Whether she’s working with a training-level mount or an experienced Grand Prix partner, dressage trainer and competitor Jessica Jo “J.J.” Tate starts most rides with a simple 20-meter circle exercise to gain her horse’s focus and enhance responsiveness.

“My goal is that the horse sort of yields and softens its rib cage on the inside, so I can get control of the inside hind leg, so I can create a little bit better access to the horse’s bend, as well as his mind,” said Tate, who is based in Landrum, S.C., and Wellington, Fla.

Richard Freeman wasn’t exactly desperate to enter the Century Club. In fact, he wasn’t even aware of the award, which riders achieve by completing a dressage test where the combined age of horse and rider is at least 100 years. The Century Club was formed in 1996 by The Dressage Foundation, a 501c3 that provides financial support for the advancement of U.S. dressage.