Golding joined the Hopes at their Woodend Beach establishment earlier this year in a last-ditch effort to get more driving opportunities.
The move has paid off spectacularly for both parties, with Golding already up to 12 wins this season compared with his tally of 23 for the previous four seasons.
''[The Hopes] have been really good - anything that Ricky [May] can't drive, I drive, really,'' Golding said.
''It's been bloody good how it's all worked out.''
That association continues at Orari tomorrow, with Golding taking the reins behind five Hope-trained runners as he seeks to drive his first winner at a Geraldine Trotting Cup meeting.
''They've got a few ones that go pretty good in there, but there are good fields in there tomorrow.''
Ranfurly Rulz (race 6) can be a hard horse to follow, despite winning three times from 16 starts. However, Golding found it hard to fault the gelding's second placing behind My Baby's Laughing at Timaru last Saturday.
''I think he got beaten by a pretty nice horse last time on Saturday - it was about 12 lengths away to third [behind first and second].
''But it's a bad draw - he's drawn 5 the second row over 1850m.
''He's definitely got the ability to win it. It's just whether he gets a good run or not. They might go like hell and cut each other's throats and he might come over the top of them.''
Donaldson (race 10) provided Golding with some career highlights during New Zealand Cup week, most notably a brave effort for fourth in the group 1 trotting free-for-all on New Zealand Cup day.
His subsequent 12th in the Dominion three days later raised a query over Donaldson's staying prowess and Golding feels tomorrow's distance of 2850m is at the extreme end of his range.
''I didn't think he was a two miler and this race is 2800m or something, so this will probably be his maximum distance.
''We're going to treat it like a trial for the Green Mile at Methven, so we'll drive him really cold. But he is going good anyway.''
Mossdale Major (race 3) will start off 10m in a c1-c2 mares 2500m, and Golding would like a cleaner run home than last week.
''She was actually a bit unlucky at Motukarara and she got home really good,'' he said.
''She has drawn bad, so we'll be driving her for a bit of luck, I'd say.''
One of Golding's ''outside'' drives looms as his best, when he jumps in the sulky behind Webb Ellis (race 5), co-trained by his flatmate Mitchell Kerr.
''I'm only driving it because he lives with me now,'' Golding said.
''He reckons he should be pretty hard to beat - he wants me to drive it with one run so we'll see how we go.''
Maiden Rome has trained on well since her sixth behind Helena Jet on Show Day, but Golding believes she's a place chance up against smart types such as Meticulous, Isaiah and Maiden Rome's stablemate Mossdale Conner in the $20,000 Geraldine Cup.
