Ben Pauling is looking to set Barters Hill on his novice chase career in October with the Kauto Star Novices' Chase at Kempton a possible main objective for the first half of the season.
The Grade One on Boxing Day, originally known as the Feltham, could be Barters Hill's first try at three miles over fences as the Gloucestershire trainer wants to give the six-year-old his first runs over two and a half miles.
Pauling reports Barters Hill, who was a leading staying novice hurdler last season, to have done tremendously well over the summer and is excited by the prospect of running him over fences.
"He's in great form. He's never summered so well. He looks magnificent, very strong and powerful, and I'm thrilled with the way he's come back," he said.
"He's doing two canters and looking great. He's on track for an end-of-October start at either Bangor on the 25th or Huntingdon on the 30th, both over two and a half miles.
"He's going novice chasing - that's what we bought him for. He schooled brilliantly over fences at the back end of last year and he should not be far off the top in the novice chasing order this season.
"I'm keen to come back to two and a half miles. I'm certain he stays three miles, but I don't think he needs to go there.
"I think we'll go back to two and half, certainly for the first half of the season.
"There's a two-and-a-half-mile novice chase at the Paddy Power meeting (at Cheltenham) or there's the Fuller's London Pride, a Grade Two, at Newbury at the end of November.
"Then we'll probably look to the Feltham at Christmas time."
He went on: "Depending on what happens early doors depends where we go afterwards. You might not see him after Christmas until Cheltenham because he had a hard-enough race at Doncaster in January (last season). A nice long break between would probably suit him well.
"He's a different kettle of fish this year. He has matured and looks fantastic."
While Barters Hill has helped put his trainer, who first took out a licence in 2013, on the map, Pauling is much more than a one-horse stable and will go to war with a 60-strong team.
"It's nice to have a flagship horse and we're lucky now we've got any one of 10 lovely horses that are well known and we've got some smart bumper horses from last year coming through," he said.
"I expect Le Breuil, Kalinisi Circle, Bally Gilbert and Smoking Dixie to hold their own come the winter in novice hurdles.
"Silvergrove will be Grand National-bound. He'll go for the Becher Chase and then we'll see where we go after that, but he'll definitely be aimed at the National.
"He was third at the Festival and was a bit of a trooper last season and has come back fantastic. We're excited about him this season.
"Local Show will go straight to the Sodexo Gold Cup at Ascot on October 31. He's now rated 145 and wants soft ground so it didn't really suit him at Cheltenham on quick ground over four miles.
"Some really exciting times ahead."
Pauling had an open day for owners last weekend and announced his stable has a sponsor in Cotswolds property specialists Butler Sherborn.
"For the first year we had an owners' day rather than an open day, but it was still fantastic to have about 250 people there," he said.
"It was really good fun and we paraded 48 horses out of the 60 that were here.
"We've got a lot of nice novices for the season to come and a few of the more recognised names as well, which was great to see.
"I think all the owners were delighted to see them. They all looked well.
"We're over the moon to be sponsored by Butler Sherborn. They are a local company but are expanding and starting to make big waves in the industry. We are keen to go forward together."