Think X Games meets rodeo.

Think wild west cowboy meets dressage rider.

That’s the Extreme Cowboy Association. Saturday’s EXCA Hawaii Regional at Kawailoa Ranch features skills and showmanship sprinkled with bravado. With an obstacle course that combines daily work on a ranch and rodeo thrills, there’s a reason it’s called "extreme."

A lot of it is instinct and trust, on the part of both the rider and the horse. Bill Cameron didn’t have to think twice when first seeing the sport on television.

"I’ve been in the saddle since I was nine months old," said Cameron, an EXCA Hall of Famer and Level-3 judge for Saturday’s regional. "When I saw it on TV (in 2008), I said, ‘I was born to do that.’

"It is a compilation of my life. Growing up on a ranch I was always doing things with horses, shooting, jumping, being on the trail. What the sport did for me was reignite my love for riding."

And the 57-year-old had done plenty of that when growing up in the horse industry and on movie sets in Southern California with his father Denzel, a legendary horse trainer. Bill Cameron began training horses professionally at age 17 with his list of celebrities as long as his accomplished resume.

His training methods are considered unconventional, centered on the horse’s point of view.

"When your horse does something they’ve never done, even though they’re afraid, that is the payback in the relationship," Cameron said. "It’s a responsibility you have to take. What has kept me excited is what I can accomplish through trust."

Such as getting a horse to jump from one rooftop to another as he did for a television commercial. Such as he has done when advancing to the EXCA World Championship finals the past three years.

One of Cameron’s passions is passing on his expertise, especially to young and beginning riders. He is offering clinics and private lessons at Kawailoa Ranch in addition to judging the regional.

"What you’re looking for is a leader, someone a horse will trust, has good judgment and confidence," he said. "You have to be fair to the horse.

"I’m looking forward to working with the youth riders in Hawaii. I saw them (at the EXCA World Championpships) last year and they stood out. The young girls really impressed me because they were on borrowed horses. I wondered how much even better they would have done with their own horses. They were kick-ass as it was."

Hawaii’s Elena Malia Aoki (young guns) and Meilan Sim (youth) were reserve world champions at last year’s world championship.

"Our kids are at a disadvantage without their own horses," regional organizer Cece Bulkley said. "That’s an intense thing to do, to jump on a horse you don’t know well. I give them kudos for that.

"What I like about the sport is that it brings the rodeo kids and the pony club kids together. The rodeo kids have to do a little more refined riding and the pony club kids then get out of dressage and into some cowboy stuff. It takes both groups out of their comfort zone and makes it fun."

Bulkley is expecting close to 40 entries for Saturday’s regional with riders in their teens through 70s competing. She expects a number of them to qualify for November’s world championship in Hamilton, Texas.

The event is dedicated to the late Carolyne Lazar — "A real horse person," Bulkley said — who died last year. It also is part of the "Tough Enough to Wear Pink" program established on the rodeo circuit for breast cancer awareness.

"I originally saw extreme cowboy a few years ago in California and thought it would be perfect for my horse," Bulkley said of her horse Spirit. "He was bored with what we were doing competitively like the Western Trail Class. He needed something more stimulating.

"That started the ball rolling. I can tell you that our kids have guts, they are fearless, which makes them so good."

REC CENTER

SUP athletes up for awards

The best of Hawaii’s stand-up paddleboarders are contending for top 5 honors in the second SUP Magazine Awards presented by Body Glove.

Nominated for the online voting for top 5 male paddlers are last year’s winner Connor Baxter, Dave Kalama, Kody Kerbox, Kai Lenny, Aaron Napoleon, Zane Schweitzer and Slater Trout.

Nominated for top 5 female Paddlers are Suzie Cooney, Talia Gangini, Morgan Hoesterey, Jenny Kalmbach, Jen Lee, Andrea Moller and Mariko Strickland.

The awards show is Sept. 27 in San Clemente, Calif.

» SUPAwards.com.

Pool teams compete at nationals

Pool Hall Junkies, shooting out of Maddog Saloon in Waikiki, finished 33rd out of 734 teams at last month’s American Poolplayers Association 8-Ball National Team Championships-Open Division, conducted by the American Poolplayers Association, in Las Vegas.

Members of the team, which won $2,000, were: John Lehman (captain), Holley Morin (co-captain), Don Monroe, Emile Dixon, Ben Walker II, Melissa Love, Dave McKinney and Clay Bryant.

Ekahi Pu‘uwai from TJ’s Sports Lounge and Grill in Honolulu, also participated in the 8-Ball Open Division, finishing 385th.

In the APA 9-Ball National Team Championship, Y’s Guys from Y’s Sports Bar in Honolulu placed 65th out of 430 teams.

In Scotch Doubles, Oahu’s Kala Koa placed 129th out of 384 teams in the 8-ball doubles division and Oahu’s Double Trouble 129th out of 256 in the 9-ball doubles division.

Benefit swim for Grabowsky

The Waikiki Swim Club is hosting a benefit race Sept. 23 to raise funds for longtime WSC member Gail Grabowsky, who is battling cancer.

"Gail’s Swim" begins at 8 a.m. at Kaimana Beach. Two guess-your-time courses are offered, a 1-mile and 1.8-mile, with divisions ranging from 15-under through 65-over.

Early registration is $30 through Sept. 12. For information, call 372-8885.

» waikikiswimclub.org.

Osborne tennis award nominees sought

Entries for the 2012 Muriel Osborne Hawaii Tennis Award, given to outstanding female high school tennis players in Hawaii, are being accepted through Sept. 27.

The annual grants are $500 and awarded to players between the ages of 14 and 17 who have achieved local and/or national ranking in the 16 and 18 divisions. Good sportsmanship, performance and financial need are considerations.

For more information, contact Mimi Kennell at 585-9533 or kennell@hawaii.usta.com.

WHAT’S HAPPENING

SATURDAY, SEPT. 8

AUTO RACING
» Demolition Derby & HulaCross: 1 p.m. Kalaeloa Raceway Park. kalaeloaracewaypark.com.

BMX
» Island BMX: Registration, 3 p.m.; racing, 4 p.m., Sand Box, Sand Island. islandbmx.org.

BOXING
» USA Boxing Coach & Officials Clinic: Noon, PearlSide Boxing Gym, Kapolei. 256-2885.

LAWN BOWLING
» Honolulu Lawn Bowls Club: 10 a.m., Ala Moana Park. honolululawnbowls.com.

RODEO
» Extreme Cowboy Regional Championship: 9 a.m., Kawailoa Ranch, Haleiwa. extremecowboyassociation.com.

RUNNING
» Hana Relays: 52 miles, 5:30 a.m., Kahului Airport to Hana. Hanarelayhawaii.com.
» Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers 5K: 7 a.m., Ford Island Bridge. tunneltotowers.com.

SUNDAY, SEPT. 9

BIATHLON
» Wee & DLT Whirled Peas: .75-mile swim, 3.9-mile run, 8 a.m., Kailua-Kona. 938-2296.

PADDLING
» E Lau Hoe: Women, 8:30 a.m., Maunalua Bay to Nanakuli Beach Park. ohcra.com.

POLO
» Honolulu Polo Club: 3 p.m., Waimanalo Polo Grounds. honolulupolo.com.

RUNNING
» Windward Half-Marathon, 5K & Keiki Dash: 6 a.m., Kailua Intermediate School. 263-0555.
» Run for Hope 5K & 10K: 7 a.m., Four Seasons Resort, Hualalai. 325-8052.
» Hilo Bay 5K & 10K: 7:30 a.m., Coconut Island, Hilo. bigislandroadrunners.org.
» Honolulu Marathon Clinic: 7:30 a.m., Kapiolani Park. Free. honolulumarathlonclinic.com.

SIGN ME UP

BICYCLING
» Honolulu Century Ride: Late registration for Sept. 30 event through Sept. 28. hbl.org.

PADDLING
» 34th Na Wahine O Ke Kai: Women’s Molokai-to-Oahu race, Sept. 23. Registration: 5-8 p.m., Sept. 17, » Outrigger Canoe Club. 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Sept. 21 and 9 a.m.-noon, Sept. 22, Paddlers’ Inn, Kaunakakai. nawahineokekai.com.

RUNNING
» 4th Waipahu Cane Haul 5K: 6:30 a.m., Sept. 22, Waipahu Town Center. $35 through Sept. 17, $40 on race day. canehaulrun.blogsport.com.
» 18th Susan G. Komen Hawaii Race for the Cure: Oct. 21, Kapiolani Park. Registration: 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Saturday and Sunday and Oct. 6-7, Navy Exchange Pearl Harbor. komenhawaii.org.

SOCCER
» I Got Skills Camp: Oct. 1-5, Waipio Soccer Complex. 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Ages 7-14. $185 through Sept. 21. igotskillssoccercamp.com.