Mike Berg and Outta Dough Win the 2010 Cactus Reining Classic Open Derby
By Alden Corrigan for RBB, Inc.
Mike Berg and Outta Dough (Gallo Del Cielo x Dough Olena), owned by Dorothy Queen of Whitesboro, Texas, slid into first place to win the 2010 Cactus Reining Classic $30,000-added open derby, held March 3-7, at WestWorld in Scottsdale, Arizona. The run also earned the duo the $10,000-added level 3 intermediate open derby title as well, resulting in $15,669 in combined prize money for their picture-perfect performance.
A total of 57 horse and rider combinations competed in the open and level 3 intermediate open derbies, which were run concurrently. Berg was thrilled with Outta Dough’s performance. “I don’t have to worry about him stopping, I don’t have to worry about him spinning, I just had to make him run, that’s it.” When asked what challenges he anticipated from pattern 9 Berg replied, “The challenges were the four stops. All my horse thinks about is stopping, so after one or two stops, it’s really hard to get him running free and running correct without thinking about stopping too much. I almost have to whisper the word ‘whoa.’ Every time I run, my instinct is to push harder; but with him I have to push softer so he’ll run freer. It’s not a bad thing…he just wants to stop….he craves it.”
Outta Dough is not only known for his stop, but also for being a very happy horse in the pen. “He has a lot of expression and presence in the pen; people always comment on that. It’s the way I train a horse. I want them to look like they enjoy their job, and that horse enjoys his job. He’s naturally a beautiful horse, so I don’t have to try to make him look stylish. I let him do the talking. Hopefully the judges like it and the pattern comes together for me like it did tonight,” said Berg.
Berg explained what makes the five-year-old bay stallion so special. “He’s special to me because of the customer who owns him, Dorothy Queen. She was my first customer, and she has a lot of faith in Kristi and me. She has stuck with us for a long time, and she gave me the opportunity with this horse. She loves him as much as I do, and she’s probably going to have to pry him from my cold, dead hands when she wants to take him home someday…I treat him like he’s mine almost. He’s the first really good horse I’ve had for a long time, and it’s pretty exciting to have success with him. He’s pretty special to me that way.”
When asked about the caliber of the competition he was up against Berg replied, “The riders we showed against were tough. Andrea (Fappani) has to be pushing $2 million (in lifetime NRHA earnings), between the cow horses and Reining Todd Bergen has won over $3 million, and Randy Paul is an NRHA Million Dollar Rider. I’ve aspired to be as successful as those guys are for a long time; so to step up and show people that I can compete with them and have the horse power is pretty special. I like to hand it to those guys every now and then; it makes you feel pretty good.”
Right behind Berg and Outta Dough with a 226.5 were Paul, an NRHA Professional from Scottsdale, riding Tinker With Diamonds, for an $8,341 paycheck. The flashy sorrel six-year-old mare is by Like A Diamond and out of Tinker Nic, by Million Dollar Sire Reminic.
Randy Dooley was the victor with a 223 in the level 2 limited open derby and reserve in the level 3 intermediate open on Conquistador Star, a five-year-old bay gelding by Conquistador Whiz and out of Aleena Starlight by Million Dollar Sire Grays Starlight. The horse is owned by Cache Performance Horses LLC of Aspen, Colorado.
Reserve in the level 2 limited open derby went to Martin Padilla and Juicetta, owned by Lazy T Ranch, Idaho Falls, Idaho. The five-year-old sorrel mare by Million Dollar Sire Smart Like Juice out of Doc Etta marked a 222.
Overall, the open derby alone had 13 horse and rider combinations who posted scores of 220.0 and above, proving that the Cactus Reining Classic had some of the best horses in North America in attendance…and plenty of them.
Horse Show Manager Mandi Brumley of Brumley Management Group, LLC could not be more pleased with the sold out event. “The quality of the horses and riders competing at this year’s Cactus Reining Classic was amazing. There were Million Dollar Riders and horses from all over the United States and Canada, and they had to run hard to beat the competition.”
Brumley spoke about the overwhelming support from the Cactus Reining Classic corporate sponsors. “The event has never seen this level of participation from the corporate community before, and we are really grateful to have their participation. We are so fortunate to have sponsors like Four Seasons Hotel Silicon Valley, Nutrena, SmartPak, Leather CPR, eZall, National Horse Blankets, Ariat, and Paddock Cakes all support our show. To have our media partner Equestrian Life stream both the open and non pro derbies online is such a tremendous asset to this event. There are so many people who would like to have been here, but couldn’t but they could still participate by watching it live on the internet.”
The 2010 Cactus Reining Classic Non Pro Derby and Open Derby replays are available for viewing online at http://equestrianlife.com/cactus . Equestrian Life will also be streaming both Reining By The Bay, July 20-25th from Woodside, California, and High Roller Reining Classic, September 12-18, from Las Vegas, Nevada as well.
Photo Credit John O’Hara
The National Reining Horse Association is not responsible for information contained in this press release. Please contact the author or submitting organization for further information, requests, or questions.
