By Dallas Finn

The Bulletin

It's a chilly night in Bend, but the wrestling room at Mountain View High School is warm and muggy as several young men sweat their way through 90 minutes of drills, skills and spills.

A poster on the wall pronounces the three keys to wrestling: position, pressure, patience.

All three tenets are on display by members of the Central Oregon Stud Club traveling squad, a select wrestling team that competes in tournaments across the nation. During the practice, the young wrestlers take tumbles, and a few get an elbow to the nose. But they all keep on grappling.

"I'm in a unique situation," says Rob Berger, a veteran wrestling coach and referee who is the coach of the Stud Club. "I have 11 kids that want to work hard. And not only are they working hard, but they're seeing success."

And hoping for more this weekend as they head to the Oregon State Kids Collegiate Championships at Clackamas High School in Clackamas.

The tournament brings together approximately 1,000 of the best and brightest of the state's youth wrestling ranks, Berger says, ranging in age from 4 to 15. The entire Stud Club traveling squad tentatively is slated to compete:

• Russell Albright, 10, Bend, 70-pound Novice division.

• Tyler Berger, 8, Bend, 60-pound Midget division.

• McKennan Buckner, 10, Prineville, 65-pound Novice division.

• Isaac Collingwood, 7, Bend, 50-pound Bantam division.

• Boomer Fleming, 9, Redmond, 70-pound Midget division.

• Colby Fultz, 12, Redmond, 70-pound Schoolboy division.

• Ryan Haney, 10, Sisters, 65-pound Novice division.

• Timmy Hernandez, 12, Sisters, 75-pound Novice division.

• Cody Lain, 7, Bend, 55-pound Bantam division.

• Jake Miller, 10, Sisters, 80-pound Novice division.

• Brock Powell, 9, Bend, 75-pound Midget division.

Berger says that based on previous strong finishes this season, his squad should have a successful tournament, for which there is no seeding. Rather, the matchups in each division are determined by random selection.

"It's really the luck of the draw," Berger says. "If we can get in the right spots, we have a chance of doing extremely well."

As the boys practice, they take no breaks. If they're not actually working on a move, they're doing push-ups or jumping rope. And when their coach is around, they focus intently as he coaxes, grumbles, and pushes them to improve.

"That move is there all day long, you guys," Berger says as the wrestlers work on lateral throws, which is where they throw their opponent, who is standing, directly to his back. "You gotta learn how to find it."

Berger urges the boys to push their personal limits when trying new skills, such as a version of a "cheap tilt" where the wrestler holds his opponent's shoulder to the mat at a 45-degree angle for at least two seconds.

"Now is the time to try it," Berger says. "If you don't like it, who cares? Don't go back to the same old garbage. You gotta try this stuff."

The Stud Club came together a year ago. Berger, a former math teacher and head wrestling coach at Mountain View High School, was working with his son, Tyler, and a few of Tyler's wrestling buddies. Word spread about the challenging but rewarding practices, and soon the informal sessions were transformed into regular workouts with an ever-increasing number of participants.

"I'd come to practice and I wouldn't know who some of the kids were," Berger says with a laugh. However, he quickly learned everyone's name and how best to keep each wrestler motivated.

Before he knew it, Berger says, the Stud Club was born.

"Not to take anything away from the other local clubs, but I just wanted to elevate wrestling in Central Oregon so (young wrestlers) can compete at a state level," says Berger, who, when he isn't working with wrestlers, is a loan officer in Bend.

Back at the Stud Club practice, several fathers line the walls of the wrestling room, occasionally shouting encouragement or laughing when Berger teases the boys.

"How'd you get hit in the nose? You obviously didn't have your head in the right place," Berger says to one wrestler before querying another: "Hey, dude, is his armpit in the middle of his stomach?"

Berger says he is tough on the wrestlers because they've asked him to be, and he knows they're up to the challenge.

"These kids and these parents have expectations that are a lot higher," Berger says. "I think when you train, in general, it's a mind concept. If you have high expectations, you rise to the occasion. If you have low expectations, they'll lower themselves.

"It amazes me that I'll work those kids hard and they'll show up the next day with a big grin on their face, ready to do it all over again," the coach adds.

Tim Hernandez says his son, Timmy, has benefited from Berger's combination of tough love and technical expertise.

"The stuff these kids are working on, the stuff that they are learning, is better than what most kids are working on day to day," says Hernandez, who lives in Sisters. His son began wrestling while still in elementary school, training with another Central Oregon wrestling group before joining the Stud Club.

"With the other club, he learned a lot. They were really good coaches," Hernandez says. "I guess the biggest different here with Rob is he is strict. He pushes them. And it's a small club, so they get more one-on-one attention instead of a big mat club with 50 kids."

Tiffany Collingwood says her son, Isaac, "loves" Berger's program, despite the bumps, bruises and sweat he endures.

"It's really hard work and not what he's used to, but if the kids ... are serious about wrestling at the national level, it's what they have to do," Collingwood says. "This club's very serious."

The Stud Club's hard work is paying off, as several members have posted top finishes at local and national tournaments. Tyler Berger won the 60-pound Midget Division with a 5-0 record at the recent 2004 Oregon Wrestling Classic. He also finished second in the 58-pound division at the Cliff Keen Tulsa Nationals earlier this month in Oklahoma, and won the 60-pound division at the Dixie Nationals in Duluth, Ga., in late December.

Albright was third at the Oregon Wrestling Classic in the 70-pound Novice group with a 5-2 record, and Fleming was fourth in the 70-pound Midget division with a 4-2 finish that included four pins. Additionally, in April 2003, the club won the 6-and-under World Championship Team Trophy in Reno, Nev.

Berger says he encourages his wrestlers to work out on their own between practices and during the offseason, and practices what he preaches. He, Tyler, and other Stud Club members can often be found running up Pilot Butte or tackling the stadium stairs at Mountain View High. He says that pushing the young wrestlers to work hard work will help them not only in athletic pursuits, but in other areas of their lives.

"I know when they get into the high school (wrestling) ranks or they're going to have a tough test in algebra, they're going to buckle down because they know they can do it," Berger says. "You create that lifestyle at a younger age and hopefully they'll continue it through high school and as an adult."

Dallas Finn can be reached at 541-383-0393 or at dfinn@bendbulletin.com.

By Kurt Holland

The Bulletin

Rob Berger looks back with some surprise at how the Central Oregon Stud Club was formed.

Berger, a former head wrestling coach at Mountain View High School and current high school wrestling official in the region, was working with his son, Tyler, and a few of his friends to improve their mat skills.

About halfway through the 2003-04 youth wrestling season, Berger noted that his small group was practicing at a higher level of intensity than other local wrestling clubs. Soon, one by one, other wrestlers joined the group until Berger said there were about 16 kids working out under his guidance.

"Parents were talking, things started to grow through word of mouth, and they decided we should start our club — put together our own team," Berger recalled.

And the Central Oregon Stud Club was off and running.

The group is now gearing up for its second season by spreading the word explaining what it is about and securing financial support for the nonprofit organization.

Berger compares the Central Oregon Stud Club to an elite traveling team like those in the region for basketball or soccer at various age levels.

"Our concept was to put together the top wrestlers ... the best kids from all around Central Oregon," explained Berger. "We wanted to put them in the same room and push each other to be their best.

"The goal is to go to the top wrestling tournaments — and we have to fund-raise to do that — and go out and see how we match up with the best."

Berger stresses that his group isn't out to take over existing clubs in Central Oregon, but rather to work hand in hand to better the caliber of wrestling at the local level.

"We're not trying to steal kids from other mat clubs in Central Oregon, but make wrestling better for the kids involved," he said. "We want to elevate wrestling in general. That's where we're at and why it started.

"We're hoping to promote wrestling and help send kids into the high school programs who have more experience and are ready to compete at that level," Berger added. "It doesn't matter if they're from Madras, Redmond, Bend, Prineville, wherever. We want to see those schools succeed. You put good kids together, and good things happen to them. We're excited."

Last year, the Central Oregon Stud Club won the 8-and-under World Championship Team Trophy in Reno, Nev., at an event that drew more than 2,500 competitors.

This year's season is scheduled to start in November. Berger said the group already has 20 wrestlers signed up and is looking for more. But he stresses that the Central Oregon Stud Club isn't for everyone.

"This is an elite program. The kids will be pushed in practices and hard work is taken very seriously," said Berger.

"The sport of wrestling is hard enough, and it's hard enough to get kids to come out for the sport and generate interest in the sport. We don't want to run any kids off, and if someone isn't at this level, we want them to join their local club and gain the experience they need to be competitive and to enjoy the sport."

Team members range in age from 8 to 15, and the club doesn't compete with high schools for wrestlers.

With the club now established, Berger and the wrestlers are pounding the pavement in an effort to drum up financial support for the upstart organization.

The team is wrapping up a fund-raiser involving cookie dough sales, and now efforts are geared toward securing monetary support from business and individuals through a one-time contribution or monthly donations.

Berger estimates it will cost about $2,000 per wrestler to cover season expenses that range from team uniforms and gear to tournament entry fees, camps and travel. A number of options are available for those interested in supporting the team.

"The Bend business community is just phenomenal in their support for the kids of this community," said Berger, who noted that the club's early fund-raising efforts are progressing well.

For sponsorship information or to find out more about the Central Oregon Stud Club, contact Rob Berger at 317-0885, or visit www.leaguelineup.com/bendstudclub.