Eastern Junior Youth Co-Champions Dustin Mills & Christina Brewer

Duo each marks 221 points in Jackson, Mississippi, class finals

(Fort Worth, TX) — It was a close race for the championship of the Junior Youth division at the 2002 Chevy Trucks / National Cutting Horse Association Eastern National Championships. So close, in fact, that there are two champions.

Dustin Mills of Fulshear, Texas, and Christina Brewer of Ash Flat, Arkansas, tied with 221 points each. Under the new rules for the show, where there are no work-offs in the case of ties, Dustin and Christina were named Co-Champions.

Of the pair, Christina was the first to cut. She rode Magics Little Uno to win the first round with 220 points, then followed in her second work of the day with 221 points. Christina is the daughter of trainer Tim Brewer. Dustin, the 10-year-old son of trainer Mark Mills, rode Vibrant Docogold as the next-to-last rider in the finals.

Total Youth entries at this year’s Chevy Trucks Eastern National Championships topped out at 112. Each youth cutter automatically earned participation points for their respective affiliates, just like their adult counterparts. For their wins, Dustin and Christina each added 50 points to their respective affiliates – Bluebonnet CHA and Ozark Mountain CHA.

For the first time ever, entries at the Chevy Trucks / National Cutting Horse Association Eastern National Championships have topped 1,000. A record 1,005 contestants will vie for a share of the $288,391 purse in the big show which opened in Jackson, Mississippi on March 11. The annual cutting will continue through March 22, with cutting beginning every day at 8 a.m.

The City of Jackson, Mississippi, has been home of the Eastern Nationals cutting for 22 years. The 2002 show will be another 12-day cutting, and will bring 1,005 cutters and their families to the metro Jackson area. Past figures credit the Chevy Trucks / NCHA Eastern National Championships for bringing an economic impact to the city of $8 million.

The public is welcome to come see what the sport of cutting is all about at the Chevy Trucks / NCHA Eastern National Championships. Admission is free to watch the top cutting horses and riders from across the eastern United States.

The Chevy Trucks / NCHA Eastern National Championships are also home to the AQHA Affiliate Challenge. The Affiliate Challenge format encourages affiliates to send as many entries as they can to the Jackson cutting. In addition to the individual competition, all entrants in the show will also compete on behalf of their local NCHA Affiliate.

The sport of cutting has roots in Western ranching traditions, where good horses were a necessity for everyday ranch work and cattle handling. The National Cutting Horse Association was formed in 1946 by a group of cowboys and ranchers who wanted to promote cutting competition, standardize rules and preserve the cutting horses' Western heritage. Today, the Fort Worth-based NCHA represents over 14,000 people and oversees more than 1,400 NCHA-approved shows with more than $26 million in total prize money awarded annually. For more information about the NCHA, the Chevy Trucks / NCHA Eastern National Championships, or the sport of cutting, please call 817-244-6188 or visit www.nchacutting.com.