For Immediate Release

December 13, 2001

From the NATIONAL CUTTING HORSE ASSOCIATION

Contact: Amy Vorhes

817.244.6188 ext. 113

(Fort Worth, TX) -- The ladies continued to dominate the Non-Professional division in the Semi-Finals of the National Cutting Horse Association's 40^th Annual World Championship Futurity on the evening of Thursday, December 13.

High scorer Bucki James rode to the herd as the first rider in the last of five bunches, and rode out with a score of 221 and the lead in the Non-Pro Semis. James, of Purcell, Oklahoma, qualified for the Semis by one-half point, having marked 218.5 points in the first round and 210 in the second round.

However, when it came time to turn up the heat, James and her ride, Rambo, were cooking. Rambo is a DNA gelding sired by Docs Stylish Oak out of Merada Missy by Freckles Merada. James' NCHA earnings sit at $122,543 to date, while the Futurity is Rambo's first showing.

Two other ladies, Julie Hansma and Vicki Bass, marked second-place scores of 218.5. Hansma, who lives in Weatherford, Texas, and is the wife of trainer and Futurity winner Paul Hansma, rode Duallys Wild. Bass, of the Fort Worth Bass family, was first up in the fourth bunch on Fancy Blue Moon.

Each of the remaining 21 Non-Pros who have held together through three rounds of elimination will have a chance to cut for a chunk of the $781,685 Non-Pro purse in their division finals, which will begin at 5 pm on December 14 in Will Rogers Memorial Coliseum.

Additional prizes include a Remington bronze from Sam's Club, Gist Silversmith's trophy buckles, Professional's Choice products, M.L. Leddy's saddles and briefcases, and a score of other items. The $345,000 added money for the NCHA World Championship Futurity is provided by the Fort Worth Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce in cooperation with the City of Fort Worth.

The National Cutting Horse Association's 40^th Annual Futurity will wrap up 20 days of fierce competition on the evening of December 16 with the Open Futurity Finals and Champions Party thereafter where all of the show's champions will be the guests of honor.

In addition to world-class cutting, the NCHA also hosts the Cowboy Christmas Extravaganza trade and gift show, nine cutting horse sales, a Cowboy Santa, and a celebrity cutting. All of the NCHA's sponsors are on hand, including Sam's Club, Chevy Trucks, John Deere, Flowmaster, Sooner Trailers, and many, many more.

For more information about the National Cutting Horse Association, the 40th Annual NCHA World Championship Futurity, or the long list of activities that accompany the 20-day show, please call the NCHA at 817-244-6188 or visit www.nchacutting.com.