Local Man to Showcase 'Unrideable' Horse in Cancer Benefit

When Jeff Dwyer was 10 years old, he snuck over the fence onto neighbor's property and hopped onto the back of an unfamiliar horse.

Time and time again, he got thrown off. But he kept trying.

"He would promptly buck me off," Dwyer recalled in an interview from Maryland Sunrise Farm in Gambrills. "But I did it all summer until he finally would let me ride him." 

The experience led to some riding lessons, which led to a lifetime of riding horses, including some that were supposedly "unrideable." 

This weekend, Dwyer will ride "Coca," a 12-year-old Morgan horse, in the Potomac Valley Dressage Association's Ride for Life. All proceeds from the event in Upper Marlboro will go to the Johns Hopkins Avon Foundation Breast Center.

Coca, like the horse from his childhood, was supposed to be unrideable when he arrived at Maryland Sunrise Farm in early 2012. He came from Vermont, where he had been raised by College Foster, an aunt of Dwyer's girlfriend. 

Foster had been diagnosed with breast cancer, and wasn't sure if she could care for Coca. 

A year later, Coca was not only settled in at Maryland Sunrise Farm, but trained to take part in dressage shows. 

"He had gotten rid of every rider that got on him in the last 10 years," Dwyer said. "Coca had spent a lot of time being the boss, rather than doing what he was told." 

Dwyer is the full-time caretaker of the 27 horses at Maryland Sunrise. Coca has been his pet project. 

This weekend's dressage event is a chance to showcase how far Coca has come, but it's also a chance to raise money for a cause that's close to Dwyer's heart. 

Collette Foster is postponing chemotherapy treatments in order to see Coca in action. Dwyer's mother is also a breast cancer survivor, after undergoing a double mastectomy in 2000. 

"I also lost a favorite aunt as a child to breast cancer, so to be able to give something back to this, to help others, means the world to me," he said. 

Dwyer will take part Saturday night in the dressage horse challenge, which will showcase horses doing a series of intricate maneuvers set to music. Dwyer will ride Coca without a saddle or bridle.

"This is the most important thing I've ever done with a horse," he said. 

The Potomac Valley Dressage Association Ride for Life will be Saturday and Sunday and feature a dressage show from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., then a dressage challenge at 6:30 p.m. 

The event will also feature a gala, silent auction and kids activities. All events will take place at the Showplace Arena in Upper Marlboro.