Berger Doing Well Following Open-Heart Surgery, Thankful for all of the Support
By: Justin Felisko
PUEBLO, Colo. – Reigning Stock Contractor of the Year Chad Berger is doing well following open-heart surgery Friday morning at Abbot Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis.
Berger’s wife, Sarah, said on Saturday morning that the entire Berger family is so thankful for all of the support they have received in the past 24 hours, and the weeks leading up to the surgery.
“Chad is doing great,” Sarah said. “We are so grateful. There are so many people out there praying for him. It has been unbelievable. So many people have been reaching out to him, and we just want everyone to know he is going to be OK.
“Thank you for the prayers, and keep them coming.”
Berger was diagnosed in late January with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a thickening of the heart muscles that makes it hard for the organ to pump blood.
Doctors needed about six hours to perform a septal myectomy Friday to help reduce the muscle thickening that occurs in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.
“The cardiologist said he is doing great,” Sarah said. “We are looking forward to Chad coming home soon in hopefully five days or so.”
Once he returns home to Mandan, North Dakota, Berger is expected to need around 13 weeks to fully recover from the surgery.
“You have to go at it just like you go after trying to win Stock Contractor of the Year,” Chad told PBR.com a few weeks ago. “You have to go in at full blast. That’s the way I’m looking at it.”
The 58-year-old was originally scheduled to have the procedure in April before it was put on hold because of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) outbreak.
Berger had not been feeling well this past winter, and his condition continued to worsen. Berger would quickly lose his breath, and he was more tired than usual. He had a nagging cough, which he figured was just a nasty winter cold at the time.
It was following the Wrangler Long Live Cowboys Classic, though, when Berger realized something may be seriously wrong. He was traveling back from the Unleash The Beast event in Sacramento, California, when he could barely muster up enough strength to change planes at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.
“I couldn’t hardly make it to my next plane,” Chad said. “When I got to Minneapolis, I had a hell of a time getting to my next flight. I rode the escalators. Every time I would walk a little ways, get on one of them things and let it take me to the next one.”
Berger had worked endlessly in the summer/fall of 2018 to lose more than 50 pounds and get in better physical shape. He is usually climbing over the bucking chutes to flank his bulls at PBR events, so being physically active was not really a challenge for him.
The sudden struggles led Berger, who has had some cardiovascular issues in the past, to undergo testing at the end of January. He had stents put in his heart 14 years ago, as well as five years ago, so he always takes his cardiac health seriously.
“I just knew,” Berger said. “I’ve had heart troubles. I’ve had stents put in, and I kind of know when things aren’t right.”
Sarah and Chad arrived in Minneapolis earlier this week, and their hotel was near the center of protests that have erupted in the Twin Cities. Minnesota in many ways is like a second home to the Bergers, and the family hopes the community can come together as one.
“Our prayers are with everyone right now in Minneapolis,” Sarah said. “We hope for peace to come back to this community, and we know it is a difficult situation for everyone.”
Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko
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