THE BRIGHT PROMISE OF A NEW STAR Any lingering skepticism wore off quickly when the young Rox Dene developed an uncanny sixth sense about her job as a hunter. Although Bross was convinced the mare was something after seeing her jump a single crossrail, for Elaine, it was the first time she laid eyes on Dene’s canter. “The rest of us wanted to see a lead change first. That took until the final pre-green show that year at Atlanta in the fall,” Boylen shared of the beginning of the journey. Renowned trainer Elizabeth Solter was in the irons during many of Dene’s trips in both the conformation and working hunter divisions. The same horse at home and at the shows, Solter said the mare “always walked in the ring to win.” But, Solter had to have a calm, methodical approach. “You had to go slow to allow her to look at the jump, and she could be spooky if you rushed.”
ALL THE PARTS After retiring from the show ring in 1996, Rox Dene spent several years as a broodmare. Although offers were made to purchase the regal mare, they were all turned down. In 2005, Rox Dene foaled Rose Hill by Popeye K. Rose Hill is currently competing in the hunter derbies and performance hunter division with Jennifer Alfano. Although the Boylens had wanted to repeat the cross, Mother Nature decided Rose Hill would be the last of her offspring as Dene was too advanced in her years, even for an embryo transfer. But, as any horse person will tell, breeding is only part of the story. “I think the epitome of a hunter is a horse that has all the ‘parts.’ All the parts don’t have to be equally perfect, but they have to be there,” Boylen said. Although Dene didn’t have a heart stopping trot – she regularly placed at the top of her hacks due to an incredible canter. From stall to ring, Dene also never touched a lounge line and needed little maintenance. “We injected one joint, one time. Nothing else. To me, a quiet, iron-sound horse, that wins in every aspect of the disciplines, that’s the epitome of a hunter.” An impeccable jump. A canter with the perfect cadence. Crowned the “Hunter Horse of the Century.” As the grande dame, Rox Dene blazed onto the scene, streaked across our field of vision, and left a glorious trail of memories in her wake. Without a doubt, hunter superstar Rox Dene is a horse of a lifetime. The Boylens only regret? “I wish we had taken more pictures and videos,” sighs Chanda. “We saw her every day and watched her go every week. As it turns out, there is no such thing as too many perfect pictures.” A gamble that turned out to be a sure bet, Rox Dene became the horse of a lifetime for an entire industry.
Opposite page: Rox Dene and Elizabeth Solter winning the green conformation hunter championship at the National Horse Show on Nov. 15, 1991. Photo ©Tricia Booker Left: Rox Dene living happily in retirement at Pine Meadows Farm. Photo courtesy Parker Minchin