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Reining Champ Photo by Jim Craven / Mail Tribune Todd Bergen brings his horse to a stop at the Oregon Summer Classic. Bergen is putting his reining talents on display this week at the Expo. By TIM TROWER The breadth of Todd Bergen's duties were on display as the horse trainer sat outside the Isola Arena at the Jackson County Expo Park Tuesday. The next moment, the two-time national champion was coming to the aid of a client - an 8-year-old client not much bigger than the saddle in which she sat. "Could you excuse me one minute?" Bergen, 31, said. "I need to get little Sammy's horse ready." Samantha Bayer, atop a palomino quarter horse two years her senior, needed to get the animal - Jack High Straight - spinning before she entered the competition ring. She was in one of the many youth reining classes at the Oregon Summer Classic Horse Show and Great Northwest Futurities, which runs through Sunday. Summer Classic WHERE : Jackson County Expo Park, Compton and Isola arenas. WHEN : Began Monday, continues through Sunday, with an off day Friday. Competition begins at 7 a.m. each day and runs non-stop into the evening. WHO : More than 600 horses in 84 classes. ADMISSION : No charge. Bergen climbed on a picnic table, boosted himself behind Sammy's saddle and proceeded to help her warm up the horse. Several rapid turns to the right. Several more to the left. Forward steps, then backward. "That's better than some of the rides at the fair," an onlooker observed as others snapped pictures. "Do you know how lucky you are?" one horse person teased Samantha, referring to Bergen's assistance. Sammy nodded. She had a pretty good idea. Bergen is a revered trainer at this show and has few peers worldwide as a competitive reiner. Since he cashed his first paycheck in National Reining Horse Association competition in 1993, he's amassed career earnings of about $950,000. In reining, the rider takes the horse on one of 10 patterns approved by the national association. They involve full trips around the ring, fast starts and screeching stops and having the horse turn circles in one spot. "I love it," said Bergen. "That's why I do it. I love competing. When you get the right horse and are able to train it to do something, it really intrigues you. Once you've done it, it's hard to give up. You can ask anyone out here, and they'll tell you the same thing." His success in the ring has led to success outside of it. Bergen has about 30 horses in training at a time at his 38-acre Eagle Point ranch on the Rogue River, just down from Dodge Bridge. All but three are owned by clients. For this show, Bergen has nine horses he's working with. A couple are non-pro horses. The rest are ones he shows in elite competition - the major leagues of the profession. Some are here to gain qualifying points for the world championships in November, while others he'll acclimate to the arena in preparation for a high-dollar derby next week at the Expo. "Horses are creatures of habit," he said. "The more you show them, the more they start to anticipate things and figure things out. They get to thinking they're in control. You've got to keep them honest." The derby winner will get $50,000. "It's a pretty prestigious title to have," he said. "I've got some good horses for it, so hopefully we'll do something good next week." At a similar derby in Scottsdale, Ariz., earlier this year, Bergen had horses that placed first and third and took home about $40,000. Bergen first began working with horses as a 10-year-old 4-H participant in Salem. By the time he was in his middle teens, he was hooked. "I knew this was something I wanted to do," he said. "I knew horses, and training horses was something that came naturally to me. I picked up on it easily." His love of competition simply fanned the flames. Some trainers don't compete much, spending the bulk of their time teaching riders and caring for the horses. Most of Bergen's work is preparing and showing his clients' horses and interacting with the owners. In addition to reining this week, he'll enter cowhorse events, where the rider and horse work cattle, and roping contests. Regardless of the duties, Bergen said, training is a 24-hour, seven-day proposition. "It never quits, it never shuts off, the horses never leave. They're always there," he said. "That's one thing that's hard about the business, there are no business hours. People call you at 5 in the morning or at midnight. You're dealing with a lot of high-profile people, and it can get pretty stressful at times. "They're spending a lot of money, and they want their horses to do well." If they're with Bergen, they went to the right man. Reach sports editor Tim Trower at 776-4479, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.