Featured: Hyperion Stud and Vicky Castegren

Aug. 02,2022

ProEquest

The journey to the Olympic Games or a World Championships is long and winding, and it’s one that Vicky Castegren of Hyperion Stud knows well, although they took a quicker road than most. Hyperion Stud is a global equine breeding and sales operation. The main facility is in Barboursville, Virginia and is 160 acres with a stallion barn, main barn, indoor and outdoor arenas, and ample turnout. There’s also an additional 115-acre turnout facility in Madison, Virginia.

A view of the pastures, pond, and a barn at Hyperion Stud. Photo: Hyperion Stud

Additionally, Hyperion Stud has breeding and sales in Germany and Sweden, breeding in Holland, and semen in South Africa. Each year, between 10 and 15 foals are born, this year there are two in the Virginia, and eight in Europe.

Hyperion Stud has the breeding facilities, stallions, and mares. They also have a developing horse program for their young stock and partner with elite riders; there are currently four Olympic riders with mounts owned by Hyperion Stud and Family. The journey to the top of the show jumping and eventing competitive world tells a story of a love of horses and dedication to creating the best possible outcomes for those horses.

“We have a passion for horses, I love the animal itself for what they do for us, so I want to do what’s best for the horses and make the sport better,” Vicky says. “It’s horses, you can’t control mother nature, it’s a balance between building the business and doing it with a live animal; there are risks, and that makes it challenging and interesting.”

One of the barns and pastures at Hyperion Stud. Photo: Hyperion Stud

The jumping arena. Photo: Hyperion Stud

The Early Years

Born in the USA to Swedish parents, Vicky was introduced to horses at summer camp in Vermont and fell in love with riding. This passion continued at Stoneleigh Burnham High School in Massachusetts, where she rode in their equestrian program. She headed to Virginia for college and didn’t ride at all her freshman year, but quickly added the horses back in.

Early in her career, she was riding and competing in show jumping, and had a farm in Gordonsville, Virginia with plenty of space. Vicky was buying and selling horses as part of her business and purchased a mare in foal. She was intrigued and started playing around with breeding, and this began the evolution that became Hyperion Stud.

“When I got pregnant, I stopped riding, and was more involved with the horse breeding side,” Vicky says. “When my son was six months old, I thought it would be nice to have a place conducive to mares foaling out, I found the farm in Barboursville, and we moved there in 2009. I was still riding and competing in the beginning, but then my horses retired, and I focused more on breeding.”

Mares and a foal in the pasture at Hyperion Stud in Virginia. Photo: Hyperion Stud

Equestrian Accelerator

Few other equine programs, if any, go from a new business to the Olympics in seven years, but that’s exactly what Vicky and Hyperion Stud did. She’s built a program that breeds elite mares and competes at the highest level of the sport in several disciplines in the span of 12 years.

“The new farm also had a stallion barn, so I got Imothep, a stallion out of Holland when he was six,” she says. “He went on to compete in show jumping at the 2014 World Championships with Darragh Kenny of Ireland and then the Olympic Games in 2016 with Taizo Sugitani of Japan, so that was pretty awesome.”

Imothep and with Taizo Sugitani of Japan. Photo: SportFoto

The competing stallions put Hyperion Stud’s name on the map, but it’s just one part of Vicky’s strategy. She’s also buying mares, breeding foals, and importing horses. She’s built a program in Europe to diversify the herd, and also built connections and relationships around the globe.

“We’ve gone from just having foals to training and developing horses and putting them in sport,” Vicky says. “Diversifying the business has been fun and a good challenge. If you don’t sell the horses, you have to ride and train them, so we have riders in multiple locations. It’s been quite a wild journey; you never take away from the foundation to be better for the future though.”

The Horses

“My favorite moments are when they’re born, it’s the sweetest moments, the foals taking their first steps and then watching them develop as young horses in the sport,” Vicky says. “No day or jump is the same and all of a sudden a light bulb goes off and they get it and that’s fun to watch them go and do good things for their owners.”

All the horses are special, and each receives the best of care from the Hyperion Stud teams, many of the staff have been with Vicky for 10 years or more. There are a few noteworthy horses among all that have come through the barn doors though.

Imothep. Photo: Hyperion Stud

“Imothep is a gift from the Gods. He set our path in this direction, he’s 19 now and been in my life a long time,” she says. “Urthago is my crowning achievement. I bought his mother when she was in utero, he was the first foal she had for me. The fourth sibling has now been born and is also a colt. Urthago was approved by the Holsteiner Verband in Neumünster, Germany in 2019, and was the first one I had selected for approvals. He has had championship foals out of his first foal crop. His full sister did her mare performance last year and got a perfect 10 in jumping.”

Urthago HS. Photo: Hyperion Stud

Will Coleman and Chin Tonic. Photo by Shannon Brinkman Photography

Chin Tonic HS is an eventing horse with Will Coleman. Vicky brought him over from Europe when he was 2 years old. He was raised and trained in Europe until the age of 5, and then brought to the U.S. for Will Coleman Jr to compete as an eventing horse. She remarks that he just started four-star events last year and had a great learning experience at Land Rover Kentucky this year and has been listed as a reserve horse for Will at the Aachen Nation’s Cup in July.

Two years ago, Vicky bought her first dressage bred horse in Sweden, it’s ambitious, but she already had a world championship in show jumping with hopes of having one for eventing this year. Now she is continuing the journey by adding the third Olympic-level discipline. She also wants what’s best for her horses, and if she thinks someone is the right rider for a horse, Vicky reaches out and builds a relationship with them.

“Success wanes and it can wane for years, but I’m a breeder first,” Vicky says. “We’re developing our own horses and that can take years to find the right one. 2014 was the last world championship we were at. You can never get discouraged about the wave you ride, there are always highs and lows, and you have to be grateful for every moment.”

Looking Ahead

Most of Hyperion Stud’s horses are in Europe, with many of the breeding mares there, and stallions in the United States, although there are also approved stallions in Europe. Raising foals in Europe is more affordable and has allowed Hyperion Stud to increase their herd size with the best bloodlines available today.

The current global climate could change that, but Vicky can also import her horses anytime should she need to expand her breeding herd or sales list. One of the biggest challenges has been the pandemic, and the inability to see her horses in Europe over the last two years. However, she has an 11-year-old daughter who loves to ride and compete, so the journey continues.

“Every achievement I’ve had in such a short time has been rewarding,” Vicky reflects. “I had horses win in Aachen in two different disciplines. We’ve been to the world championships, and may have, another Olympic horse in 2024, they’re all proud moments. Some of the best foals have been born in the last two years. I’m proud of how much we’ve done. We’ve also worked really hard at having a good reputation, sold a lot of really great horses, and the staff is proud of what they do and that’s awesome. It’s rewarding when you have a whole team that believes in your vision, and everyone has played a part in the business development.”