Living The Life Goes Downhill in Las Cienegas

Hank Nothhaft's Living The Life has something the rest of the eight-horse field of older fillies and mares for the $100,000 Las Cienegas Stakes (gr. IIIT) doesn't—a graded stakes win.



What she doesn't have, however, may be more valuable to those challenging the winner of last year's Presque Isle Downs Masters Stakes (gr. II)—experience down the tricky 6 1/2-furlong hillside turf course at Santa Anita Park, where the Las Cienegas will take place April 11.



Gary Mandella, the trainer of the 5-year-old daughter of Footstepsinthesand, said he's not too worried about the challenges of the hill, because the mare has had experience on different types of tracks in England before relocating to the U.S. in 2014.



"In the case of a (mare) like her, who has raced in Europe and seen different kinds of things—uphill, downhill—it's not like she's a California-bred who hasn't seen anything like that before," Mandella said of the downhill course.



Living The Life, a synthetic specialist in England and in the U.S.—she's 7-4-2 on the surface from 16 starts—hasn't tried grass stateside, but Mandella felt forced to move her back to the turf in the absence of synthetic options. In England, she was 1-0-0 from six starts in grass races and in her one domestic race over dirt—the DraftKings Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint (gr. I)—Living The Life finished last in a 10-horse field. The Irish-bred mare will break from post 3 with Flavien Prat aboard.



"Everybody took their synthetic tracks out," Mandella said of the move to dirt by tracks like Del Mar and Keeneland. "I won't say we won't ever try dirt again, but for the time being, we'll stick to grass."



Living The Life's main challengers in the Las Cienegas appear to be downhill specialists Go West Marie and Heavens Stairway.



Go West Marie draws post 6 and will look to capture her first graded stakes win in the Las Cienegas. The 4-year-old daughter of Western Fame has won three straight races, including two down the hill, since picking up jockey Gary Stevens and will return the Hall of Fame rider Saturday.



Trainer Eddie Truman pointed to a change in tactics for the California-bred as the reasons for her recent success running down the hill—wins in the Sunshine Millions Filly and Mare Turf Sprint Stakes Jan. 24 and the Irish O'Brien Stakes March 14. Prior to a mile allowance/optional claiming win Dec. 28, the filly had been forwardly-placed, but Truman changed her running style to a closing one.

"She has some speed, which made it hard to change, but once we started taking her back, boy has she become a different horse," Truman said. "She took to it and was really relaxed. She became a push-button horse."



Heavens Stairway, a 5-year-old mare owned by AJM Racing and J B K Stable, was eighth in the Sunshine Millions Filly and Mare Turf Sprint when she stumbled at the start and during the dirt interlude coming down the hill, but has won five of seven downhill races in her career.



Home Journey will also take on Go West Marie again in the Las Cienegas after a second-place finish in the Sunshine Millions Filly and Mare Turf Sprint.



Blingismything, a third-place finisher in the Buena Vista Stakes (gr. IIT); Salsita, who won her turf debut down the hill at the $25,000 claiming level last time out; experienced miler Theatre Star, who will be making her first start under a mile; and turf rookie Unforgettable U, a maiden winner, complete the field.