Rox Dene

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Rox Dene was a gray mare born in 1986, a mix of Dutch Warmblood and Thoroughbred. Bred by Susan H. Hice in Marshall, Virginia, she was owned by Elaine and Chanda Boylen and ridden by several riders. Named after Roxdene of Bermuda, Rox Dene became one of the most famous hunter horses in the United States and is often called the Hunter Horse of the Century.

Her sire was Aristos B, out of Ninety Nine by Frosty Hai. She won championships at almost every major show and was the USEF Horse of the Year from 1991 to 1995. Fans and judges admired her nearly perfect jumping style, with a deep bascule, high knees, and tight folding at the knees and ankles, along with excellent movement and overall great conformation.

Rox Dene stopped competing in 1996 and became a broodmare. At first, her owners tried embryo transfer, but the embryos did not take in surrogate dams, so they used artificial insemination. She produced two healthy foals: Rocky Rules, a chestnut colt, and Roxy, a bay filly, born about two years apart.

Later breeding attempts had setbacks: in 2000 a pregnancy was lost at five months, and foals for 2002 and 2003 were lost early. The Boylens then tried embryo transfer again and bred Rox Dene to Popeye K, producing Eyelet, nicknamed “Poppy.” Eyelet, a filly, has been shown in green hunter divisions by Jennifer Alfano as “Rose Hill.”

Rox Dene retired to Pine Meadow Farm in Vass, North Carolina. A Breyer model was made in her likeness. On May 21, 2019, Pine Meadow Farm announced that Rox Dene had died at age 33.