Etc. . . .

Hawthorne canceled its last two races Wednesday after jockeys and track management decided high winds had created unsafe track conditions. O'Hare Airport reported winds in excess of 40 mph with gusts over 50 mph. . . . The body of 21-year-old Irish apprentice jockey Timmy Houlihan was found on Tuesday morning in Lourdesville, County Kildare. While no foul play is suspected, Houlihan is the third Irish rider to die in recent months, following the death two weeks ago of Sean Cleary after injuries resulting from a fall at Galway and the fatal head injuries jump jockey Kieran Kelly sustained three months ago at Kilbeggan. . . . Soul of the Matter, a Grade 1 winner who has stood in Japan for the last six years, will return to the United States in 2004. KC International Bloodstock announced this week that it had privately purchased Soul of the Matter, 12, and will stand him at Ernest Auerbach's E. A. Ranches in Ramona, Calif., for a $4,000 fee.