FORT WORTH, TX --- The 2000 National Cutting Horse Association World Championship Futurity takes center stage in Fort Worth’s Will Rogers Memorial Center, November 23 – December 10 this year. A record 1,509 entries will see this year’s annual showcase event begin on November 23, Thanksgiving Day, as the nations top three-year-old cutting prospects compete for the “crown jewel” of the sport of cutting and a record $2.8 million in purse money and other prizes and awards. This year’s edition marks the 39th annual installment of the NCHA World Championship Futurity.
The year 2000 event marks the third year in recent history where the winning rider in Open competition will receive a guaranteed $200,000, making the World Championship Cutting Futurity one of the equine world’s richest events. In comparison, the first NCHA Futurity featured a little more than $18,000 in prize money. While a substantial amount at the time, this year’s record $2.8 million purse dwarfs that amount by a landslide.
The first NCHA Futurity was held in 1962, and featured 36 horses competing in a special format where winners were paid based on the score of their final run, rather than a cumulative score through the entire event. As a result the sport of cutting was changed forever, and the stage was set for the current format where only the top twenty horses advancing after two full go-rounds and then through the semi-finals advance to the finals and a shot at the prestigious championship honor.
In addition to the “Open” competition, which primarily features professional trainers and riders, World Championship Futurity competition includes levels for Non-Professional and Amateur contestants as well. The Futurity is limited to three-year-old horses which have never before been shown in any event involving cattle --- the “debut” of the top young prospects in the industry!
The NCHA World Championship Futurity is the first leg of cutting’s “Triple Crown,” the Great American Insurance Million Dollar Triple Challenge. A guaranteed $1 million dollars will be awarded to any horse, which wins the Open Division of the NCHA World Championship Futurity, the NCHA Super Stakes and the NCHA Derby, in succession. While this admirable feat was accomplished in 1982 by Smart Little Lena and again in 1983 by Doc’s Okie Quixote, it hasn’t been done since the inception of the Great American Insurance $1 million dollar award… perhaps this year’s Futurity Champion will be the first.
Other events on tap during this year’s 18-day Futurity celebration include the “Cowboy Christmas Extravaganza” Trade Show, featuring more than 150 exhibitors offering merchandise and amenities celebrating the western lifestyle, prestigious cutting horse sales, induction of NCHA Hall of Fame members and the much anticipated “Celebrity Cutting” event benefiting Fort Worth’s Cancer Care Services.
The sport of cutting has its roots deep in the Western ranching tradition, where good horses were a necessity in everyday ranch work and cattle handling. “Cutting” horses specialized in their ability to separate or “cut” one cow from a herd of others for branding, doctoring or shipping. The National Cutting Horse Association was formed in 1946 by a group of cowboys and ranchers who wanted to promote cutting competitions, standardize rules and preserve the cutting horses’ western heritage. Today, the Fort Worth-based NCHA represents more than 12,000 members in 22 countries and oversees more than 1,400 NCHA-approved shows annually with more than $22 million in total prize money.
Go-round tickets may be purchased at the door for $6; NCHA members with their membership card are entitled free go-round admission, along with one guest. Limited seating for the sold-out semi-finals and finals performances may be purchased at the Will Rogers box office for $10 each.
For more information on the 2000 NCHA World Championship Futurity, contact the NCHA at (817) 244-6188 or visit the official NCHA website at www.nchacutting.com.
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For more information, contact Pete Hale at NCHA, 817-244-6188