FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

From the NATIONAL CUTTING HORSE ASSOCIATION

CONTACT:   Amy Vorhes 817-244-6188 ext. 113

(Fort Worth, TX) — The Coors Distributing Company has entered into an agreement with the National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) that will greatly increase advertising and promotion of the NCHA’s "Triple Crown of Cutting" events held each year in Fort Worth.

The partnership between Coors and NCHA provides for Coors to provide a significant amount of advertising (both print and radio) toward the promotion of NCHA events and the NCHA’s trade shows held in conjunction with these cutting horse shows.

Advertising will appear in the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram newspaper, on a host of area radio stations and at point-of-sale locations throughout the Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex. Promotion will also include ticket giveaways to NCHA shows at other area events sponsored by Coors.

"The NCHA events are a significant part of the culture of Fort Worth," noted Coors Director of Marketing Marvin Branch. "Coors is proud to support major sports and social activities in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, and helping to promote the NCHA shows is a wonderful opportunity for us."

"Coors has been a longtime sponsor of the "Coors Cutting" held during each performance of the PRCA rodeo at the Southwestern Exposition & Livestock Show in Ft. Worth," noted Coors President & General Manager Larry Anfin. "This alliance with the NCHA is a natural extension of that support by Coors of the sport of cutting."

A major component of Coors’ promotional support of the NCHA will be targeted toward bringing new people to the NCHA trade shows, highlighted by the "Cowboy Christmas Extravaganza" held each year in conjunction with the NCHA World Championship Futurity.

The NCHA trade shows feature up to 100,000 square feet of retail shopping, focused on the Western lifestyle. A host of vendors offer products and services ranging from saddles, tack and horse trailers, to clothing, jewelry, books and art work.

"The trade shows have really been a ‘hidden jewel’ of the NCHA shows in Fort Worth," noted NCHA Executive Director Jeff Hooper. "When you think about it, the Cowboy Christmas Extravaganza is really the best shopping mall in the D/FW area at a time when everyone is doing their Christmas shopping.

"Cutters do a large part of their shopping at these events, but the general public really hasn’t been made aware of these unique and high-end shopping opportunities," Hooper continued. "It’s a goal of ours to use the trade shows as an attraction to bring more people out to the shows. They may come to shop, but they also get to experience the excitement of watching the best cutting horses in the world. We’re confident that if we can bring more people out to the shows, we’ll also generate more interest in owning and riding cutting horses."

The NCHA’s "Triple Crown of Cutting" events are each held at the Will Rogers Memorial Center. They include the Flowmaster Super Stakes (April 4 – 21, 2002); the Summer Spectacular, presented by the Emison Insurance Agency, Underwritten by ICH (July 9 – 28, 2002); and the Chevy Trucks World Championship Futurity (November 27 – December 15, 2002). These three events combined host nearly 4,500 total entries and distribute over $6.4 million in prize money.

The National Cutting Horse Association was founded in 1946 and is based in Fort Worth. The NCHA has over 14,000 members internationally. The NCHA sanctions over 1,400 cutting horse shows throughout the country each year, with total prize money in excesss of $26 million.

For more information on the NCHA, call (817) 244-6188, or visit the NCHA on the Internet at www.nchacutting.com.