United States Eventing Association

Getting the Timing Right for 2024 SmartPak USEA Stallion of the Year RR Simple

Colorado-based upper-level eventer Dani Sussman has been sourcing horses from Argentina since 2019 thanks to the help of her show jumping coach, Mariano Bedoya. When Bedoya called her up about a then 8-year-old Hanoverian stallion who was showing on the show jumping circuit, Sussman hopped on a plane to check him out for herself.

“He was bred and born in Germany, but he was imported to Argentina as a foal with his mom,” recalled Sussman. “He had never evented before, but his disposition was amazing. He had a very good work ethic, wanted to please, and not spooky at all.”

Sussman liked his smaller stature and said that riding him felt like home.

“Sitting on him, I instantly said, ‘This is the horse for me.’ ”

So RR Simple (For Pleasure x Fetzi), now owned by the Aspire Eventing RR simple Syndicate, LLC, made the trip to Ocala, Florida, in 2022 where he spent the winter season learning the ins and outs of eventing with Sussman. As she had hoped, his easy-going temperament made it easy to transition the stud to his new career.

“He pretty much took to it right away,” she said. “On day 2 we started getting him out onto the cross-country field and seeing what he thought of everything. While he didn’t really know what he was doing, he was very willing and game to figure it all out.”

While she wasn’t actively out searching for a stallion prospect at the time, Sussman decided to give “Rey” a year before making any decisions on his stud status.

“I thought since he had such an amazing temperament, I would give him a year to see how he was, and then decide if I wanted to cut him or if he would be quality enough to keep him as a stallion and pursue breeding later on. I just took a bit of a gamble and haven’t really looked back.”

When Sussman takes Rey out to compete, most people don’t realize he is a stallion until closer inspection. While Sussman has ridden stallions before, Rey is the first she has managed in her own barn. She made a few small tweaks to her horse management at home and at shows with him in mind, but she hasn’t truthfully needed to make major adjustments just because he is intact. In fact, everyone in the barn handles him with ease.

“When we are showing, I prefer end stalls with him so there is less nose touching and depending on how the stalls are, I might put a tarp up just so he can rest. He’s actually really good, he’s just a bit of a busybody honestly,” she said with a laugh. “He wants to be really social, but walking around in the warm up arenas or around the grounds, you would never know he is a stallion.”

After that first year passed, Sussman decided to start small with offering breedings to Rey. He currently has three foals due this year, and two scheduled for breedings this season. One of those foals due will be Sussman's.

“I’m on pins and needles,” she said of the wait. “The very first foal of his due is mine, and everything has looked good so far! It’s really exciting.”

His first foal crop are all out of Thoroughbred mares, a cross that Sussman thinks will add some spark to his lovely demeanor.

“He’s such a quiet guy, I really think you could stick a lot of blood in there and still have a really great temperament and brain.”

Because of his relaxed demeanor, Sussman has taken her time bringing Rey along up the levels. He made his FEI debut in the 2024 season, where he had a sixth place finish in his first CCI2*-S and then later finished in second in the highly competitive CCI2*-L at the Ocala International Festival of Eventing in April.

In the summer, Sussman introduced him to the three-star level and is looking forward to using the 2025 season as an opportunity to solidify him at that level.

“He has taken a bit longer to produce because he is a stallion, and things are just moving a bit slower, but I think this year will be a big turning point for him,” she noted. “He’s much stronger this year. I gave him a shorter downtime over the fall and winter, and I have been working with Buck [Davidson] to really get his fitness and strength up. He’s been feeling great, so I just want to get him super confident and winning. I think he has every ability to win at the three-star level, so I would like a bit of a winning season for him and his resume.”

If he continues on the path he has been on, Sussman aims to continue producing Rey along through the levels and seeing where life takes them as a pair.

“He has all the talent and ability, I just need to take a little bit of the pressure off and get him super good this year at the three-star level,” she said. “He has all the ability to win, it’s just a timing thing to get the levels right for him.”