Etc. . . .

Fort Erie Race Track will open its stable area on Sunday, and the track is scheduled to open for training on Monday morning. This year's 80-day Fort Erie meeting will open on Saturday, May 3. . . . The Chicago-based trainer Neil Boyce died March 8 at 83 in Oregon, according to published reports. Boyce, who operated a stable with his wife, Michele, trained 33 stakes winners, including Valid Vixen and Calestoga. . . . Former jockey Guy Contrada died in a Pawtucket, R.I., hospital on March 9 at age 74. Contrada rode for more than 23 years at various tracks throughout Canada and the United States, with victories in the 1960 Winnipeg Derby and Manitoba Derby among his career highlights.