Contact: Melissa Miller, Vice President and Director of Public Relations
Telephone: (859) 224-9448
E-mail: melissa.miller@excellerfund.org, mmiller997@aol.com

Photos available upon request

May 12, 2005
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Exceller Fund Horse and "Seabiscuit" Star, Rich In Dallas, Visits Children's Hospital; Will Spend Summer at Kentucky Horse Park

On Thursday, May 5, 2005, Rich In Dallas, one of the horses who played Seabiscuit in the recent hit move, paid a visit to the University of Virginia Kluge Children's Rehab Center in Charlottesville, Virginia. The rehab center provides rehabilitation for children recovering from traumatic injuries, as well as diabetes, cancer and other diseases. Dallas' visit with the children was set up last month by Paul and Kelly Linn of the Virginia Chapter of ReRun, and was approved by The Exceller Fund, which is the organization that owns Rich In Dallas.

The children and staff of the Rehab Center were very eager to meet him. All total, there were at least 20 children who were able to come outside to visit Dallas. He even "visited" a few others in their rooms, by putting his nose on the window and looking inside. The children laughed and waved back from their beds.

The Linns and Dallas spent several hours at the Center as the children filtered through as their tests/school/treatments allowed.

The children that came to see Dallas are all facing their own challenges of rehabilitation, not unlike those of Red Pollard and Seabiscuit in the movie. There were children recovering from brain tumor surgery, children recovering from severe injuries suffered in horrific traffic accidents, and children whose daily battles with their physical and medical conditions left them withdrawn and uninterested in the world around them. However, these children showed a remarkable interest in "Seabiscuit," and the staff watched their responses very closely. It was obvious that not only was this a "fun" thing for the kids, but something bordering on therapy that was carefully noted by the staff.

Rich In Dallas will next be going to The Kentucky Horse Park on Saturday, May 14, 2005. Rich In Dallas will be at the Horse Park this summer until the end of September. He will be in the daily "Parade of Breeds" show and available for the public to see. Information about Rich In Dallas and The Exceller Fund will be relayed to the audience, and additional information about The Exceller Fund will be made available at the Announcer's Booth following each show.

The Kentucky Horse Park has expressed its gratitude to The Exceller Fund for helping them continue their connection to Seabiscuit for their busy summer season. The Exceller Fund is loaning Rich In Dallas to the Horse Park in honor of I Two Step Too who unfortunately passed away a few months ago after a battle with a rare tumor. The Exceller Fund hopes that when people see the versatility displayed by Rich In Dallas, it can open the door for them to consider providing a second career to other Thoroughbreds when their racing careers are over. For people who may not be able to own a horse of their own, they can consider a donation to The Exceller Fund to help the organization in its mission of "Providing a Future Beyond The Finish Line." sm

The Exceller Fund received Rich In Dallas from an anonymous donor following a grass roots movement of fans who wished to see the gelded son of Hurricane Ed retired from racing. The Exceller Fund loaned Rich In Dallas to Old Friends last year to help the newly formed equine charity raise funds and provide publicity for their Open House event. The stay at Old Friends also allowed time for the preparation of a place for Dallas at the ReRun facility in Maryland. Ambitious plans for the Maryland facility were not fully realized, and in March 2005, Rich In Dallas was moved to the ReRun farm in Virginia run by Paul and Kelly Linn. The Exceller Fund has a number of horses at ReRun facilities and pays ReRun for the monthly care of these horses until they can be adopted.

The Linn's have already taken Rich In Dallas to a local horse show where he won a 5th place and a 2nd place ribbon in his very first show. After the summer season at the Horse Park is over, Rich In Dallas will be returning with Paul and Kelly Linn to their ReRun facility in Virginia where he will continue to make local appearances.

As a racehorse, Rich In Dallas competed from his 3 year old season in 1998 until the age of 9 in 2004. He raced 69 times, finishing first in 6 races, second in 10 races, and third in 12 races. In addition, he picked up a piece of the purse in another 17 races which meant he collected a "paycheck" about 65% of the time that he ran. He took a brief hiatus from racing during 2002 while the movie Seabiscuit was filmed. Dallas' most memorable part in the movie was when he was filmed running through the woods and across a field when his jockey was told to run him "...'till he stops." Dallas was also one of the Seabiscuits used in racing scenes when a quick burst of speed was needed. A quick look at his racing record confirms that he is a sprinting specialist.

The Exceller Fund is truly excited and honored to have Rich In Dallas appear at the Kentucky Horse Park for the 2005 summer season.

The Exceller Fund – Who We Are

The Exceller Fund was formed back in 1997 following the news of the tragic death of the champion racehorse Exceller in a slaughterhouse. The Exceller Fund consists of people who are racing fans and horse lovers who want to make a difference. While the cost to support one horse may be too much for a single person, by combining our resources, we are able to help many horses. The Exceller Fund is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that is 100% managed and run by volunteers, which keeps our administrative costs below 3%. Over 96% of the funds raised are used to care for our horses.

The Exceller Fund – What We Do

The Exceller Fund is unique in that we do not own a facility of our own. We work together with other organizations such as ReRun, EPONA, CANTER, Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation and others that can provide the day to day care and handling these horses need. We pay for the monthly expenses of horses that we have acquired either by direct purchase or donation until that horse is adopted. Some of our horses may not find an adoptive home due to their age or injury, and we have committed to provide for these horses for the rest of their lives.

The Exceller Fund also assists other organizations with their rescue, rehabilitation, adoption, and retirement efforts. We have purchased horses at feedlots and donated them to other organizations that are able to care for them, and we collaborate with other groups when the need is great.

More information about The Exceller Fund is available at http://www.excellerfund.org/

About ReRun

ReRun is dedicated to providing thoroughbred ex-racehorses a chance at a productive life by first evaluating temperaments, talents and physical capabilities and then matching the horses to new owners. We assist in the re-training and recuperation process with the help of volunteers and paid personnel skilled in horsemanship at ReRun facilities located in New York, New Jersey, Kentucky, Illinois and Virginia. Established in 1999, the Virginia Chapter of ReRun has had great success in finding wonderful homes for these incredible animals, placing more than 60 horses into adoptive homes. More information about ReRun is available at http://www.rerun.org/.