Nothhaft Living The Life With Improving Filly

Filly Living The Life keeps forcing her connections to find new challenges, a task owner Hank Nothhaft and trainer Gary Mandella have gladly accepted.

Nothhaft initially purchased Living The Life when his buyer had some extra money left over from a budget that was largely being used to target another filly during a winter 2014 trip to England. But since February when Nothhaft landed the 4-year-old daughter of Footstepsinthesand, she has won four of five starts—earning well more than her purchase price while landing a spot in the $1 million DraftKings Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint (gr. I).

Her recent victories have been accomplished on synthetic tracks in the U.S. and England, but Mandella is looking forward to seeing what happens Nov. 1 in the Filly & Mare Sprint on the dirt at Santa Anita Park.

"It's been a lot of fun and a great ride. And on raw ability, she definitely deserves a chance to run against these fillies," Mandella said. "Whether her form is going to be as good on dirt or not, well, you don't know until you do it."

Nothhaft, chairman of the communications company Comverse, decided a couple of years ago to add some mares that he could sell after their racing careers or keep to be bred. Finding prices of winning fillies in the U.S. to be on the high side for his HnR Nothhaft Horse Racing operation and seeing increasing prices at yearling sales, Nothhaft thought there might be some value in buying race fillies in Europe.

Last year Nothhaft worked with Darby Dan Farm sales and bloodstock director Carl McEntee to shop for horses in England. Off a 2013 trip to England by McEntee, Nothhaft had purchased Macaabra, who won an allowance race at Santa Anita in early 2014. Off that good experience, Nothhaft sent McEntee back to England early this year.

According to Mandella, McEntee found a filly he liked a lot but she failed to pass a vet's exam. McEntee also liked Living The Life, although he viewed her as the lesser of the pair.

Living The Life had enjoyed some level of success racing on synthetic surfaces in Europe and McEntee and Nothhaft thought that with two meets this year on the Polytrack at Del Mar, they could send her to Mandella and target racing there. Also, she fit into the budget even with the anticipated purchase of the pricier filly. Nothhaft gave the approval.

One of the benefits of working with McEntee on his trips to England is that his brother Phil is based there. Living The Life was sent to Phil McEntee and the trainer soon brought out some previously hidden talent in the filly who had been placing in some handicap races but had lost her five previous starts at Lingfield.

"So the good filly that Carl wanted to buy doesn't vet out. Living The Life does, now he owns her," Mandella said. "Initially they left her with Phil to see what would happen. They thought when the other filly vets out, they'd bring them both over.

"So Phil gets her and she's a quirky filly. Phil has just 10 horses and spends some time with this filly and he figures her out mentally."

If this story were a movie, the inspiring music would start up now.

With her new owner and trainer, Living The Life won a handicap at Lingfield, then finished third in a tougher race (both at the seven-furlong distance of Saturday's Filly and Mare Sprint.)

Through her many starts at Lingfield, Living The Life she was eligible for a lucrative year-end race restricted to horses who had raced at the track. McEntee decided to enter the filly in the $247,000 race, and at 8-1 she ran the best race of her life, cruising to a 3 1/2-length score.

Mandella noted that at this point, Living The Life had returned enough earnings to her new owner to cover the purchase price.

Living The Life was shipped to the U.S. and Mandella mapped out a plan to start her in an allowance race on opening day there with an eye toward the Rancho Bernardo Handicap (gr. III) Aug. 17. But a minor foot issue scrapped that plan and she made her U.S. debut later in the meet, registering a clear victory in a Del Mar allowance race Aug. 7.

That foot issue would prove to be lucrative for Living The Life's connections. With just 10 days from her allowance win to the $147,000 Rancho Bernardo, which would be won by Filly and Mare Sprint rival Judy the Beauty, Mandella and Nothhaft, a Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association board member, decided to send her to the Keystone State for the $400,400 Presque Isle Downs Masters Stakes (gr. II).

On the synthetic surface at Presque Isle Downs, Living The Life responded to her latest challenge with another win, this time by a half-length over Disco Barbie in the 6 1/2-furlong race. At that point Living The Life had earned $458,694 for Nothhaft. She previously had earned $20,550.

"We got lucky that she had a foot issue because the plan was to run her in an allowance opening day and then the Rancho Bernardo," Mandella said. "We were upset about it at the time but it worked out perfect."

With that success in place, Nothhaft and Mandella are looking forward to Saturday's race and Living The Life's biggest challenge yet. They're not predicting victory but they also know they have a filly who responds to challenges.

"She's earned it and Hank's really enjoying it," Mandella said.