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By Ray Hickson

It’ll be a case of choose your own adventure this spring for promising sprinter General Salute with trainers Gerald Ryan and Sterling Alexiou taking an open mind into what lies beyond his resumption at Randwick on Saturday.

Trainer Sterling Alexiou (Pic: Bradley Photos).

The lightly raced five-year-old tackles the Group 2 $300,000 Darley Missile Stakes (1200m) with Alexiou confident he’s returned from a short break an even better version.

General Salute won the Group 3 Star Kingdom Stakes from the back on April 1 and was an eye-catching third in the Healy Stakes in Brisbane some six weeks ago.

“He hasn’t been exposed to a heavy but his soft track form is pretty neat,’’ Alexiou said.

“He’s going very well, if anything I think he’s going better than leading into that race at Eagle Farm.

“He got back that day and I think he just got back too far with how the track was playing. It was just where he was drawn and how the race panned out but I thought the run had plenty of merit.

“He seems a bit tighter in terms of his fitness so he shapes up well. I couldn’t imagine he would do anything but run really well.”

Alexiou feels early favourite Private Eye is clearly the horse to beat in the Missile but with rain overnight into Thursday keeping the track well into the heavy range he may not be there.

That would be a boost to General Salute, $3.70 with TAB on Thursday, who warmed up with a closing second in a trial on his home track just over a week ago.

“I was really happy with his trial leading into the Missile, he settled well and looked well balanced,’’ Alexiou said.

“When Tim (Clark) asked him at the 200m I thought he quickened up well, albeit the winner of the trial was off and gone.”

The Group 3 Show County (1200m) on August 23 is shaping as General Salute’s next assignment, though that could be revised depending on the outcome of the Missile.

“Where we head after this I’m not too sure, there’s a few pathways for him but how he performs will determine it,’’ he said.

“We haven’t locked in any lofty targets for him, we’ll see where he measures up.”

The Ryan/Alexiou stable has been in a short slumber with their last runners coming at the Randwick meeting two weeks ago and Fleeting Spirit in the Petaluma Handicap (1200m) will be their first starter since then.

The filly was sent for a break after collecting a maiden win on the Kensington track on March 26 and Alexiou is upbeat about her prospects this preparation.

“She’s always shown us a good deal of ability and it surprised us it took as long as it did for her to win a maiden,’’ he said.

“She’s going a lot better than she was last preparation, I expect her to run well but improve off whatever she does.”

General Salute runs second in a Rosehill trial on July 29

Fleeting Spirit, a half-sister to Stradbroke winner War Machine, led when she resumed last preparation and Alexiou felt it brought her undone so doesn’t want a repeat of that on Saturday.

“She raced a bit fresh and keen last prep and raced upside down first-up at Warwick Farm so just off the one trial it’d be nice if she could find a bit of cover and get a chance to settle and finish off,’’ he said.

All the fields, form and replays for Saturday’s Randwick meeting