Terrye Kemp rides As Smart As Einstein to top score in Ogden
$50,000 Amateur finals

Barbi Madgwick / Spinnies Star Olena second with 220.5

(Fort Worth, TX) — Seventy-two cutters entered to compete in the $50,000 Amateur division as the top representatives from their affiliates across the country at the 2002 Chevy Trucks / National Cutting Horse Association Western National Championships.

The top finisher in the class was Terrye Kemp riding As Smart As Einstein. Kemp, who lives in Weatherford, Texas, rode for 222.5 points in the finals. The Arizona CHA representative also earned the largest check of the class, which paid a total of $25,325.

Castaic, California, cutter Barbi Madgwick was the next highest-scorer with 220.5 points. Madgwick rode Spinnies Star Olena, who is owned by she and her husband, Lance. Her points added to the total score of the Pacific Coast CHA in the AQHA/NCHA Affiliate Challenge.

The Chevy Trucks / NCHA Western 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 Ogden cutting. In addition to the individual competition, all entrants in the show will also compete on behalf of their local NCHA Affiliate. This program, sponsored by the American Quarter Horse Association, allows NCHA affiliate organizations to earn points for their participation and success in the Chevy Trucks / NCHA Western National Championships. The AQHA provides $27,000 in prize money to the 10 affiliates that accumulate the most points during the show. Participants in the 2002 Chevy Trucks Western Nationals represent 56 NCHA affiliate clubs.

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 2002 Chevy Trucks / NCHA Western National Championships, or the sport of cutting, please call 817-244-6188 or visit www.nchacutting.com.