Chiquita Pistol / Tag Rice dominate 2003 Super Stakes Open semi-finals with 223

Sweet Lil Pepto / Mike Mowery come in with 220 points

(Fort Worth, TX) — Only two horses in the history of the National Cutting Horse Association have ever been Triple Crown winners. As of this evening’s Open semi-finals in the 2003 Flowmaster / NCHA Super Stakes, though, the 2002 Futurity Champion, Chiquita Pistol, is still in the hunt for a second major win.

Chiquita Pistol, a four-year-old mare sired by Smart Little Pistol, marked the high score of the Open semi’s – 223 points. The semi-finals are the last elimination round before tomorrow evening’s all-important finals where the Open Champion will earn over $102,000 of the classes’ $831,000 plus purse. Tag Rice of Buffalo, Texas, is the horse’s trainer. Wallace (Tooter) Dorman of Oakwood, Texas, is her owner.

The next high score, 220, was marked by Weatherford, Texas, trainer Mike Mowery riding Sweet Lil Pepto. The four-year-old stallion sired by Peptoboonsmal is owned by Rancharrah of Reno, Nevada.

In addition to Sweet Lil Pepto and Chiquita Pistol, 20 other horses earned the magic score of 215.5 points or better to advance to the Open finals, which will be broadcast live on pay-per-view through Cowboy TV and Dish Network.

The 2003 Flowmaster / NCHA Super Stakes & Super Stakes Classic cutting began at 8 a.m. on Wednesday, April 2 and will continue daily through Sunday, April 20. A complete daily schedule and list of classes is available on the NCHA website at www.nchacutting.com. Admission is free through April 18^th, and then tickets begin at just $5.

The Super Stakes is a show for only the offspring of nominated stallions. However, with 140 of the industry's top sires on the list of nominees, the show is far from "exclusive."

Each stallion owner paid $3,500 to subscribe, the vast majority of which is added directly to the event’s purse. In addition, each Super Stakes entry paid a fee of $1,500 or more depending on the event division and time of payment, with a major part of that fee adding to the purse.

Flowmaster, a household name in car racing circles, is the title sponsor of the Super Stakes & Super Stakes Classic for the second year now. Over the past 19 years, Flowmaster's patented technology has also blazed new trails in the passenger car and tow vehicle markets. Their customers are saving 100 million gallons of fuel per year—a subject of increasing importance for everyone. Learn more about Flowmaster by visiting their booth in the Coors Light Trade Show during the cutting, or visit www.flowmastermufflers.com.

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 2003 Flowmaster / NCHA Super Stakes & Super Stakes Classic, or the sport of cutting, please call 817-244-6188 or visit www.nchacutting.com.