Racing: Soft tracks trainers' ally

If our sorry excuse for a summer continues until the end of January, Te Aroha trainer Terry Wenn will be the last one complaining.

Wenn and training partner, son Scott, desperately need anything but sun-baked tracks if they have any hope of getting their exciting filly Anne Boleyn to the New Zealand Oaks on January 22.

A $30 long-range hope on the TAB's fixed-odds market for Trentham, Anne Boleyn takes another step closer to Oaks glory in a maiden 1600m event on her home track today.

But each time the Grosvenor filly steps out the Wenns half expect it may be her last race in this campaign.

"I've got no doubt she has got the ability for the Oaks, but the problem with her is that she is feeling the hard tracks a little bit," said Terry Wenn.

"If she is going to be any hope, we need the fire out. I'm not going to murder her to get to Trentham."

The half-sister to group two placed Auckland Blues and stakes placed stayer Annotate showed at Tauranga last time out that she is screaming out for more ground.

Stepping up to 1600m from 1300m Anne Boleyn fought strongly for third behind This Time Rodney and has gone on the right way in training since.

Wenn tips her green but talented stablemate Melinite as toughest to beat today.

There was a lot to like about the three-year-old gelding's debut for sixth at Tauranga on November 24 and Wenn says the extra 200m will suit.

"He ran on well at Tauranga and I'm sure he learned a lot from the experience. He wouldn't have to improve much to be right there."

Wenn is also excited about the prospects of stablemate Kash In Time in the intermediate 1300.

The mount of Michael Coleman has little form to recommend him and has been off the scene since April.

But Wenn says no horse at Te Aroha has worked as well in recent weeks and is expecting an enormous fresh-up run from the underrated five-year-old.

"He's really strengthened up a lot since he last raced and is a completely different horse this time in," said Wenn.

Kash In Time may need to be.

He clashes with two smart types, Ocean Melodie and La Scala today.

Ocean Melodie was rated good enough to contest last season's Oaks and ran a close fifth in the group two Royal Stakes in the same campaign.

La Scala wasn't at her best when eighth last time out in her only Australian run in September.

In a previous start the Trevor and Stephen McKee trained filly ran third as favourite to Pin Up Boy in the Northland Breeders Stakes at Ruakaka.

La Scala is another long-range Oaks hope and yesterday was rated a $25 chance with the TAB.

Most Oaks interest at Te Aroha today, however, centres on the TAB's $12 Trentham fancy, the Roger James trained Clarissa in the intermediate 1600.

The Zabeel filly looks to have a huge staying future judging by her impressive last start 1600 win at Ellerslie on November 27.