Augusta's cutting classic ready for 24th Annual Show

They wanted a show convenient for East Coast cutters. The sport was growing here in numbers, but many cutters did not want to travel all the way to Texas to compete in a first-rate futurity.

The first cutting competition was in January 1980, and ACCHA members never imagined it would grow to the scale it has. Many cutters now consider the Augusta event one of the top national shows. It is the largest and richest cutting competition east of the Mississippi.

"We thought we'd get 25 to 40 horses for that first show," said Norman Bruce, the first president of the ACCHA. Instead, there were 140 entries. The show was off and running.

Word spread in the Southwest about the Augusta Futurity's tight organization and added prize money. Top horses and their trainer-riders from the Southwest quickly made the Augusta Futurity one of their regular stops.

As the number of competitors grew, so did the prize money. The first year's purse of $64,489 grew to a record $799,343 in 1999. The total purse paid out since the beginning is more than $10 million. The show also has an annual economic impact of more than $10 million on the Augusta area.

The Augusta Futurity will be one of the qualifying competitions for the newly created Western Horseman Cup. The Western Horseman Cup/NCHA Championship Series began with the 2002 NCHA Futurity, extends through the 2003 aged-event year and will end with a one go-round finals to be held during the 2004 Augusta Futurity. This award will add an additional $250,000 to the total amount paid out to 4-year-olds of 2003 entered in aged-event competition.

And, although not a part of the Futurity itself, the Area 18 Youth Scholarship was created to focus attention on the accomplishments of the areas younger cutters.

The annual Horse and Carriage Parade will trot and roll through the streets of historic downtown Augusta on Sunday, January 26, 2003, beginning at 2 p.m. It is a major event of Augusta Futurity Festival Week, which surrounds the nine-day cutting horse competition January 24 - Feb. 1, 2003. This year's parade is expected to be the largest parade of horse-drawn vehicles in the South. For the first time, proceeds from the parade will be donated to therapeutic riding organizations. The famous eight-horse hitch Budweiser Clydesdales will be one of the parade's participants. One featured historic vehicle is an authentic detailed replica of the elite Abbot-Downing Hotel Coach circa 1880.

Also featured is the largest Western commercial exhibition in the Southeast. Over 170 booth spaces will fill the mezzanine and arena levels of the Augusta Civic Center. The nearby Bell Auditorium will also house over 60 booths and will be open from Wednesday, January 29 through Saturday, February 1. Artisans from all of the United States will display original paintings, pottery, handmade saddles and other items of interest to the Western horseman. Whether you are looking for a new pair of spurs or a cup of gourmet coffee, you can find it here.

The final Saturday, February 1, will provide an opportunity to buy your next horse at the Futurity Horse Sale. Held the same day as the Futurity Finals and sponsored by the Area 18 Cutting Horse Association, there is always a great selection of horses offered. The sale begins at 9 a.m.

For the last several years, tickets for more than 2,000 reserved seats have been pre-sold. The final rounds on the second Saturday night usually attract a standing-room-only crowd of more than 6,000.

Other events will include a bull riding and Family Fun Nights. Visit www.augustafuturity.com for a detailed schedule of events.