By MIKE DILLON
It would be wise to forget Chase Alida's run at Ellerslie last start when he lines up in tomorrow's $40,000 Carter Holt Kiwifruit Cup at Tauranga.
The dogged little stayer found 58kg topweight just too much in Ellerslie's extremely testing conditions on Queens Birthday Monday.
"Peter [rider Peter Johnson] said he was travelling okay until the home turn at Ellerslie, but floundered once given his head," said part-owner, Waikato Racing Club racing manager John Oatham. "He said the ground was too deep and holding for him."
After more than a week of fine weather the Tauranga track yesterday was rated as a bit better than soft and almost certainly easy.
Showers are forecast for tomorrow, but even if they arrive before the Cup, the footing will still be considerably better than what Chase Alida has had to contend with.
Two further plus factors are Chase Alida dropping from 58kg to 56kg and his liking for the Tauranga track.
He won on this day two years ago and in this race last year he was beaten a head and a long neck by Tangarakau and Classic Spirit in a field which was at least as strong as his opposition tomorrow.
Classic Spirit has had only one start back this campaign and his improver's fifth that day at Te Rapa puts him right in with a winning chance. He can handle most types of tracks and despite his advancing age, retains plenty of ability.
The form may change with conditions considerably better than some of the winter tracks this field have experienced lately.
Blown Away and Create Havoc, in particular, have loved the deep wet footing which will almost certainly be missing this time. Create Havoc's record says it all - 13 of his 14 wins have been on heavy ground, the other on a soft track.
St Petrus is the improved horse. His dedication to duty was questionable a year ago, but his latest form has shown he is hitting the line hard with genuine determination.
Form runners Mr Brook, Yarradarno and Gold Moon stand out in the secind leg of the TAB double, the Todd and Pollock Haulage.
All three are versatile in terms of track conditions, each fights hard right to the finish and Mr Brook has a liking for Tauranga.
There looks to be no clear-cut favourite in the other open race on the programme, the $25,000 Zespri NZ Kiwifruit Sprint, any one of six could stand out late in betting.
Call Minder deserves a lot of respect after a 19-length win on this track in heavy conditions at the April meeting. She has not started since, but has previously won while fresh and can handle most types of tracks.
Racing: Stayer should relish Tauranga
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