Etc. . . .

Real Echo, who won 4 out of 5 starts last year in Ohio - including the Governor's Buckeye Cup and Best of Ohio Endurance - has been named 2004 Horse of the Year and handicap horse by the Ohio Thoroughbred Breeders and Owners. Others honored by the group were Fierce Cat as best 2-year-old male; Noon Win as top 2-year-old filly; Cayenne Red, 3-year-old male; Anna Em, 3-year-old filly; Oh So Easy, handicap female; Ben's Reflection, sprinter, and Loose in the Harem, broodmare of the year. . . . EQUUS/ Standardbred Station and Pokerpyramid.com will host the Horsemen's Texas Hold'em poker tournament at Sal's Italian Chop House in Lexington, Ky., on April 16 at 7 p.m., with proceeds to benefit the Kentucky Equine Management Internship program, Race for Education, and Operation Read. The entry fee is $500 per player competing for a $5,000 first prize, and spectators are invited with a donation of $50. . . . The New Vocations Race-

horse Adoption Program is raising funds with an oil painting of Ferdinand, the 1986 Kentucky Derby winner who died in a slaughterhouse, donated by the artist, Jeanne Shoborg. Information on the limited- and open-edition prints, available for $100 and $50 donations, is available at www.horseadoption.com and by phone at (937) 947-4020. . . . Fair Grounds participated in a fund-raising day at the races for the United Way of the Greater New Orleans area on Friday by contributing $5,000 to the organization. More than 400 fans used United Way tickets for free grandstand admission, accounting

for more than 20 percent of

the 1,934 fans on hand. . . . Horsepower Broadcasting Network International, British Columbia-based operator of a virtual parimutuel horse racing game available at several racetracks, has named Larry Simpson to the posts of president and CEO. He replaces the company's founder, Kim Hart, who died in February.