HORSEcorner by Katie Shoultz
Rox Dene In the fall of 1996, the National Horse Show returned to Madison Square Garden, its century-old home for the illustrious event. Among the hustle and bustle, the glitz and the glamour, a mare that had shown the world freakish talent and heart was making her last appearance in the ring. However, there was to be no fanfare, no grand send-off. After six years of sweeping every major show in the country, hunter superstar Rox Dene made a final curtain call on the stage that had been hers ever since she had stepped onto it. Today, Rox Dene is living out her retirement under the care of Ed and Parker Minchin at their Pine Meadows Farm in North Carolina. For the past 15 years, they’ve treated and cared for the 27-year-old mare as if she was their own. Her name may no longer be splashed over the pages of The Chronicle of The Horse, but Rox Dene’s formidable presence remains in the hearts of all those who have ever appreciated a living legend.
WARMBLOOD IN THOROUGHBRED COUNTRY Behind the tricolors and trophies, Dene’s past and rise to fame is a story of luck, a good eye for a horse and a knack for near perfection in spite of the quirks. Foaled in 1986 (Aristos B x Ninety Nine) by Susan Hice of Virginia, Rox Dene’s life as a hunter wasn’t a carefully laid plan; her training on the small breeding farm actually began as a dressage prospect. “Dene” was also a bit of an anomaly, she was by a Dutch Warmblood stallion that wasn’t too well known, as at the time, warmbloods had yet to make their rise to domination. “It sounds amazing now, but Susan had difficulty getting people to come look at her as a young horse,” remarked Chanda Boylen, trainer at Brookhill Farm in Charlottesville, Va. “It was a warmblood, which, at the time wasn’t a particularly attractive selling point, especially in Virginia.” Unable to garner enough interest, Hice sent Dene to a trainer in Texas to be sold. Meanwhile, Boylen’s mother Elaine was in the market for a young prospect. Known for having an impeccable string of top show hunters, she had her sights on one owned by legendary trainer Rodney Bross, but a deal couldn’t be struck. “Rodney did something that he probably kicked himself for weeks afterwards,” Chanda recalled. “He told her he wouldn’t sell her this particular horse. He said she was known for having the best horses, and this one wasn’t going to turn out to be what she wanted.”
Buying sight unseen, all the Boylens knew was that a question mark of a horse was now theirs. Rox Dene’s team treaded smartly with the mare’s progress, never making demands of the horse. A mare who knew her mind, Dene could be stubborn. But, instead of letting frustration get the best of them, Dene’s owners and trainers worked with and embraced her quirkiness. “I liked the fact that everything was on her terms. If she hadn’t wanted to be a superstar, no one could have made her into one,” Boylen said. “She set her routine, and she never put one foot where she didn’t want it to go. If she didn’t want to go by something, you got off and led her.”
Rox Dene’s past and rise to fame is a story of luck, a good eye for a horse and a knack for near perfection in spite of the quirks.
A few weeks later, though, she would answer a phone call from Bross; he had found her horse and it was a green-broke grey mare. His request? Send money quickly before the horse was gone. “Understandably, my mother was a bit concerned, but she really wanted a horse, so she asked him to put his rider on the phone,” remembers Boylen. “Laura Kraut got on the line and said ‘he’s right; this is the horse’.”
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Their hard work and patience paid off in spades. Rox Dene reigned supreme as USEF Horse of the Year from 1991-1994. Her champion accolades included wins at the Washington International Horse Show, the National Horse Show as well at the coveted title of Grand Hunter Champion at Devon and Upperville multiple times.
Even in retirement, Dene is particular. Spending her mornings in private turnout, Dene walks a path when she’s ready to come in and always is on the look-out for her peppermints. With her mane pulled and an elbow grease shine, the show hunter in her is still evident from the love and attention of the Minchins.