

It wasn’t until recently that Burwen learned about the Century Award, but she wasted no time in submitting her application. “I didn't even know there was such a thing as a Century Ride until I was in a tack shop—I know the owner—and we were just talking,” she said.

Burwen started riding later in life. Growing up in New York City, her access to horses was limited by a variety of factors, not the least of which was plain geography. “When I was growing up, in my wildest dreams, I never thought that I would own a horse, let alone ride a horse in eventing,” Burwen said. “It was just inconceivable when I was growing up, and I still have a hard time believing it.”

But in 1971, Burwen and her husband, David Burwen, moved from the East Coast to the San Francisco Bay area in California. Across the country from where she first dreamed of riding a horse, she finally had the opportunity to take some basic lessons and realize her childhood dream.

“Really, I started to ride when I was 50 years old,” Susan said. “I love the interaction with the horse. As I say, I feel like it's like having a dance partner. I just find it just so gratifying. It's really about the relationship with the horse.”

Susan credits her ability to ride into her late 70s (with no plans to quit anytime soon) to her dedication to working out. She also lives an active lifestyle with David, as they both enjoy hiking and traveling. “If I didn't work out and work on what I call the big five—core, balance, flexibility, strength and stamina—I don't think I would be doing what I'm doing now,” she said.

As the years go by, Susan says that she feels grateful for every ride, not only because of her childhood dream, but because of her barn friends that have become like family.

“Every time I ride, I feel like it's a dream come true that I never believed would ever happen,” she said. “I feel a lot of gratitude, a huge amount of gratitude. When I first started riding, I realized that not only am I riding a horse, but I'm also acquiring a whole new group of friends. It's been really nice to have that and to share the same passion. It just still seems like such an unbelievable thing to me, that here I am doing this when I was dreaming of it growing up.”

Those same friends pulled out all the stops for Susan’s Century Ride at Woodside Horse Park. At every turn, they surprised her with cardboard cutouts, custom t-shirts, a videographer, surprise party, and more.

“Everybody in my barn bought t-shirts and baseball caps in purple, because that's my favorite color, with a big logo about Susie and Taz’s Century Ride and lots of videos, and then a great surprise party for me on Saturday night, which I had no idea about,” she said. “I walked into the restaurant, and all of a sudden there's 30 people saying ‘Surprise!’ My coach, who had been my trainer for 20 years was there, everybody from my new barn was there, and some of my dear riding friends from the past. It made my jaw drop. I was just so overwhelmed. Truly one of the great highlights of my life.”

“They decorated the temporary stabling with these incredible banners for Susie that were just amazing, with pictures of Susie and Taz,” David added. “They had cardboard cutouts. It wasn't just balloons and that sort of thing—it was highly customized. They’d obviously been planning it for months.”

The crowning moment of the day was a surprise video from Boyd Martin, who Susan said remembered Taz from when Champagne rode him at Martin’s facility.

“It was so cool because he was riding a horse while videoing,” David added. “He talked about how much he admired what she did, and how he hoped someday he might do a Century Ride, and on and on and on. It was beyond amazing.”

With the excitement of this achievement behind her, Susan says she has no plans to slow down anytime soon and is instead aiming to compete in the USEA American Eventing Championships presented by Nutrena Feeds this August in California. When asked what keeps her coming back to the barn and swinging a leg over Taz’s back, Susan said her love of riding is rooted in her relationship with her horses.

“It's really about the partnership,” she said. “It's about understanding that you are, by permission, sitting on the back of an animal that is an animal of prey, and you are a predator. They are giving you permission to be on their backs and to work with you.”