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JUMPING FOR GOLD
In the NSW Southern Highlands, a young equestrian has created an impressive empire as he prepares to take on the world with his handsome stallion, writes Julie Miller.
In a sand arena, two elite athletes are defying gravity, taking on dizzying heights as lofty as 1.6 metres. James Arkins – at 29, one of Australia’s leading showjumpers – and his magnificent stallion, Eurostar, canter in harmony before sailing over a two-bar spread, the bay’s ears pricked as he contemplates the next obstacle in line. Under Arkins’ steadfast direction, they jump a clear round, poetry in motion.
At just nine years of age, Eurostar was too young to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics; instead, Arkins has set his sights on Paris 2024, via the 2022 World Cup in Denmark and the
FEI World Equestrian Games. As part of the qualifying process, the pair rode to glory at the Sydney Royal Easter Show in April 2021; two weeks later, they took out the Victorian State Showjumping Championships.
“Eurostar is leading the horse rankings in Australia at the moment for the World Cup.
I’m hoping to win the league here this year, which means going to the final next year; then I’d probably stay in Europe and try to campaign for the World Equestrian Games,” Arkins says. “The Olympics in Paris is the ultimate goal – I’d love to win gold.”
A cowboy and his brumby
For Arkins, the journey to equestrian stardom began relatively late in life; coming from a nonhorsey background, he only started riding at the age of 12. With little experience but a natural affinity for animals, he managed to convince his parents to buy him his first horse; a “wild and bucking” creature purchased for $2,500 that sent fellow riders scattering at Sydney’s Centennial Park.
Although derided as a “cowboy and his brumby”, this fearless pair went on to become Australian junior champions, with success in Interschools through to World Cup level. After an incredible partnership, Arkins eventually on-sold Dreamtime Invader for $110,000 – not a bad return on a horse considered unrideable.
A stable business
It’s this ability to spot potential in ‘problem’ horses, training them to competition level before on-selling them for a tidy profit, that helped Arkins establish one of the most successful multi-faceted equestrian businesses in Australia. Rosthwaite Farm, the family’s 48-hectare property in Moss Vale in the NSW Southern Highlands, is not only the base for Arkins’ showjumping ventures, it’s also a breeding facility for Warmblood sporthorses as well as a riding school, offering coaching from tiny tots on shaggy ponies to future Grand Prix talent.
As well as Eurostar, three other stallions currently stand at stud at Rosthwaite, alongside a bevy of broodmares, around 15 youngsters in various stages of training and a further 30 or so foals. There are also plans to establish a boutique breeding program using embryo implants from in-demand stallions.
Fostering talent
Despite the glamour of the blue-chip breeding facility, however, the bread and butter of Rosthwaite Farm is its riding academy. Considered one of the best coaching facilities
in Australia, the school attracts wellheeled clients from Sydney and the Southern Highlands, with a waitlist for lessons and school holiday riding camps.
The key to the riding school’s success is Arkins himself – affable and charming, yet strict with his young charges, he has a remarkable ability to encourage and instruct, bringing out the best in both horses and riders.
With his influence and connections, Arkins has also turned to charitable concerns, working with the Sydney Children’s Hospital to fundraise at charity auctions as well as hosting young patients and their parents at the farm.
“I am grateful my profile in the equestrian world can be used to help raise awareness and funds for the Sydney Children’s Hospitals Foundation,” Arkins says. “I was lucky enough to receive extraordinary hospital care in Sydney after a childhood accident. Giving back is a total pleasure.”
Room with a view
As well as being a one-stop shop for serious equestrians, Rosthwaite Farm has also recently added holiday accommodation to its bow. Managed by Arkins’ brother, Tom, and his wife, Kate, the Hideout Cabins are two architect-designed tiny houses positioned to soak up the working farm ambience: one overlooking a tranquil dam, its deck dangling over the water, the other positioned on a rise overseeing horse paddocks.
This is an immersive farmstay with a difference: guests have unprecedented access to the equestrian high-life, with the bonus of watching one of Australia’s leading horsemen as he shoots for his Olympic dreams.