Trainer Andrew Forsman has his eyes on the heavens above as he waits to see just what sort of track surface will be on offer at Te Rapa on Sunday.
With plenty of midweek rain the official Saturday morning reading for the meeting was a Heavy10 with more rain and gusty winds expected over the next 24 hours.
Forsman is keen to get a run under the belts for as many of the five-strong team he has nominated on the day but is mindful he doesn’t want to hinder their Spring campaign preparations with a gut-busting run on a very testing track.
“You normally get a really good track to run on here at Te Rapa despite the weather, but with the rain we have had and the impending forecast I’m just not sure how many of mine will actually line-up on the day,” Forsman said.
“I will wait until tomorrow (Sunday) morning to make that call but if it looks like being a true heavy10 then we might only have one of our five on deck.”
Forsman was referring to impressive last start maiden winner Fat Cat (Written Tycoon) who will take his place in race seven on the programme.
“He (Fat Cat) has a run under his belt and does handle it fairly wet so he will most likely run,” he said.
“He is still early in his prep and carrying plenty of condition so he needs some racing to get him ready for the plans we have for him.
“Our aim at this stage is to run in the Hawke’s Bay Guineas (Gr.2, 1400m) here in a fortnight so he needs to start.
“He has come back a stronger horse this time in and while he is nowhere near the finished product, we think he can foot it in better grades. He will go against the older horses for this start and that will be a good test for him.”
Forsman was also keen to see one of his stable stars in Hinekaha (NZ) (Savabeel) have her first up run for the Spring but has erred on the side of caution and scratched her from the 5th race of the day, the rating 75 1400m.
“We were keen to start Hinekaha last week at Ellerslie but she drew wide and that put paid to that idea,” he said.
“She is ready to go but we aren’t going to give her a gut-buster when she has a lot of racing ahead of her over the spring and summer months.
“Our next option is a 1200m contest at Ellerslie next weekend which will be a little short for her but necessary to get her up and going.”
Forsman is also in two minds whether to start his winter star Force Of Nature (NZ) (Savabeel) in the feature flat race at Te Rapa, the Power Farming – We Keep You Growing (1200m), after he blotted an impeccable form line when finishing sixth at the venue in early August.
“He (Force Of Nature) didn’t pull up that well after missing out here last time, so we had him checked out and found he was quite sore in a hind leg after racing on a very heavy track that day,” he said.
“We gave him a week in the paddock and he is back and going well but I’m wary of running him on a similar track to the one that tripped him up.
“He has some big assignments ahead of him and we are hopeful he is going to show us just how good he is.”
Maidens Rambling On (NZ) (Almanzor) and Moonbeams (NZ) (Ace High) are likely to be saved for another day as well with Forsman indicating they both have a win in the near future on the cards once they strike a better surface.
While he may not have as many runners on the day as envisaged, Forsman was still a happy man after debutant Quondo (Wootton Bassett) ran out an impressive winner over 1200m at Matamata on Friday.
“Quondo is a very nice horse and were confident he could go well first-up,” Forsman said.
“We have him nominated for the 2000 Guineas (Gr.1, 1600m) at Riccarton in November and that was a very encouraging start to that plan.
“Whether he gets there will be up to him, but you can only win and he has got one under his belt in good style now.”
