Record-breaking entries in every division for 2002 Chevy Trucks / NCHA World Championship Futurity

Purse will be $2,777,597 with 1,464 horses in five divisions

(Fort Worth, TX) -- The entries have counted and recounted for the 2002 Chevy Trucks/ National Cutting Horse Association World Championship Futurity. The National Cutting Horse Association and the City of Fort Worth will host the largest event in the organization’s history at its 41^st annual Futurity November 27^th through December 15^th.

This year the Open Futurity class includes 588 entries, which is traditionally the largest of the five during the Futurity will be vying for $1,607,064 in class prize money.

The Non-Professional division will host 377 entries with a total purse of $803,556. The 288 entries in the Amateur division will ride for more than $240,000.

More than 200 entries have been taken for the Limited Open and Limited Non-Professional classes. The Limited Non-Pro contenders will ride for a $69,152 purse while the Limited Open payout will be $57,025.

In sum, the 1,464 entries paid up for the 2002 Chevy Trucks / NCHA World Championship Futurity speak to the important role the Western lifestyle plays in the lives of NCHA members. Cutting is more than a hobby -- it is a business and a way of life.

"We are extremely excited about the number of entries for this year's Futurity. This is a significant indicator of the strength and popularity of the cutting horse industry throughout the country," said NCHA Executive Director Jeff Hooper.

The Futurity will pay out $2,777,597 through the course of 19 days, November 27 - December 15, 2002 at the Will Rogers Memorial Coliseum in Fort Worth, Texas. It will be the very first showing of these three-year-old cutting horses, and the stakes are high. With well over $2.7 million up for grabs, competition will be fierce and the action will be spectacular.

The show and its accompanying activities will run for 19 days, culminating on December 15 with the Open Futurity Finals. In addition to world-class cutting, the NCHA also hosts the Flowmaster presents the Kick-off to the Chevy Trucks World Championship Futurity, the Cowboy Christmas Extravaganza trade and gift show, nine cutting horse sales, a Cowboy Santa, and a celebrity cutting.

For more information about the National Cutting Horse Association, the 41^st Annual Chevy Trucks / NCHA World Championship Futurity, or the long list of activities that accompany the 19-day show, please call the NCHA at 817-244-6188 or visit www.nchacutting.com.